Formulating Strategies--Conducting an External Audit

External audits principally revolve around assessments of opportunities and threats in the external environment. This environment, composed of competitors, customers, regulatory bodies, suppliers, and sources of financial and human resources, provides the firm with the operating arena within which it must successfully compete and thrive. The immediate step necessary to attain success is a clear-headed determination of what opportunities and threats that environment holds for firms struggling to compete in it. As we will see later in this lesson, many aspects of project-based firms require significant external auditing to establish and gain benefit from the management of supply and value chains.