This is a formal business report that you might provide to a CEO or Board of Directors. Conduct external, internal, and integrative analysis. Describe the key issue/problem and put forth a clearly stated action the firm should take. But, dont stop there. The CEO would want to see more than some analysis and a quick statement of the recommendation. You will submit a document that summarizes your analyses describes the key problem/issue, explains your recommendation, and provides clear support for why your recommendation will work. This should be accomplished in 4 to 6 pages for the main report, 12pt. font, 1-inch margins. DO NOT spend time recapping case facts and issues. Within the 4 to 6 pages, you should refer to full-length versions of your analytical frameworks that you will include after the report as exhibits. These exhibits should be much more thorough than the highlights provided the main report. Thus, a successfully executed Action Report will typically be many more than 6 pages long all included.
Typical steps for this report include:
- EXTERNAL ANALYSIS: You should include PESTEL and 5-Forces, but the choice of which others you include is at your discretion. After completing the external analysis frameworks, provide a short synthesis of the frameworks, highlighting a few key implications.
- INTERNAL ANALYSIS: You should include VRIO analysis, but the choice of which others you include is at your discretion. After completing the internal analysis frameworks, provide a short synthesis of the frameworks, highlighting a few key implications.
- INTEGRATIVE ANALYSIS: iSWOT and Scenario Analysis are two of the best ways to do this step. Select one or both. The idea is to combine internal and external issues and generate possible solutions.
- PROBLEM FORMULATION: Provide a very brief description of what you consider to be the single largest strategic issue/problem/opportunity based on sections 1 3.
- RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENTATION: What specific action should the company do? This needs to be explained in some depth, with implementation steps.
- RECOMMENDATION JUSTIFICATION: Persuasively and logically validate why your recommendation is a great one. Relate it back to key points from your analysis. Explain how it fits or enhances the firms strategy.
- RECOMMENDATION VALUE CREATION: Demonstrate the impact your recommendation will have. Explain how it will create value. Feel free to estimate impact using some assumptions about how things might unfold.
Because your audience is the CEO, not your instructor, this should not be an essay. Most importantly, the actual report should contain only the highlights of your analyses and simply refer the reader to the full versions that you will include as exhibits at the end of the report. Strive to make this document have very precise and crisp language. Avoid maybes, coulds, shoulds, overly long sentences, unsupported assertions, passive voice, etc. Format it to be very easy to flip/scroll around and find the various elements of the report quickly.
Specific formatting guidelines are: 4-6 single-spaced pages, 1 margins, and 12pt font. Exhibits (e.g., financial analysis, 5-forces analysis, VRIO analysis) should be included in an appendix/exhibits as additional pages. Be sure to appropriately reference your exhibits in the body of the action report.