Do research to establish the kinds of environmental scanning and assessment companies actually perform. What link, if any, can you find between extent of environmental scanning and business performance? [Note: Many academic journals, magazines and newspaper articles and company websites etc. can help you to accumulate evidence. For example: Baron (2006); Elenkov (1997); Garg, Walters and Priem (2003); Grant (2003); Kefalas and Schoderbeck (1973); Kourteli (2005); Lenz and Engledow (1985); Xu, Kaye and Duan (2003)].

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

To this list might be added:
Dess, G.G., Lumpkin, G.T. and Taylor, M.L. (2005) Strategic Management (Ed. 2., chapter 2)
Kiesler, S. and Sproull, L.S. (1982). ‘Managerial response to changing environments: perspectives
on problem sensing from social cognition’, Administrative Science Quarterly, (vol. 27, pp. 548-
570)
Lutz, W. (1997), ‘Long-Term Macro Models of Population, Development, and Environment’,
Research in Human Capital and Development (Vol. 11/A, pp 249-278)
O'Connell, J.J. & Zimmermann, J.W. (1979) ‘Scanning the international environment’, California
Management Review, (vol. 22/2, pp. 15-23)
There is something of a paradox that although an understanding of the macro and micro
environments has arguably never been more important, in terms of numbers of research articles
published, it seemingly receives less academic attention than in the past. Of course, scanning activity
is costly and does not guarantee success at isolating critical variables and events in advance.
Demonstrating a definitive empirical link between scanning and performance is difficult because it is
virtually impossible to isolate the scanning variable(s) from the many other variables that can bear
on performance. Research often uses executive opinion about scanning and takes a broad definition
of performance. Davis (2008) for example presents a recent doctoral study: ‘Does environmental
scanning by systems integration firms improve their business development performance?’
Most enterprises limit external scanning to their industry sector(s) including key competitors,
government and other regulatory developments likely to bear on their activities, including
membership of sector representative bodies for the purpose of to lobbying. Entry to new sectors and
overseas markets typically results in commissioning of external research projects to address specific
issues of concern.