TOPIC CHOSEN:FASTFOOD INDUSTRY. TREND CATEGORY:ECONOMIC FORCES. Assignment Outline: This project will focus on researching the future trends and opportunities for the industry assigned to you by your instructor. Your task is to prepare an External Macro-level Environmental Scan for the industry. Remember that environmental scanning looks at future trends based on facts. To be a trend there must be data points (not your assumptions), so you will want to look for research on points from now and into the future (usually 2004-2012). For example, if we were conducting an environmental assessment for the snack food industry (chips, candy bars, etc.), we might report on the trend reported by industry experts that people have become more concerned about eating healthier and living longer. It is expected that people will be conscious of pesticides and chemicals in food and will avoid foods with high fat content. This could impact the snack food category negatively and pose a threat to doing business in the future. All Macro-Environmental Scans study and analyze the future trends and opportunities for a given industry. These trends are assessed within the following five categories. Competitive Forces Social Forces Technological Forces Economic Forces Regulatory (Political/Legal) Forces You are to explore what is happening in the environment or marketplace as it relates to the industry assigned to you. Consider for instance: What are the lifestyle trends that will matter to this industry? What are the potential demographic trends and the expected impact on this industry? What is the predicted economic cycle and how does this effect purchasing power for this industry? What role has the world of technology offered to this industry and will this continue? What are the major laws that this market type must be aware of and conform to? Project Requirements: Research and select appropriate/related data – Look for multiple trends for each category (social, economic, etc.) of the Macro-Environmental Scan. From the five categories listed above select one research environment per team member from the list to further research and analyze. Report on the trends for each selected category – Quote the source of the data on the trend on your selected environment and report the facts of the trend. Remember to capture the sources in an APA Bibliography. Analyze the trends – Interpret the information in #3 above and discuss the impact of the trend on the industry. It is here where you assess whether the trend poses an opportunity or a threat for your industry. The written format for this report should be essay style, with a separate heading for each category of the environmental scan (i.e. demographic, technology, economic, etc). The report should talk about the data on the particular trend and then assess whether it is an opportunity or threat for the industry. Take, for example, camping — the trend that more and more people are looking to get back to nature and enjoy the outdoors bodes well for the camping market. You will report this trend and discuss the details as they relate to your industry. In this you will report whether the actual trend is an opportunity or a threat (good or bad for your industry and why). There is an abundance of information out in the market for you to access on the future trends/direction of the marketplace. It is your job to assess and interpret whether these trends are going to impact your industry and how. You may find trends that are contradictory; welcome to the world of marketing! Often we get information sources that are different and we must make a decision about which one to use (you should however make note of both in your report). I pesonnally chose ECONOMIC FORCES so dont worry about the other 4.As wriiten you only have to research one trend for each member and my part is ECONOMIC FORCES AND THE INDUSTRY IS FASTFOOD INDUSTRY IN GENERAL NOT specificly mcdonald or harveys IN GENERAL As an individual, you must fully research and analyze your trend category relative to the industry that you have been assigned by your professor. As an individual, you must also provide an Executive Summary. EXCECUTIVE SUMMARY IS VERY IMPORTANT