The document discusses environmental scanning, which involves systematically collecting external information to reduce uncertainty and provide early warnings of changes. It defines scanning, describes different types (passive vs. active; irregular, periodic, continuous), levels (task, industry, macroenvironment), and goals (alerting to threats, opportunities, trends). Effective scanning programs identify critical trends, examine past reviews/plans, and require dedicated staff and volunteers to rigorously review information sources.

1. Let’s talk about…

2. Definition of environmental
scanning
Background
Defining environment
Defining scanning
Getting started

4. The process of
collecting, analyzing, and distributing
information for tactical and strategic
purposes

5.  environmental scanning is "a kind of
radar to scan the world
systematically and signal the
new, the unexpected, the major and
the minor" (p. ix)

6.  thesystematic collection of external
information in order to
(1) lessen the randomness of
information flowing into the organization
and
(2) provide early warnings for
managers of changing external conditions

7.  detecting
scientific, technical, economic, social, an
d political trends and events important
to the institution,
 defining the potential
threats, opportunities, or changes for
the institution implied by those trends
and events,

8.  promoting a future orientation in
the thinking of management and
staff, and
 alerting management and staff to
trends that are
converging, diverging, speeding
up, slowing down, or interacting

9.  aneffective environmental scanning
program should enable decision
makers to understand current and
potential changes taking place in
their institutions' external
environments

11. • Environmental scanning is one of four
activities comprising external analysis.

12. organizations scan the environment to
identify changing trends and
patterns, monitor specific trends and
patterns, forecast the future direction
of these changes and
patterns, and assess their
organizational impact.

13. Merged with internal analysis of
the organization's
vision, mission, strengths, and
weaknesses, external analysis assists
decision makers in formulating
strategic directions and strategic
plans.

14. the goal of environmental
scanning is to alert decision
makers to potentially significant
external changes

15. Fahey and Narayanan (1986) help by
identifying three levels of environment for
scanning.

16.  is the institution's set of customers
 In higher education, this may include students
and potential students, parents of students
and of potential students, political leaders, and
employers and potential employers of
students.

17.  comprises all enterprises associated with
an organization in society.
 For higher education, factors such as public
confidence in higher education or student aid
legislation are industry factors affecting all
institutions.

18.  where changes in the
social, technological, economic, environmenta
l, and political (STEEP)sectors affect
organizations directly and indirectly.
 a national or global recession increases the
probability of budget cuts in state government
and, consequently, budget reductions in publicly
supported colleges and universities.

19. There are a number of ways to conceptualize
scanning. Aguilar (1967) identified four types
of scanning.

20. • Undirected viewing consists of
reading a variety of publications for
no specific purpose other than to be
informed.
• Conditioned viewing consists of
responding to this information in
terms of assessing its relevance to the
organization.

21. • Informal searching consists of
actively seeking specific information
but doing it in a relatively
unstructured way.
• These activities are in contrast
to formal searching, a proactive
mode of scanning entailing formal
methodologies for obtaining
information for specific purposes.

22. Morrison, Renfro, and Boucher
(1984) simplified Aguilar's four
scanning types as either passive or
active scanning.

23.  is what most of us do when we read journals
and newspapers. We tend to read the same
kinds of materials. However, the
organizational consequences of passive
scanning are that we do not systematically
use the information as strategic information
for planning, and we miss many ideas that
signal changes in the environment.

24.  focuses attention on information
resources that span the task and
industry environments as well as the
macroenvironment. In active scanning, it
is important to include information
resources that represent different views
of each STEEP sector.

25. Another way of looking at
scanning was described by
Fahey, King, and Narayanan
(1981).

26. • are used on an ad hoc basis and
tend to be crisis initiated. These
systems are used when an
organization needs information
for planning assumptions and
conducts a scan for that purpose
only.

27. • are used when the planners
periodically update a
scan, perhaps in preparation
for a new planning cycle.

28. • use the active scanning mode
of data collection to
systematically inform the
strategic planning function of
the organization.

31. • decide which level of scanning commitment is
best for your institution at this time:
irregular, periodic, or continuous.
• A quick way of getting started is to interview
major decisionmakers regarding their view of the
most critical trends and developments that could
affect the institution.
• Also examine past program reviews, the last
institutional self-study, and the most current
master plan.

32. • Establishing a continuous scanning system requires
more effort and resources. First, secure a resource
commitment from the senior official responsible for
planning. At a minimum, a continuous scanning
system requires a professional and a support person
to devote half of their time to the enterprise.
Further, a continuous scanning program requires a
number of scanners who agree to rigorously and
systematically review specific information
resources. Assuming that you secure the
resources, your next step is to recruit and train
volunteers to perform active scanning.

33. External Environment
is not controllable Social
Change
Demographics Ever-Changing
Marketplace
Economic
Product Conditions
Distribution
Promotion
Price
Competition
Target Market
Political &
Legal Factors
Technology
Environmental
Scanning