Environmental scanning involves systematically gathering, analyzing, and disseminating information from inside and outside an organization to identify opportunities and threats. It helps organizations effectively utilize resources, formulate strategies, and predict the future. Key factors to consider include trends, issues, expectations, and events in the external environment. Approaches to environmental scanning include systematic, ad hoc, and using secondary data. PEST analysis examines the political, economic, sociocultural, and technological factors in an organization's macro environment. SWOT analysis identifies internal strengths and weaknesses and external opportunities and threats.