MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution

Case Study Description of MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process

After MGM Mirage decides to announce publicly its bid for Mandalay Resort Group, both companies face vital decisions about how to communicate with their various stakeholders during the merger negotiations.

Authors :: Gregory S. Miller, Michael D. Kimbrough

Topics :: Communication

Tags :: Communication, Market research, Mergers & acquisitions, Strategic planning, SWOT Analysis, SWOT Matrix, TOWS, Weighted SWOT Analysis

Swot Analysis of "MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process" written by Gregory S. Miller, Michael D. Kimbrough includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Mandalay Mgm facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Communication, Market research, Mergers & acquisitions, Strategic planning and Communication.

Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process casestudy better are - – increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, technology disruption, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, there is backlash against globalization, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, increasing transportation and logistics costs, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, etc

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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process

SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Mandalay Mgm, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Mandalay Mgm operates in.

According to Harvard Business Review, 75% of the managers use SWOT analysis for various purposes such as – evaluating current scenario, strategic planning, new venture feasibility, personal growth goals, new market entry, Go To market strategies, portfolio management and strategic trade-off assessment, organizational restructuring, etc.

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SWOT Objectives / Importance of SWOT Analysis and SWOT Matrix

SWOT analysis of MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Mandalay Mgm
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Communication field.
4. Making a Communication topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Mandalay Mgm

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Strengths MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of Mandalay Mgm in MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process Harvard Business Review case study are -

Digital Transformation in Communication segment

- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Mandalay Mgm digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Mandalay Mgm has successfully integrated the four key components of digital transformation – digital integration in processes, digital integration in marketing and customer relationship management, digital integration into the value chain, and using technology to explore new products and market opportunities.

Low bargaining power of suppliers

– Suppliers of Mandalay Mgm in the sector have low bargaining power. MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Mandalay Mgm to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.

Cross disciplinary teams

– Horizontal connected teams at the Mandalay Mgm are driving operational speed, building greater agility, and keeping the organization nimble to compete with new competitors. It helps are organization to ideate new ideas, and execute them swiftly in the marketplace.

High brand equity

– Mandalay Mgm has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Mandalay Mgm to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.

Successful track record of launching new products

– Mandalay Mgm has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Mandalay Mgm has effective processes in place that helps in exploring new product needs, doing quick pilot testing, and then launching the products quickly using its extensive distribution network.

Innovation driven organization

– Mandalay Mgm is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.

Training and development

– Mandalay Mgm has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process Harvard Business Review case study by analyzing – employees retention, in-house promotion, loyalty, new venture initiation, lack of conflict, and high level of both employees and customer engagement.

Ability to lead change in Communication field

– Mandalay Mgm is one of the leading players in its industry. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in its segment but also across the whole industry. The ability to lead change has enabled Mandalay Mgm in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.

Organizational Resilience of Mandalay Mgm

– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Mandalay Mgm does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.

Sustainable margins compare to other players in Communication industry

– MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Mandalay Mgm to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Communication industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Mandalay Mgm to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.

Ability to recruit top talent

– Mandalay Mgm is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.

High switching costs

– The high switching costs that Mandalay Mgm has built up over years in its products and services combo offer has resulted in high retention of customers, lower marketing costs, and greater ability of the firm to focus on its customers.

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Weaknesses MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process are -

High dependence on star products

– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process HBR case study still accounts for major business revenue. This dependence on star products in has resulted into insufficient focus on developing new products, even though Mandalay Mgm has relatively successful track record of launching new products.

Products dominated business model

– Even though Mandalay Mgm has some of the most successful products in the industry, this business model has made each new product launch extremely critical for continuous financial growth of the organization. firm in the HBR case study - MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.

Capital Spending Reduction

– Even during the low interest decade, Mandalay Mgm has not been able to do capital spending to the tune of the competition. This has resulted into fewer innovations and company facing stiff competition from both existing competitors and new entrants who are disrupting the industry using digital technology.

High dependence on existing supply chain

– The disruption in the global supply chains because of the Covid-19 pandemic and blockage of the Suez Canal illustrated the fragile nature of Mandalay Mgm supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Mandalay Mgm vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.

Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy

– From the instances in the HBR case study MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process, it seems that the employees of Mandalay Mgm don’t have comprehensive understanding of the firm’s strategy. This is reflected in number of promotional campaigns over the last few years that had mixed messaging and competing priorities. Some of the strategic activities and services promoted in the promotional campaigns were not consistent with the organization’s strategy.

Need for greater diversity

– Mandalay Mgm has taken concrete steps on diversity, equity, and inclusion. But the efforts so far has resulted in limited success. It needs to expand the recruitment and selection process to hire more people from the minorities and underprivileged background.

Interest costs

– Compare to the competition, Mandalay Mgm has borrowed money from the capital market at higher rates. It needs to restructure the interest payment and costs so that it can compete better and improve profitability.

Slow to harness new channels of communication

– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Mandalay Mgm is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.

Slow to strategic competitive environment developments

– As MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process HBR case study mentions - Mandalay Mgm takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the industry in last five years.

Low market penetration in new markets

– Outside its home market of Mandalay Mgm, firm in the HBR case study MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.

Increasing silos among functional specialists

– The organizational structure of Mandalay Mgm is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Communication segment. Mandalay Mgm needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Mandalay Mgm to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.

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Opportunities MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The opportunities highlighted in the Harvard Business Review case study MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process are -

Use of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies for transactions

– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for Mandalay Mgm in the consumer business. Now Mandalay Mgm can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.

Better consumer reach

– The expansion of the 5G network will help Mandalay Mgm to increase its market reach. Mandalay Mgm will be able to reach out to new customers. Secondly 5G will also provide technology framework to build new tools and products that can help more immersive consumer experience and faster consumer journey.

Low interest rates

– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Mandalay Mgm can still utilize the low interest rates to borrow money for capital investment. Secondly it can also use the increase of government spending in infrastructure projects to get new business.

Lowering marketing communication costs

– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Mandalay Mgm in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Communication segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.

Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains

– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Mandalay Mgm can build a diversified supply chain model across various countries in - South East Asia, India, and other parts of the world. This reconfiguration of global supply chain can help, as suggested in case study, MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.

Buying journey improvements

– Mandalay Mgm can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process suggest that firm can provide automated chats to help consumers solve their own problems, provide online suggestions to get maximum out of the products and services, and help consumers to build a community where they can interact with each other to develop new features and uses.

Loyalty marketing

– Mandalay Mgm has focused on building a highly responsive customer relationship management platform. This platform is built on in-house data and driven by analytics and artificial intelligence. The customer analytics can help the organization to fine tune its loyalty marketing efforts, increase the wallet share of the organization, reduce wastage on mainstream advertising spending, build better pricing strategies using personalization, etc.

Manufacturing automation

– Mandalay Mgm can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Communication segment. It can use CAD and 3D printing to build a quick prototype and pilot testing products. It can leverage automation using machine learning and artificial intelligence to do faster production at lowers costs, and it can leverage the growth in satellite and tracking technologies to improve inventory management, transportation, and shipping.

Redefining models of collaboration and team work

– As explained in the weaknesses section, Mandalay Mgm is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process case study suggests that firm can utilize new technology to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.

Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19

– Consumer behavior has changed in the Communication industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Mandalay Mgm can take advantage of these changes in consumer behavior to build a far more efficient business model. For example consumer regular ordering of products can reduce both last mile delivery costs and market penetration costs. Mandalay Mgm can further use this consumer data to build better customer loyalty, provide better products and service collection, and improve the value proposition in inflationary times.

Creating value in data economy

– The success of analytics program of Mandalay Mgm has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Mandalay Mgm to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process case study. Mandalay Mgm can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.

Identify volunteer opportunities

– Covid-19 has impacted working population in two ways – it has led to people soul searching about their professional choices, resulting in mass resignation. Secondly it has encouraged people to do things that they are passionate about. This has opened opportunities for businesses to build volunteer oriented socially driven projects. Mandalay Mgm can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.

Leveraging digital technologies

– Mandalay Mgm can leverage digital technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning to automate the production process, customer analytics to get better insights into consumer behavior, realtime digital dashboards to get better sales tracking, logistics and transportation, product tracking, etc.

