1. Determine the ways and means that your college or university does strategic planning and report on these efforts to your class.
2. Explain how a firm can achieve sustained competitive advantage.
3. Identify and give an overview of three social networking sites that firms are suing to gain competitive advantage.

Doing Great in a Weak Economy Nestle SA Nestle portrays itself as a company focused on nutri- Late in 2008, Nestle had purchased the frozen-pizza Jestle is performing very well in the global recession- tion and wellness, but when asked about that in regard. operations of Wagner Tiefkuehlprodukte GmbH, a INVary environment and plans to continue to acquire to their frozen pizza products, Nestle maintained they German company with a market share of 33 percent in firms at what it believes are excellent purchase prices. Based in Zurich. Switzerland, Nestle SA is the world's were trying to improve the nutritional value of all their Germany. Some analysts contend that Nestle in late largest food-and-beverage producer by sales. Nestle's products, including prepared dishes. Nestle already 2010 may have its eye on acquiring other food compa- strategic plan in a nutshell is to become much more 'food and beverage concentrated." Thus in January owns brands such as Maggi, Buitoni, and Hot Pockets nies, perhaps even General Mills Inc. or Mead Johnson 2010, Nestle purchased Kraft Foods Inc.'s frozen pizza Nostlo which were an integral part of the company's prepared- Nutrition Company or even Fresenius SE's clinical nutri- operations in the United States and Canada, including brands such as DiGiorno and Tombstone, for $3.7 billion dickella dishes and cooking aids division. This segment of tion operations. in cash, That same month, Nestle sold its remaining Clust Nestle generated sales of $17.57 billion (18.1 billion stake in U.S. based eye-care unit Alcon Inc. to Swiss drug maker Novartis AG for $28.1 billion. These two big Swiss francs) in 2008, and an operating profit margin Source: Based on Martin Gelnar, "Nestle Buys U.S. Pizza Lines." strategic moves leave Nestle with just one big nonfood L'oreal SA. North America is the world's largest frozen of 12.8 percent. Wall Street Journal (Wednesday, January 6, 2010): B3. asset left, a 29 percent stake in French cosmetics giant pizza market. at $37 billion annually