BBMM506 Midterm Instructions and Preparation
I. Preparation
Students will receive the case study for analysis, one week before the midterm exam. During this
period, students are required to conduct background research about the industry mentioned in the
case study. Students need to assume that they have been hired by a large company to conduct a
strategic analysis of their industry and company. Students are expected to conduct an external
business environment analysis of the industry. Students must then perform an internal strategic
resource analysis of their client company. Students must then summarize their analyses using the
TOWS approach and discuss possible strategic options.
In particular, students need to research and conduct analyses on:
1. The key business environment factors (PESTLE) that have a significant impact on the industry
(factors with less impact need not be mentioned).
2. Determine whether the industry is attractive or not, considering the threats of new entrants,
the level of rivalry among existing competitors, the bargaining power of buyers, the threat of
substitutes and the bargaining power of suppliers (Porter’s Five Forces Analysis)
3. Research the strategic capabilities and core competencies of the client company and
evaluate these by determining whether they are valuable, rare, inimitable (difficult to
imitate) and if the client is organized to exploit these resources (VRIO analysis).
4. Summarize the above findings into a TOWS matrix (threats, opportunities, relevant strengths
and weaknesses, discussing any insights arrived from the analysis.
5. Based on their TOWS analysis, students should explore whether any of Porter’s generic
strategies can apply to the situation. Students should be ready to give sufficient examples of
these chosen strategies in the context of the case study.
II. The Midterm Exam (30% of final grade)
• The midterm will be held during Week 4 (Session 4.2) during normal class hours.
• It will run for 90 minutes and will contain 5 to 6 essay type questions
• This is a OPEN BOOK exam. Study slides/notes are permitted to be viewed while the exam is
held. Students are not allowed to use search engines or other computer applications other
than Moodle and a word-processor.
• Students are not allowed to copy or share their answers with other students. Similarities
between a student’s answers and other sources (such as classmates and Internet sources)
will be checked through Turnitin. Any unexplained similarities may result in a misconduct
charge and if found guilty, all students involved will receive a zero mark for the assessment.
• Answers to questions should be entered in a separate document file (Answer Form) and
then uploaded into the appropriate link on Moodle.
• NO EXAMINATION QUESTION PAPER (OR PART THEREOF) IS ALLOWED TO BE COPIED OR
SHARED WITH ANY OTHER STUDENT.