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Threats MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The threats mentioned in the HBR case study MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process are -

Stagnating economy with rate increase

– Mandalay Mgm can face lack of demand in the market place because of Fed actions to reduce inflation. This can lead to sluggish growth in the economy, lower demands, lower investments, higher borrowing costs, and consolidation in the field.

Instability in the European markets

– European Union markets are facing three big challenges post Covid – expanded balance sheets, Brexit related business disruption, and aggressive Russia looking to distract the existing security mechanism. Mandalay Mgm will face different problems in different parts of Europe. For example it will face inflationary pressures in UK, France, and Germany, balance sheet expansion and demand challenges in Southern European countries, and geopolitical instability in the Eastern Europe.

High dependence on third party suppliers

– Mandalay Mgm high dependence on third party suppliers can disrupt its processes and delivery mechanism. For example -the current troubles of car makers because of chip shortage is because the chip companies started producing chips for electronic companies rather than car manufacturers.

New competition

– After the dotcom bust of 2001, financial crisis of 2008-09, the business formation in US economy had declined. But in 2020 alone, there are more than 1.5 million new business applications in United States. This can lead to greater competition for Mandalay Mgm in the Communication sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.

Regulatory challenges

– Mandalay Mgm needs to prepare for regulatory challenges as consumer protection groups and other pressure groups are vigorously advocating for more regulations on big business - to reduce inequality, to create a level playing field, to product data privacy and consumer privacy, to reduce the influence of big money on democratic institutions, etc. This can lead to significant changes in the Communication industry regulations.

Barriers of entry lowering

– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Mandalay Mgm with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.

Capital market disruption

– During the Covid-19, Dow Jones has touched record high. The valuations of a number of companies are way beyond their existing business model potential. This can lead to capital market correction which can put a number of suppliers, collaborators, value chain partners in great financial difficulty. It will directly impact the business of Mandalay Mgm.

High level of anxiety and lack of motivation

– the Great Resignation in United States is the sign of broader dissatisfaction among the workforce in United States. Mandalay Mgm needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Communication industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.

Technology disruption because of hacks, piracy etc

– The colonial pipeline illustrated, how vulnerable modern organization are to international hackers, miscreants, and disruptors. The cyber security interruption, data leaks, etc can seriously jeopardize the future growth of the organization.

Learning curve for new practices

– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process, Mandalay Mgm may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Communication .

Increasing wage structure of Mandalay Mgm

– Post Covid-19 there is a sharp increase in the wages especially in the jobs that require interaction with people. The increasing wages can put downward pressure on the margins of Mandalay Mgm.

Aging population

– As the populations of most advanced economies are aging, it will lead to high social security costs, higher savings among population, and lower demand for goods and services in the economy. The household savings in US, France, UK, Germany, and Japan are growing faster than predicted because of uncertainty caused by pandemic.

Easy access to finance

– Easy access to finance in Communication field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Mandalay Mgm can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.

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Weighted SWOT Analysis of MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process Template, Example

Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers in the HBR case study MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process needs to zero down on the relative importance of each factor mentioned in the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants. We can provide the relative importance to each factor by assigning relative weights. Weighted SWOT analysis process is a three stage process –

First stage for doing weighted SWOT analysis of the case study MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process is to rank the strengths and weaknesses of the organization. This will help you to assess the most important strengths and weaknesses of the firm and which one of the strengths and weaknesses mentioned in the initial lists are marginal and can be left out.

Second stage for conducting weighted SWOT analysis of the Harvard case study MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process is to give probabilities to the external strategic factors thus better understanding the opportunities and threats arising out of macro environment changes and developments.

Third stage of constructing weighted SWOT analysis of MGM Mirage's Bid for Mandalay Resort Group (A): Communicating During the Merger Process is to provide strategic recommendations includes – joining likelihood of external strategic factors such as opportunities and threats to the internal strategic factors – strengths and weaknesses. You should start with external factors as they will provide the direction of the overall industry. Secondly by joining probabilities with internal strategic factors can help the company not only strategic fit but also the most probably strategic trade-off that Mandalay Mgm needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.

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