You are to produce a review of the strategic situation of Kepak, the Essay

You are to produce a review of the strategic situation of Kepak, the Irish meat company, based on the provided case study Kepak and the future of the Irish beef industry - Essay Example sis of the organization’s internal operating environment to identify the organization’s strengths and weaknesses (Irish Fresh Meat Exporters, Ireland 1981). The firm should then select the strategies that build on the organization’s strengths and correct its weaknesses in order to take advantage of the external opportunities and counter external threats. The final step would be to implement the strategies (Bell, Mcloughlin, Shelman, 12). The implied (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) SWOT analysis, however, is not entirely sufficient (United States Department of Agriculture Risk Management Agency, 2009). Other strategies need to be adapted as will be discussed in this paper. Kepak’s challenges inspired its CEO, John Horgan, to formulate new business strategies that will influence the firms resurface. Having realized its unfavorable business environment, Kepak adapted new business strategies that were sustainable. Kepak’s business environment suffered threats because of external forces. The Irish beef industry consequently faced adverse economic constraints. These external forces endangered the integrity and profitability of the company’s business. Kepak found itself competing against firms in markets with substantially lower costs structures. Policy makers began to undervalue the potential of the food and agribusiness sector. Another challenge in Kepak’s business environment was the unpredictability in financial performance from year to year. There were no listed companies, so access to capital was through borrowing or trading profits which is a very cash-hungry business. Kepak suffered from the swings and roundabouts of the beef market. It also suffered the inability to plan effectively for the future (Bell, Mcloughlin, Shelman 2-3) Kepak’s competitive forces within its business environment can be analyzed using The Porter Five Forces Model illustrated on the following page. It was developed by Michael E. Porter at the Harvard