External Environmental Scanning - Essay Example

United s Army is one of the most prestigious organizations that is vested with the responsibility of preserving peace and security of the nationagainst outside threat (americasarmy). They anticipate, preempt, detect and deter threats to the United States, the commonwealths and any area occupied by Unites States from other aggressive nations, terrorist attacks, natural disasters or any other emergency situations that threatens the lives of its people. The army also helps in promoting peace through joint exercises and talks.

It also intervenes militarily against nations that threaten world peace and security of innocent citizens of other countries. Thus the wider objectives of army face six major macro environmental factors which need to be analyzed for threats and opportunities for effective outcome. They are: social; technological; economic; ecological; political; and industry trend.Social The primarily objective of the army is to inculcate sense of security amongst the citizens, wherever they are operating. Thus the knowledge of the socio cultural environment of the region becomes the most important issue that can be turned into an opportunity to gain confidence of the people and instill confidence.

Technological The advancing technology has been a boon as well as a bane for current generation. While it has greatly facilitated communication and has considerably increased the military capabilities of the army, it has also become a powerful tool for the terrorists to threaten the world at large. Thus the potential of technology needs to be exploited judiciously to gain leverage against the enemy.EconomicIt is a very important factor because the market is driven by the demand and supply that is mainly dependent on the buying capacity of the consumers.

The recession has placed huge financial burden on the nation’s economy and the army needs to be prepared to reduce its expenditure by promoting peace talks rather than military interventions that escalate the expenses.EcologicalThe fast depletion of natural resources and worsening environment brought about by the advancing technology has become a great concern for the environmentalist and people at large. The deteriorating environmental conditions have resulted in rapid climate change and natural disasters like global warming, tsunami, hurricanes like Katrina etc.

The army must reduce its arms and promote environmental paradigms and help make the world a better place for the future generations.Political They are the socio-political environment within which the army has to operate and broadly comprise of the government regulations, laws and other imperatives which have direct consequences for people. Hence, the army needs to be aware of the legal framework as well as the laws that directly impact its operation in the country.Industrial trend In the emerging new trends of extreme aggressive behavior, in the form of terrorists’ threat or in the cases where low tolerance often results in violent events, the army needs to be well prepared with contingency plans to avert such incidence.

The R&D unit of army must ensure that creative inputs and innovative approach to peacekeeping and vigilance must go hand in hand. While the superior vigilance technology would facilitate in averting mass destruction events, innovative approach would encourage proactive participation of the people at large and instill confidence amongst them. ReferenceAmerica’s Army. Available from: [Accessed February, 2010].