Businesses are like living things. They must constantly adapt and evolve to survive in different economic climates. As the years pass and seasons change, businesses go through growth, prosperity, decline, and recovery phases. Identifying these business cycles—expansion, peak, contraction, trough—is essential for any budding business professional.

Question

Get ready to put on your business analyst hat!

In this activity, you will explore the life of a well-established company, charting its journey through these cycles. You will create an annotated timeline that captures how the business has survived and thrived.

Step 1: Choose a Company and Collect Information
Select a company that has been in business for several decades. Start by investigating its history. Focus on periods when the company was doing well (expansion), reached its highest point (peak), started slowing down (contraction), and faced big challenges (trough). Use reputable sources on the internet, such as business databases, financial news websites, company reports, library books, and business websites, to gather your information. Write down the important dates and events in order.

Step 2: Analyze the Business Cycles
Analyze the data you have gathered to understand how and why the company entered different business cycle phases. Try to figure out what happened during each part of the business cycle. Think about what was happening in the world or within the company that might have caused these changes. Write down any big decision the company made to handle tough times or to grow during good times.

Step 3: Create Your Annotated Timeline
Now, it’s time to create a timeline or graphic showing the company’s journey through the business cycles. Make sure to include the following elements:

All Four Phases: Clearly show the expansion, peak, contraction, and trough phases. Each phase should be labeled and easy to identify.
Timeline Span: Your timeline should cover at least 10 years of the company’s history, showing how it has evolved over time.
Important Events: Mark at least five (5) major events that significantly impacted the company during these phases. This could include new product launches, big economic changes, or changes in leadership.
Annotations: Next to each phase of each major event, add a brief explanation (2–3 sentences) describing what is happening and why it is important. Annotations might include:
Labels for different phases of the business cycle. These are short titles or names placed beside important events on your timeline. For example, you might label the different phases of a company’s growth such as “Expansion,” “Peak,” “Contraction,” and “Trough.”
Descriptions of key events or decisions made by the company during these phases. These give more details about what’s happening at a certain point. For example, if your graphic shows that a company made a lot of sales, a description could explain what product was popular and why.
Comments on how external factors influenced the company. These are your thoughts or extra bits of information that help make sense of the graphic. For instance, you might add a comment on how a big event, like launching a new product, helped the company grow.
Data points are specific numbers or facts that support your graphic. For example, numbers like how much money the company made during its best years or how many people it employed. Use digital tools to create a clean and professional-looking graphic.
Be creative. Focus on making your timeline informative and easy to follow. This will help anyone looking at your graphic understand how the company has changed.

Answer 1

Sure! Below is a detailed guide to help you create an annotated timeline of a well-established company’s journey through business cycles. I'll use Apple Inc. as an example, tracing important events from the past few decades to illustrate expansion, peak, contraction, and trough phases.

Step 1: Choose a Company and Collect Information

Company Chosen: Apple Inc.
Key Dates and Events:

1. 1984 - Launch of the Macintosh

   • Event: Introduction of the Macintosh computer, which was one of the first personal computers with a graphical user interface (GUI).

2. 1997 - Steve Jobs Returns

   • Event: Steve Jobs returns to lead Apple, bringing innovative thinking and direction.

3. 2001 - Launch of the iPod

   • Event: Apple introduces the iPod, marking its entry into the music download market and later transforming the way music is consumed.

4. 2007 - Launch of the iPhone

   • Event: Apple launches the iPhone, sparking a revolution in the smartphone industry and driving massive revenue growth.

5. 2016 - iPhone Sales Slow

   • Event: Sales of the iPhone begin to plateau, causing concern among investors and analysts.

6. 2020 - Pandemic and Shift to Services

   • Event: The COVID-19 pandemic accelerates a shift from hardware sales to services, including Apple’s subscriptions and digital services.

Step 2: Analyze the Business Cycles

1. Expansion (1984-2001)

   • A period marked by the launch of innovative products, starting with the Macintosh, which contributed to steady growth.
   • Decisions: Introduction of various Macintosh models and other products and strategic marketing.
   • External Factors: Technological advancements and the increasing demand for personal computers fueled this expansion.

2. Peak (2007-2015)

   • Reaching peak performance with the launch of the iPhone, Apple became one of the most valuable companies in the world and had a dominant market share.
   • Decisions: Focus on product design, marketing campaigns, and expanding into new markets.
   • External Factors: Economic growth in developed and emerging markets, and an increasing consumer preference for mobile technology.

3. Contraction (2016)

   • Signs of contraction as iPhone sales began to plateau, mainly due to market saturation and increased competition.
   • Decisions: Initiated efforts to diversify product offerings and shift focus to services.
   • External Factors: Changes in consumer behavior, and the rise of competitors in the smartphone market.

4. Trough and Recovery (2020-Present)

   • The company faced new challenges during the pandemic but also found recovery in digital services, seeing immense growth in subscriptions (Apple Music, Apple TV+, etc.).
   • Decisions: Increased investment in service offerings and further enhancements in their ecosystem.
   • External Factors: Global pandemic leading to a surge in demand for digital services, remote work, and entertainment.

Step 3: Create Your Annotated Timeline

Here’s a basic outline of how you can format your timeline visually. You can use tools like Canva, Microsoft PowerPoint, or any online timeline maker.

Annotated Timeline: The Journey of Apple Inc.

|-------------------|---------------------|-----------------|------------------|---------------- |
| 1984              | 1997                | 2001            | 2007             | 2016            |
| Expansion         | Return of Steve     | Launch of iPod  | Launch of iPhone | Sales Plateaus  |
|                   | Jobs as CEO        |                  |                  |                  |
| - Significant     | - Leadership change | - Entry into    | - Revolutionizes  | - Signs of     |
|   growth in sales | - Revitalizes the  |   music market  | smartphone market |   market share  |
|                   |   company’s vision  |                  |                  |   decline       |
|                   |                     |                  |                  |                  |
|-------------------|---------------------|-----------------|------------------|---------------- |
| 2020              |                     |                 |                  |                  |
| Recovery          |                     |                 |                  |                  |
|                   |                     |                 |                  |                  |
| - Shift to       |                     |                 |                  |                  |
|   services (e.g.,|                     |                 |                  |                  |
|   Apple TV+, etc.)|                     |                 |                  |                  |
|                   |                     |                 |                  |                  |
|                   |                     |                 |                  |                  |
|-------------------|---------------------|-----------------|------------------|---------------- |

Final Notes

• Make your timeline visually engaging with colors representing different business phases (e.g., green for expansion, red for contraction).
• Include graphs for sales or user growth if possible, to substantiate claims.
• Ensure that the timeline is easy to follow, with clear labels and annotations next to each major event to provide context.

By completing this project, you’ll gain a deeper understanding of how external factors and internal decisions can drastically alter a company's trajectory through the phases of the business cycle.