Business

Strategic management is one of the most essential tools of ensuring the success of any business. Strategic management entails planning a business and it is a role carried out by the top managers in an organization or business. It involves coming up with a strategic plan of where a business wants to be in the future. While carrying out the function of strategic management, managers must first of all answer three important questions what are the objectives of the business, how are those objectives going to be achieved and the resources required to achieve those resources. With that in mind, it is easier to formulate plans of a business (Hussey, 1994).

Integrating strategic management at Cango Internet Company
Cango Internet Company is a start up company that is involved in the business of retailing several services and products including videos, books and gaming services. As mentioned earlier, strategic management is the key to success in todays business world. This is because it helps in coming up with strategic plans and make strategic decisions concerning the means of attaining organizational goals. Without good planning, any business is bound to fail. Strategic management is a costly affair owing to the fact that it involves a lot of data collection and sometimes may require professional assistance which can be very costly (Editors of Perseus Publishing, Basic Books, 2004). Cango Internet Company is on its startup stages and as such has no adequate financial support to acquire experts support to help it integrate strategic management in its business. Being in the internet business, Cango Internet Company has an advantage in that it has the avenues of collecting vital information concerning retails of videos, books and gaming services. These activities attract a lot of legal requirements that the company must be aware of including copyright issues and piracy. Such information can be obtained from the internet as well as the business permit offices. Also, the company should conduct a simple survey of its external and internal environment before making any decisions (Hussey, 1994). Based on the gathered information and in collaboration with its employees, Cango Internet Company should then formulate its objectives, come up with strategies of achieving those objectives and lastly implement them. Strategic management should be made part of the functions of the business and should be an ongoing process. Continuous evaluation of the implemented strategies should be carried out to eliminate any discrepancies that may occur. Integrating strategic management to the Cango Internet Company need not be a costly endeavor although it should be upgraded as the company grows.

SWOT analysis for the company 
Before starting any business venture, it is vital to carefully and thoroughly analyze the internal and external environment so as to identify any internal weaknesses and strengths facing a business as well as the threats and opportunities posed by the external environment. The analysis of the internal and external environment commonly referred to as the SWOT analysis is part of the strategic management functions which all businesses wishing to succeed must undertake. Like all other companies, Cango Internet Company would be faced by different issues emanating from both the internal and external environment which must be taken into account during the onset of the business.

Strengths
One of the major possible strengths of Cango Internet Company lies on its management team. The company currently has five employees who are all qualified and well versed as far as the internet business is concerned. They are creative and innovative and are enthusiastic to work in this company. This gives the company an edge in this entity and it is also a competitive tool.

E-commerce services are also another strength that the company has. Currently, most individuals prefer to carry out transactions using the internet. This gives Cango Internet Company a major competitive strength over other similar companies dealing with retailing of books, videos and gaming services.

Advanced technology is also strength of Cango Internet Company. Having entered this industry lately, the company is endowed with the most recent technology as well as services that are being sought by most consumers.

Weaknesses
Lack of financial resources is one of the major weaknesses of Cango Internet Company. As a result, the company will not be in a position to carry out extensive advertising required to market newly recruited companies.

Despite the fact that the management team is well versed in internet and communications field, they lack real work experience in this industry and this is a disadvantage to the company.

Opportunities
One opportunity that Cango Internet Company has is that the information technology is growing very fast. This poses a growth opportunity for this company.

The gaming environment is one of the fastest growing business sectors in internet business and it has relatively low competition. Most young people unlike in the past are gaining access to computers and their accessories. Phones and other communication technological devices have advanced and can today support and access internet games. This is a major opportunity for Cango Internet Company to grow and expand in this industry.

Changing consumer needs also poses an opportunity for growth for Cango Internet Company. Consumer needs are changing especially as technology continues to change. This is an opportunity for Cango Internet Company to establish itself as unique company in this industry by trying to meet the changing demands of the consumers.

Threats
Competition from already established firms is one of the major threats facing Cango Internet Company. The information technology industry is one of the most competitive industries around the world and this is a major threat to Cango Internet Company.

Weak or poor financial base is also another threat to the long term survival of this company. For a company to survive in the information technology industry, it needs to constantly upgrade its technology and this may be a costly endeavor for Cango Internet Company.

Government regulation is another threat for the company. Increase in terrorism attacks and computer crime has led to strict regulation of this industry. Security policies and requirements regarding to online transactions are bound to increase in the future and this may be costly for Cango Internet Company.

Recommendations
Cango Internet Company should consider hiring a qualified individual in this industry. Given the fact that the company is not financially stable, experts in this industry should be hired on part time basis to reduce the hiring costs.

The company should also consider entering into a merger with other relatively smaller firms that have been on this industry for a longer time. This will not only improve the companys financial base, but it would also boost the management knowledge of its managers concerning how businesses are run in this industry. This would also enable the company to gain the competitive strength it now lacks.

The company should also launch its business in the less concentrated retail markets that most internet companies have ignored. Following the introduction of internet or online services, most internet companies focused or targeted the middle class and higher class individuals as well as big institutions and sidelined the lower class individual and upcoming institutions. This is a market niche which can give Cango Internet Company a footing in this industry. The company should come up with cheaper and affordable services to offer to this market thus increasing its market share, financial base and competitive advantage.