The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart
Supplement to case IN1075. Vince McMahon's World Wrestling Federation faces a serious threat to survival from the deep pockets of media mogul Ted Turner and Time-Warner, Inc. McMahon must tackle management, business, and ethics challenges when Turner tries to lure the WWF's top star, Bret the Hitman Hart, away from the WWF.
Swot Analysis of "The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart" written by Thomas Mannarelli, Christopher Baty includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Bret Mcmahon facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Entrepreneurship, Ethics, Innovation and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart casestudy better are - – there is increasing trade war between United States & China, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, there is backlash against globalization, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, increasing energy prices,
increasing household debt because of falling income levels, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Bret Mcmahon, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Bret Mcmahon 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.
SWOT Objectives / Importance of SWOT Analysis and SWOT Matrix
SWOT analysis of The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Bret Mcmahon
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Leadership & Managing People field.
4. Making a Leadership & Managing People topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Bret Mcmahon
Strengths The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Bret Mcmahon in The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart Harvard Business Review case study are -
Training and development
– Bret Mcmahon has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Bret Mcmahon in the sector have low bargaining power. The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Bret Mcmahon to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Digital Transformation in Leadership & Managing People segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Bret Mcmahon digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Bret Mcmahon 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.
Organizational Resilience of Bret Mcmahon
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Bret Mcmahon does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Bret Mcmahon 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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Bret Mcmahon in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Analytics focus
– Bret Mcmahon is putting a lot of focus on utilizing the power of analytics in business decision making. This has put it among the leading players in the industry. The technology infrastructure suggested by Thomas Mannarelli, Christopher Baty can also help it to harness the power of analytics for – marketing optimization, demand forecasting, customer relationship management, inventory management, information sharing across the value chain etc.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Bret Mcmahon has highly efficient outsourcing and offshoring strategy. It has resulted in greater operational flexibility and bringing down the costs in highly price sensitive segment. Secondly the value chain collaborators of the firm in The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Diverse revenue streams
– Bret Mcmahon is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart case study a diverse revenue stream that has helped it to survive disruptions such as global pandemic in Covid-19, financial disruption of 2008, and supply chain disruption of 2021.
Ability to lead change in Leadership & Managing People field
– Bret Mcmahon 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 Bret Mcmahon in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Bret Mcmahon 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.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Bret Mcmahon is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Weaknesses The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart are -
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Bret Mcmahon 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Bret Mcmahon is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Leadership & Managing People segment. Bret Mcmahon needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Bret Mcmahon to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Bret Mcmahon 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 - The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart has high operating costs in the. This can be harder to sustain given the new emerging competition from nimble players who are using technology to attract Bret Mcmahon 's lucrative customers.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Bret Mcmahon, firm in the HBR case study The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart, it seems that the employees of Bret Mcmahon 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.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Thomas Mannarelli, Christopher Baty suggests that, Bret Mcmahon is facing high bargaining power of the channel partners. So far it has not able to streamline the operations to reduce the bargaining power of the value chain partners in the industry.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart 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 Bret Mcmahon has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Bret Mcmahon 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart that the firm needs to have more collaboration between its sales team and marketing team. Sales professionals in the industry have deep experience in developing customer relationships. Marketing department in the case The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Bret Mcmahon is planning to shift buying processes online.
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 Bret Mcmahon supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Bret Mcmahon vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Opportunities The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart | 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 The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart are -
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Bret Mcmahon can make experimentation a productive activity and build a culture of innovation using approaches such as – mining transaction data, A/B testing of websites and selling platforms, engaging potential customers over various needs, and building on small ideas in the Leadership & Managing People segment.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Bret Mcmahon 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, The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Leadership & Managing People industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Bret Mcmahon can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Bret Mcmahon has spent a significant amount of money and effort to integrate analytics and machine learning into its operations in the sector. This continuous investment in analytics has enabled, as illustrated in the Harvard case study The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Bret Mcmahon to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Bret Mcmahon 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Bret Mcmahon to expand its talent hiring zone. According to McKinsey Global Institute, 20% of the high end workforce in fields such as finance, information technology, can continously work from remote local post Covid-19. This presents a really great opportunity for Bret Mcmahon to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Developing new processes and practices
– Bret Mcmahon can develop new processes and procedures in Leadership & Managing People industry using technology such as automation using artificial intelligence, real time transportation and products tracking, 3D modeling for concept development and new products pilot testing etc.
Reconfiguring business model
– The expansion of digital payment system, the bringing down of international transactions costs using Bitcoin and other blockchain based currencies, etc can help Bret Mcmahon to reconfigure its entire business model. For example it can used blockchain based technologies to reduce piracy of its products in the big markets such as China. Secondly it can use the popularity of e-commerce in various developing markets to build a Direct to Customer business model rather than the current Channel Heavy distribution network.
Buying journey improvements
– Bret Mcmahon can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Bret Mcmahon 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Bret Mcmahon 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.
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. Bret Mcmahon can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Bret Mcmahon to increase its market reach. Bret Mcmahon 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.
Threats The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart are -
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Bret Mcmahon in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The Leadership & Managing People industry is already at various protected from local competition in China, with the rise of trade war the protection levels may go up. This presents a clear threat of current business model in Chinese market.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Leadership & Managing People field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Bret Mcmahon can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Bret Mcmahon 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.
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. Bret Mcmahon needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Bret Mcmahon is facing in Leadership & Managing People sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Bret Mcmahon can face downward pressure on margins from increasing competition from international players. The international players have stable revenue in their home market and can use those resources to penetrate prominent markets illustrated in HBR case study The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart .
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. Bret Mcmahon 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.
Increasing wage structure of Bret Mcmahon
– 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 Bret Mcmahon.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Bret Mcmahon with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Bret Mcmahon demand
– There is a high probability of declining consumer confidence, given – high inflammation rate, rise of gig economy, lower job stability, increasing cost of living, higher interest rates, and aging demography. All the factors contribute to people saving higher rate of their income, resulting in lower consumer demand in the industry and other sectors.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart, Bret Mcmahon may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Leadership & Managing People .
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 Bret Mcmahon.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Bret Mcmahon has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Bret Mcmahon needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Leadership & Managing People sector. According to Mckinsey study top managers believe that the adoption of technology in operations, communications is 20-25 times faster than what they planned in the beginning of 2019.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart 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 The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart 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 The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart 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 The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart 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 The World Wrestling Federation (C): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart 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 Bret Mcmahon needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
