Business analysis - a hotbed for strategy ideas

The rapidly changing business environment of the 1990's forced the oil and gas industry to develop new corporate and regional strategies to remain competitive. In support of strategy development, much attention has been given to analytical tools such as decision and risk analysis and probabilistic modeling. What is often overlooked, however, is that for these tools to be effective, a solid foundation of information and a thorough understanding of the underlying business environment is required. The process of Business Analysis provides this understanding and serves as a `hotbed' for new strategic ideas. This paper presents several business analysis tools which enhance awareness of the business environment and provide the foundation of information necessary for sound strategic modeling. Examples from a recent study show how tools such as influence diagrams, value chain analysis, benchmarking, competitor analysis, scenario development, and strength and weakness analysis are used.