Analysis of the External Environment of Business
The Technological Environment
The external business environment consists of four elements, they are as follows: Political, Economic, Social and technological. It would be impossible to analyse the whole environment in one essay, I have therefore decided to focus my essay on the technological environment. I have chosen this area to focus on because as Palmer and Hartley point out, it is one area that is forcing immense change in the external business environment.
The business environment is at present moving through a dynamic and turbulent phase driven by technological change, globalization and increasingly competitive markets' (Palmer and Hartley 2002).
I will be researching and analysing the major changes that have taken place in the technological environment over the last ten years and explore how they have affected business practice. I will also be discussing how these changes have implicated on the Public Relations Industry.
Technology is defined as:
the sum of knowledge of the means and method of producing goods and services' (Bannock et al 2003).
This authoritative definition of technology assumes technology only refers to the artifacts themselves rather than the way they are used and the theories governing their application. Human knowledge however, is an essential ingredient of technology and I therefore prefer the following definition:
The application of available knowledge and skills to create and use materials, processes and products' (Needle 2004)
This wider definition relates the application of knowledge to the wider processes of business practices i.e. the production and promotion of goods and services. Further it indicates how technological de...
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...al change has transformed businesses activates which has brought huge economic advantages to many businesses. We have seen new markets develop through the increased use of the internet and countries prosper through the development of the global communications network.
I can therefore conclude that technological change has had the biggest affect on the external business environment, at all spatial levels, than any other factor.
Bibliography
Reference
The Business Environment: Fourth Edition 2003
By Ian Worthington and Chris Britton Financial Times: Prentice Hall
The Business Environment: Fourth Edition 2002
By Adrian Palmer and Bob Hartley McGraw Hill Education
Business in Context: Fourth Edition 2004
By David Needle Thompson Learning
The Penguin Dictionary of Economics Seventh Edition 2003
By Graham Bannock, R. Baxter and Evan Davis Penguin Reference
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Show MoreA business can either take a step forward or a step back depending on the external and internal influences and how they handle them, they can either flourish or enter stages of degradation and cessation. External and internal influences on a businesses plays a part in the opportunities that arise in the industry the business operates in, otherwise the business may choose to venture out of it’s defined industry depending on the opportunities at hand. Businesses are affected by internal and external influences to a degree where they are either benefiting or suffering from the way they handle opportunities that arise. The five articles depict the problems encountered by businesses no matter their size or industry.
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Technological Innovations: The speed at which technology is evolving is more impactful more than ever before. Nevertheless, technology change isn’t alone responsible for transformation, but it is also, about how it is used and adopted by customers, partners, competitors, and stakeholders.
“When technology changes, things happen fast, people do things differently, laws are changed, and whole markets appear.” - Stuart Greenfield