Strategic Thinking Assignment
Word Count: 1,500 | It is argued that the provision of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) is becoming a new disruptive innovation that will radically change the scene of higher education. This report will analyse the external environment for MOOC provider Udacity, evaluate their competitive strategy and then discuss the future outlook for them and the industry. |

Contents

Introduction 2 The External Environment 2 Udacity’s competitive strategy 4 The future of the industry and how Udacity can sustain competitive advantage 6 References 7 Appendix 1 – PEST Analysis Table 11 Appendix 2 – PEST Analysis Graph 12 Appendix 3 – Product Life Cycle 13 Appendix 4 – MOOC Industry Life Cycle 14 Appendix 5 – Strategic Groups 1 15 Appendix 6 – Strategic Groups 2 16 Appendix 7 – Porter’s Five Forces (Current) 17 Appendix 8 – Porter’s Five Forces (Future) 18 Appendix 9 – SWOT Analysis 19 Appendix 10 – New Strategies 20 Appendix 11 – Commonly Required Skills and Resources 21

Introduction
Udacity is a massive open online course (MOOC) provider based in Silicon Valley, offering career-focused education. They are partnered with tech-giants Google and Facebook and their mission is to “bring accessible, affordable, engaging, and highly effective higher education to the world” (Udacity, 2015).

The External Environment

Udacity’s macro environment (appendix 1) shows increasing numbers of mature and part-time learners are looking for alternatives to traditional education (Morris, 2013). They require cheap and flexible classes (Butcher and Rose-Adams, 2015) to fit in around their busy schedules. On top of this, student debt is rising and more students are needing to work part-time so they can afford to live. The globalisation of learning has seen students become more technology-minded.
Employers are