Assignment 1

S.W.O.T. Analysis

Leading Auto Company was established in 1920. From its founding days, the company has built its reputation on producing quality vehicles at an affordable price. The company currently employs 20,000 staff members worldwide. In the past, Leading Auto Company's staff turnover rate was at 40%. The company implemented a staff development program that will help create advancement opportunities for employees, as well as improve job skills. Over the years, they have been able to geographically target their market and measure their demand.

In their last financial reports, Leading Auto Company achieved a 30% increase in revenue over their competitors. However, in order to remain marketable against their competitors, more attention should be focused on technology and environmentally-friendly vehicles.

The government is considering assessing additional fines to automobile companies who do not follow strict environmentally-friendly guidelines when manufacturing cars.

Competition for Leading Auto Company, Inc. is very aggressive because their competitors include large conglomerates like Ford, GM and Toyota. Due to the 2009 automobile manufacturer's bailout the company's brand image declined among its customers and they experienced an all time low customer satisfaction rating. Leading Auto Company began an aggressive marketing campaign to win back their customers. They implemented a 60 month interest-free financing program. In 2010, the company diversified their services by partnering with major loan companies that provide both auto and home financing and insurance. Other programs Leading Auto Company developed and implemented included an extended warranty program that increased warranty to 100,000 miles, and a trade-in program giving customers a $5,000 buy-back on any vehicle they trade-in regardless of vehicle's condition.

After the bailout, a number of dealerships were forced to close due to the franchise structure of the company. To help overcome this challenge, Leading Auto Company implemented a dealer scorecard to track performance and personal-based approach towards customers.

Assignment:

1. Conduct a S.W.O.T. analysis on Leading Auto Company;

2. In a minimum of 500 words, describe how Leading Auto Company can utilize this information to its benefit. Include how Leading Auto Company can turn its weaknesses and threats into strengths and opportunities.

The requirements below must be met for your paper to be accepted and graded:

3. Write between 500 - 750 words (approximately 2 - 3 pages) using Microsoft Word.

4. Attempt APA style, see example below.

5. Use font size 12 and 1" margins.

6. Include cover page and reference page.

Reference material (data, dates, graphs, quotes, paraphrased words, values, etc.) must come from sources such as, scholarly journals found in EBSCOhost, online newspapers such as The Wall Street Journal, government websites, etc. Sources such as Wikis, Yahoo Answers, eHow, blogs, etc. are not acceptable.