Convenience

political–legal
dimension
The government
regulation of
business and the
relationship between
business and
government
38
Part 1:
An Introduction to Management
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first one and then another industry began to stumble, critics began to point to lack of
regulation and oversight as contributing factors. As a result, lawmakers began to take a
much more pronounced interest in adopting new and stricter regulations for business.
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Finally, political stability has ramifications for planning. No business wants to set up
shop in another country unless trade relationships with that country are relatively well
defined and stable. Hence, U.S. firms are more likely to do business in England, Mexico,
and Canada than in Syria and Afghanistan. Similar issues are relevant to assessments of
local and state governments. A new mayor or governor can affect many organizations,
especially small firms that do business in only one location and are susceptible to deed
and zoning restrictions, property and school taxes, and the like.
The Task Environment
Because the general environment’s impact is often vague, imprecise, and long term, most
organizations tend to focus attention on their task environment, which includes compe-
titors, customers, suppliers, strategic partners, and regulators. Although the task environ-
ment is also quite complex, it provides useful information more readily than the general
environment because the manager can identify environmental factors of specific interest
to the organization, rather than deal with the more abstract dimensions of the general
environment.
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Figure 2.1 depicts the task environment of McDonald’s.