Key Idea: A STEEPLE analysis checks the world outside a business for changes it cannot control. This topic is the seven factors, how to build the analysis, and how to use it in a decision.
The seven factors
- Social, Technological, Economic, Environmental.
- Political, Legal, Ethical.
- All are outside the business: it can respond, not control.
Building one
- List only the changes that matter to this decision.
- Say which way each one pushes: opportunity or threat.
- It feeds the O and T boxes of a SWOT.
Using it
- Trace one factor to several implications.
- Weigh the factors: which is biggest, surest, soonest?
- It lists changes; it does not decide.
The words to know
| Word | Means | Do not confuse with |
|---|---|---|
| STEEPLE analysis | a check of the social, technological, economic, environmental, political, legal and ethical factors outside a business | a SWOT analysis |
| External factor | a change outside the business that it cannot control | an internal weakness |
| Political factor | a government plan or policy, such as a planned tax | a legal factor, a law already passed |
| Implication | what a change means for the business: its costs, sales or plans | the change itself |
Name the factor, then follow it into the business: what happens to costs, prices, sales or plans, with the case's figures.
Exam-style question
After a poor harvest, Valley Grain raises its flour price, so the ingredients in each of Lena's $3 loaves rise from $0.90 to $0.96. Describe two implications of the flour price rise for Lena's Bakery Ltd.
Model answer plan
See the mark-by-mark plan — for / against / judgement, with marking guidance — in study mode.
Important: A factor that does not touch this decision adds nothing to the answer. Pick the ones that matter, and follow each into the business.
Tap each card to check yourself.
A planned tax on imported wheat: which factor? Political. A government plan; once it is law, it becomes legal.
A new labelling law for packed food? Legal. Every ingredient and allergen must be on the pack.
Commuters want to order and pay by phone? Technological, driven by a social change in how people shop.
Is a rival opening next door a STEEPLE factor? No. One rival's move is a threat in a SWOT, not a change in the wider world.
One limitation of STEEPLE? It dates quickly and does not weigh the factors or make the decision.
How do interest rates affect the bakery? Higher rates raise the cost of the oven loan and overdraft, and can cut customers' spending.
Exam tips
- Pick the factors that matter to the decision in the case.
- Name the factor, then its implication for the business.
- Political is a plan or policy; legal is a law in force.
- Weigh factors by size, certainty and timing.
- Every implication needs a figure or detail from the case.