CONDITIONED VIEWING
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Aguilar also identified four patterns for viewing information: undirected viewing (exposure without a specific purpose), conditioned viewing (directed exposure but without undertaking an active search), informal search (collection of purpose- oriented information in an informal manner), and formal search (a structured process for collection of specific information for a designated purpose). Both internal and external sources were used in seeking this information. The external comprised both personal sources (customers, suppliers, bankers, consultants, and other knowledgeable individuals) and impersonal sources (various publications, conferences, trade shows, exhibitions, and so on). The internal personal sources included peers, superiors, and subordinates. The internal impersonal sources included regular and general reports and scheduled meetings. Aguilar ’s study concluded that while the process is not simple, a company can systematize its environmental scanning activities for strategy development.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Aguilar ’s framework may be illustrated with reference to the Coca-Cola Company. The company looks at its environment through a series of analyses. At the corporate level, considerable information is gathered on economic, social, and political factors affecting the business and on competition both in the United States and overseas. The corporate office also becomes involved in special studies when it feels that some aspect of the environment requires special attention. For example, in the 1980s, to address itself to a top management concern about Pepsi’s claim that the taste of its cola was superior to Coke’s, the company undertook a study to understand what was going on in the minds of their consumers and what they were looking for. How was the consumption of Coca-Cola related to their consumers’ lifestyle, to their set of values, to their needs? This study spearheaded the work toward the introduction of New Coke. In the mid-1980s, the corporate office also made a study of the impact of antipollution trends on government regulations concerning packaging. At the corporate level, environment was scanned rather broadly.