A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football
According to the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), while the sports industry itself generated revenue totalling USD 300 billion in 2011, sports betting was worth USD 350-400 billion. The primary objective of this case is to analyze the past data from the English Premier League (EPL) to develop winning strategies for in-play betting. In-play betting allows bettors to place their bets while the match is in progress. In most instances, the bettors can place bets any time during the match and can bet on the final score, match result, next goal scorer, and so on. Unlike the other bets, in-play betting odds are updated in real-time by the betting companies based on the events in the match. In-play betting provides an opportunity to the bettors to mitigate the risk on their other bets. For example, consider a bettor who has placed a bet on a particular team to win before the start of the play. During the match, if the other team leads, he/she can mitigate the risk of losing money by placing another in-play bet. The objective of the case is to predict the outcome of football matches using classification techniques such as multinomial logistic regression and chi-squared automatic interaction detection (CHAID). The accompanying data in the Excel spread-sheet (IMB403EPL.XLS) may be used by the instructor to demonstrate application of several classification tools.
Authors :: Unnikrishnan Dinesh Kumar, V Sandeep, H Satyabala
Swot Analysis of "A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football" written by Unnikrishnan Dinesh Kumar, V Sandeep, H Satyabala includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Betting Bets facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Data and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football casestudy better are - – central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, increasing commodity prices, technology disruption, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, increasing transportation and logistics costs, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic ,
increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Betting Bets, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Betting Bets 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 A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Betting Bets
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 Betting Bets
Strengths A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Betting Bets in A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football Harvard Business Review case study are -
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Betting Bets 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Betting Bets is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Betting Bets is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Ability to lead change in Leadership & Managing People field
– Betting Bets 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 Betting Bets in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Betting Bets 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 A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
High brand equity
– Betting Bets has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Betting Bets to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Betting Bets has innovation driven culture where significant part of the revenues are spent on the research and development activities. This has resulted in, as mentioned in case study A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Diverse revenue streams
– Betting Bets is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Betting Bets has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Betting Bets 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Betting Bets 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.
Training and development
– Betting Bets has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football 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 Betting Bets in the sector have low bargaining power. A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Betting Bets to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Weaknesses A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football are -
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Betting Bets is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Need for greater diversity
– Betting Bets 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Betting Bets 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 cash cycle compare to competitors
Betting Bets has a high cash cycle compare to other players in the industry. It needs to shorten the cash cycle by 12% to be more competitive in the marketplace, reduce inventory costs, and be more profitable.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football, in the dynamic environment Betting Bets has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Betting Bets has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football, is just above the industry average. Betting Bets needs to redesign the compensation structure and incentives to increase the revenue per employees. Some of the steps that it can take are – hiring more specialists on project basis, etc.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football 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 Betting Bets 's lucrative customers.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football, it seems that the employees of Betting Bets 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Betting Bets products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Betting Bets needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Unnikrishnan Dinesh Kumar, V Sandeep, H Satyabala suggests that, Betting Bets 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.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Betting Bets needs to come up with a strategy to reduce the workers concern regarding automation. Without a clear strategy, it could lead to disruption and uncertainty within the organization.
Opportunities A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football | 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 A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football are -
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Betting Bets to increase its market reach. Betting Bets 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Betting Bets 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 Betting Bets to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Betting Bets is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Betting Bets 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, A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Leadership & Managing People industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Betting Bets 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. Betting Bets 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Betting Bets 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.
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 Betting Bets in the consumer business. Now Betting Bets can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Buying journey improvements
– Betting Bets can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football 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.
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. Betting Bets can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Betting Bets can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
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 Betting Bets 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.
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. Betting Bets can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Manufacturing automation
– Betting Bets can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Leadership & Managing People 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.
Threats A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football are -
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Betting Bets has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Betting Bets 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Betting Bets 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 A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football .
Environmental challenges
– Betting Bets needs to have a robust strategy against the disruptions arising from climate change and energy requirements. EU has identified it as key priority area and spending 30% of its 880 billion Euros European post Covid-19 recovery funds on green technology. Betting Bets can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry.
Increasing wage structure of Betting Bets
– 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 Betting Bets.
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 A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football, Betting Bets 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 .
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Betting Bets 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 Betting Bets.
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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Betting Bets 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Betting Bets 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Betting Bets is facing in Leadership & Managing People sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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. Betting Bets 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football 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 A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football 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 A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football 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 A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football 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 A Game of Two Halves: In-play Betting in Football 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 Betting Bets needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.