Report: General Motors Business Environment and Strategic Analysis

This report provides an overview of the business environment of General Motors (GM), a public limited company. It begins by defining the business environment and its influencing factors, including both internal elements like employees and management, and external macro factors such as political, technological, legal, and economic conditions. The report then explores different types of organizations, focusing on public limited companies like GM, and their objectives. It delves into the positive and negative impacts of various macro factors on GM's operations, such as political instability, technological advancements, and economic fluctuations. A SWOT analysis is conducted to identify GM's strengths and weaknesses, alongside opportunities and threats in the market. The interrelation of GM's internal strengths and weaknesses with external factors is discussed, using examples like the company's withdrawal from the Indian market. Finally, the report concludes that GM operates within a dynamic business environment, significantly affected by both internal and external factors, emphasizing the importance of strategic analysis for its continued success.

Business and Business Environment
Business and Business Environment

 Business environment consist of macro external factors like political,
technological, legal, economic, and internal factors within the business
organisation like employees, management, customers financial resources
which affects the company's operations.
 The current report will include different types of organisations, their size
and scope, how the different organisation functions co related with each
other, how external factors affects the General Motor and its SWOT
analysis.
INTRODUCTION

 Public Limited company: The primary objective of a plc is to increase the
shareholders value and to raise more capital by issuing IPOs. The secondary
objectives include all the goals and targets for which it is formed. General Motor
is a public company and is listed on NYSE, S&P 100 and 500 component.
 Private companies: The primary objective is to survive and increase the profits
margins and enlarge its market share.
 Voluntary organisation: These are the companies that are formed to serve the
social needs which are not met by the other two types. It is bunch of people who
comes together to voluntarily form an organisation which will work to achieve
its objective.
Different types of organisations and their purposes

 Political factors: If the political conditions are not stable, high
level of corruption is existing in the operating countries,
globalisation opposed political parties will negatively impact its
operations worldwide.
 Technological Factors Excessive automation in the company
will lead retrenchment of employees which will directly harm its
image and brand value. Likewise, installation of new technology
in its products will increase the interests of the customers and it
will impact the profitability of GM in a positive way.
 Economic factors: There are various economic factors that
affects the GM's business operations like purchasing power of the
customers, GDP of the country, economic growth, interesting
rates prevailing in the country, inflation rate, exchange rates. As
GM operates in many countries, the exchange rates largely
affects the daily operation of the organisation.
Macro factors' positive and
negative impact on GM

Strengths
• The Biggest auto mobile giant in the
world.
•GM has tremendous brand image.
• Operating on large scale therefore
cost effective operations.
•Pool of expertise and skilled workforce.
Weaknesses
 Lack of diversity in the operations
 Centralisation in decision making.
 Unable to grab the markets in
emerging nations.
Opportunities
 Making organisational structure
decentralised to encourage
creativity.
 Market expansion in developing
nations.
 More technology.
Threats
 Cut throat competition in
international markets.
 Government's unfavourable rules
and regulations
 High frequency of technology
obsolescence.
Identifying strengths and weakness and external
analysis of GM

 Competition: GM faces intense level of competition in
the automotive industry because of the large numbers
of firms in the market and their tendency of following
cost leadership strategy.
 Bargaining power of GM customers: Customers have
fair level of force in shifting from one brand to other.
 Bargaining power of GM suppliers: Sufficient
amount of supplier has kept the force at moderate level.
 Substitutes: Not many options as substitutes has
medium force for the GM.
 Threat of new entrants: High entry costs and barrier
has made this force low for GM.
External analyses

 GM enjoys very good reputation in the global markets. But when the
political factors in any of its operational countries changes it has a critical
impact on its bran image.
 Like very recently GM withdrew its operations from Indian market and
this incident had an advert impact on the brand image and also the stock
value of the company was affected.
Interrelation of GM's strengths and weakness with
the external factors:

 From the above report, it has been summarised that GM being a public
traded company has a very vast size in its operations.
 It was seen that the company works in a very dynamic business
environment. The internal factors like customers, management and
external factors like political, legal affects the company's operations.
 GM's internal strengths and weakness are found out by the SWOT analysis
model.
Conclusion

Botha, A., Kourie, D. and Snyman, R., 2014. Coping with continuous change
in the business environment: Knowledge management and knowledge
management technology. Elsevier.
Wetherly, P., 2014. The business environment: themes and issues in a
globalizing world. Oxford University Press.
References