Signature Assignment: Strategic Management Journal Part 1

Assignment Content

Read the Strategic Management Project Background document.

Review the resources listed at the end of this assignment along with the terms and concepts discussed this week to prepare for this assignment:

strategic management
competitive advantage
strategic plan
mission statement
vision statement
core values statement
AFI

Create a Word document and title it Strategic Management Research Journal Part 1.

Write a 500- to 700-word response to the following prompts as your journal entry:

Justify the guiding principles required for preparing effective statements that describe the mission, vision, and the core values of an organization as covered in the assigned reading.
Compare whether Caterpillar Inc.’s mission, vision, and core values conform to the guiding principles in the text and support organizational strategic planning principles as justified in prompt #1. Refer to the Caterpillar Inc. website listed in the Resources section below.
Assess what Caterpillar Inc.’s current competitive advantages and disadvantages are by considering their business partners, allies, and general operations. Research the assignment resources listed below. Based on your research, evaluate Caterpillar’s current competitive advantages and disadvantages.
Note: You will use information from this entry in your Strategic Management Research Project Presentation due in Week 5.

The journals should be a simple document–double spaced, with your name, date and the title of the assignment (“Research Journal Part 1”, as an example). It doesn’t have to be APA format, but should have citations and a reference page. Your journal should cover all of the prompts in the assignment description. (Often students forget the last prompt or two).