By Name
Course
Instructor
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Strategic audit of Michael hill
Executive summary
Michael hills limited are an international company that was started and is jointly owned by Michael and his wife Christine. The company owns the brand name ‘Michael hills’ and deals with jewelry. It was started in New Zealand and grew to open a chain of stores in other countries including America. A strategic audit of the firm will require access of the company’s books of accounts that is economic data from annual reports, market data and financial disclosures. Among the tools relevant for the audit include financial ratios, porter five forces model, value chain management and SWOT …show more content…
Value chain analysis gives the auditor information on what the company is best at, that is what it produces the lowest possible cost and is profitable to the firm (needles, powers and Crosson 2011, p.805) the result of the value chain will help the firm concentrate more on the efficient products while eliminating the inefficient ones or possibly outsourcing what is cheaper to outsource than to produce. The information required includes the sales of the firm for the period for every specific line of product, the cost of production of that line and the profit earned from the product. This aids in comparing the profitability of each production line, thus showing the firms strong point in …show more content…
The matrix consists of the cow, stars, dogs and question marks. The matrix makes use of the industry growth and the market share controlled by the firm to measure the firm’s performance in the market. The dogs are the most unpleasant business ventures, the stars being the most profitable venture while the question marks are potential stars. The cash cows are the firm’s source of income. The balance of the four components of the matrix shows that the company is performing well, thus making a profit and will be profitable even in the future.
A SWOT analysis of the firm is relevant in the audit. This gives a clear description of the firms’ strengths and weaknesses, thus comparing the strengths and the weaknesses. The strengths should outweigh the weaknesses of the firm to perform well in the industry. Opportunities and threats in the industry are also considered in the SWOT analysis. The firm should be able to exploit the available opportunities and conquer potential threats.
References
AHLSTROM, D, & BRUTON, G. D. 2010. International management: strategy and culture in the emerging world. Australia, South-Western Cengage Learning.
HARRISON, J, S, & ST. JOHN, C. H, 2014. Foundations in strategic management. NEEDLES, B. E., POWERS, M., & CROSSON, S. V. 2011. Principles of accounting. Mason, Ohio, Cengage