Perform a SWOT analysis to specify the strengths and weaknesses of Columbia’s resources and the opportunities and threats existing in its external environment. What are the market characteristics which will influence the company’s strategic decisions?
 Conduct a thorough competitor analysis, and map each of the company’s major competitors in terms of resource similarity and market commonality. What is the likelihood of each rival acting or responding to Columbia’s ongoing competitive actions?
 Discuss the approaches used by the company to grow the business over the past two decades. In what ways are these strategies suitable for Columbia moving forward? Are they deficient in any way?
 Use the results of your analysis to address the three major challenges confronting Columbia Sportswear:
– managing seasonal fluctuations and the high variability of the company’s sales,
– protecting the company’s investments in intellectual property, and
– maintaining profitability within the constraints and complexities of retailer relationships.
Requirements：Write-up
Quality and depth of answers to each question (4.5)
Accuracy in describing the problems/issues
Use concepts and strategic tools to analyze the issues
Provide specific evidence to support your conclusions
Structure, style, sources of information
No more than 3 pages; No cover page; double spaced, 1 inch margins; 12 point font;
Free of spelling errors or grammar errors