This paper attempts to answer the following questions through an indepth analysis of the process of development of an environmental scanning and reporting system in a large multi product multi unit company: a) How can a company acquire capability to scan the environment and develop a system for scanning and reporting the developments for corporate planning. b) What are the underlying process and factors influencing this development? It is divided into three parts. In the first part we describe how this company developed a system for scanning and reporting the developments in the environment and linked it with corporate planning. In the second part, we analyse the process by identifying the key tasks in developing an environmental scanning and reporting system and the factors that influenced the motivation, speed of development and scope of scanning and reporting. In the third part, we discuss the implications of one of the inferences for studies on the relevance and future of environmental scanning for corporate planning.