What is the PESTEL Method?
PESTEL is a framework that you can use to analyze the context in which a company exists. There are many external factors that influence a company. PESTEL is an acronym:
- P: Political factor include elements such as tax policies, changes in trade restrictions and tariffs, and the stability of governments.
- E: Economic factors include elements such as interest rates, inflation rates, gross domestic product, unemployment rates, levels of disposable income, and the general growth or decline of the economy.
- S: Social factors include trends in demographics such as population size, age, and ethnic mix, as well as cultural trends such as attitudes toward obesity and consumer activism.
- T: Technological factors include, for example, changes in the rate of new product development, increases in automation, and advancements in service industry delivery.
- E: Environmental factor include, for example, natural disasters and weather patterns.
- L: Legal factors include laws involving issues such as employment, health and safety, discrimination and antitrust.
This page provides resources where you can find information on all of the PESTEL factors. It is important to note that many of these resources have information that covers multiple PESTEL factors. Read the description under the link to find out what types of information the resource covers.
Political
Political elements focus on the role of governments in shaping business. The following are resources that can help you find political information.
- Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE)The official ICE website. Find immigration news, fact sheets, statistics and more.
- Homeland Security Digital LibraryA collection of documents related to homeland security policy, strategy, and organizational management of the United States. Library access is offered to U.S. citizens who are federal, state, tribal, and local U.S. government officials; members of the U.S. military; homeland security researchers and academics; or security staff protecting organizations vital to U.S. infrastructure
- Catalog of U.S. Government Publications This link opens in a new windowCovers all types of U.S. government documents, including Congressional reports, hearings, debates, and records; judiciary materials; and documents issued by executive departments (Defense, State, Labor, Office of the President, etc.). Provides direct links to the full text when available. U.S. Government Printing Office
- HeinOnline Academic This link opens in a new windowHeinOnline's Academic Package features more than 80 million pages of content covering political science, criminal justice, women's studies, religious studies, and more than 80 other subject areas. With more historical content than any other database, HeinOnline provides access to more than 300 years of information on political development and the complete history of the creation of government and legal systems around the world. Hein
Note: Remote access is restricted to UHV users. - Military and Government Collection This link opens in a new windowDesigned to offer current news pertaining to all branches of the military. The database provides full text for nearly 300 journals and periodicals. Also included is full text of over 245 pamphlets. EBSCO
- Proquest One Business This link opens in a new windowExtensive full-text database combining scholarly journals, trade publications, dissertations, working papers, market reports, newspapers, and other sources relevant to research in business and economics. ProQuest
Economic
Economic factors center on the economic conditions within which organizations operate. It includes elements like interest rates, inflation rates, gross domestic product, unemployment rates, disposable income, and the general growth or decline of the economy. The following are resources that can help you find economic information.
Social
Social elements include factors like population size, age, and ethnic mix, as well as cultural trends such as attitudes toward obesity and consumer activism. The following are resources that can help you find social information.
- Pew Research CenterPew Research Center is a nonpartisan fact tank that informs the public about the issues, attitudes and trends shaping America and the world. It conducts public opinion polling, demographic research, media content analysis and other empirical social science research.
- United States Census BureauThe Census Bureau's mission is to serve as the leading source of quality data about the nation's people and economy. They have data on the population, the economy, the government and American communities.
- Statista This link opens in a new windowStatista provides access to statistics and studies gathered by market researchers, trade organizations, scientific publications, and government sources on more than 600 industries. In addition to tables and charts, Statista also provides infographics and studies on selected industries and topics. Statista
Note: Remote access is restricted to UHV users. - USAFacts This link opens in a new windowUSAFacts is a new data-driven portrait of the American population, our government’s finances, and government’s impact on society. It relies exclusively on publicly available government data sources. USAFacts Institute
Technological
Technological elements centers on improvements in products and services that are provided by science. Factors include changes in the rate of new product development, increases in automation, and advancements in service industry delivery. The following are resources that can help you find technological information.
- IEEE Xplore This link opens in a new windowIncludes full-image articles, standards, and conference proceedings from the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers and the Institution of Electrical Engineers. The topics covered by this resource are computer science, various engineering fields, information science, and technology. IEEE
Note: Remote access is restricted to UHV users.
- ScienceDirect This link opens in a new windowSearchable, browsable database of journals published by Elsevier Publishers. Subscription includes full-text access to about 1,200 journals in the health and life sciences, and the social sciences - including business, managements, economics, accounting, finance, and psychology. Abstracts, tables of contents and some complimentary full-text may be available in other subject areas. Elsevier
- Science (Gale in Context) This link opens in a new windowProviding contextual information on hundreds of today's most significant science topics. By integrating authoritative, curriculum-aligned reference content with headlines and videos, Science In Context draws students into the subject matter, showing how scientific disciplines relate to real-world issues, from weather patterns to obesity. Gale
- Science and Technology Collection This link opens in a new windowContains over 800 leading full text journals covering relevant aspects of the scientific and technical community. Topics include aeronautics, astrophysics, chemistry, computer technology, geology, aviation, physics, archaeology, and materials science. Also offers indexing and abstracts for more than 1,700 publications. EBSCO
- arXiv This link opens in a new windowarXiv is an e-print service which archives and disseminates research papers in physics, mathematics, computer science, quantitative biology, quantitative finance, and statistics.
Environmental
Environmental factors involve the physical conditions within which organizations operate. Factors include natural disasters, pollution levels and weather patterns. The following are resources that can help you find environmental information.
- Agricola This link opens in a new windowContains bibliographic records from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Agricultural Library. Provides access to millions of citations comprised of journal articles, book chapters, theses and more, all relating to the field of agriculture. EBSCO
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency-EPAThe mission of the EPA is to protect human health and the environment. Find various environmental topics and laws and regulations.
- National Weather Service-National Oceanic and Atmospheric AdministrationThe NWS provides weather, water, and climate data, forecasts and warnings for the protection of life and property and enhancement of the national economy.
Legal
Legal factors center on how the courts influence business activity. Legal factors include employment laws, health and safety regulations, discrimination laws and antitrust laws. The following are resources that can help you find legal information.
- OSHA-United States Department of LaborHome for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. OSHA was founded in 1970 to assure safe and healthful working conditions and enforcing standards. Find information for workers, employees, regulations, news and publications, and data.
- U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission-EEOCEEOC is responsible for enforcing federal laws that make it illegal to discriminate against a job applicant or employee based on a person's race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, or genetic information. Find information for employees and employers, as well as laws, regulations, and more.
- Legal Collection This link opens in a new windowFull text for nearly 250 scholarly law journals centered on the discipline of law and legal topics such as criminal justice, international law, federal law, organized crime, medical, labor & human resource law, ethics, the environment. EBSCO
- HeinOnline Academic This link opens in a new windowHeinOnline's Academic Package features more than 80 million pages of content covering political science, criminal justice, women's studies, religious studies, and more than 80 other subject areas. With more historical content than any other database, HeinOnline provides access to more than 300 years of information on political development and the complete history of the creation of government and legal systems around the world. Hein
Note: Remote access is restricted to UHV users.
Source
PESTEL information from Mastering Strategic Management, chapter 3, Evaluating the General Environment.
