The World Wrestling Federation (B): 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 (B): 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 (B): 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 (B): 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 (B): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart casestudy better are - – central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, geopolitical disruptions, wage bills are increasing, technology disruption, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, increasing commodity prices,
increasing household debt because of falling income levels, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of The World Wrestling Federation (B): 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 (B): 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 (B): 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 (B): 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 (B): 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 (B): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart Harvard Business Review case study are -
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.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the The World Wrestling Federation (B): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart Harvard Business Review case study comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the industry, building diversified operations across different geographies so that disruption in one part of the world doesn’t impact the overall performance of the firm, and integrating the various business operations and processes through its digital transformation drive.
Innovation driven organization
– Bret Mcmahon is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in The World Wrestling Federation (B): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart 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
– Bret Mcmahon is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the The World Wrestling Federation (B): 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Bret Mcmahon is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Learning organization
- Bret Mcmahon is a learning organization. It has inculcated three key characters of learning organization in its processes and operations – exploration, creativity, and expansiveness. The work place at Bret Mcmahon is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in The World Wrestling Federation (B): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Bret Mcmahon in the sector have low bargaining power. The World Wrestling Federation (B): 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.
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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Bret Mcmahon has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Bret Mcmahon 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Bret Mcmahon 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 The World Wrestling Federation (B): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
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.
Weaknesses The World Wrestling Federation (B): 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 (B): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart are -
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Bret Mcmahon 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study The World Wrestling Federation (B): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart, is just above the industry average. Bret Mcmahon 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Bret Mcmahon 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.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Bret Mcmahon 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.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study The World Wrestling Federation (B): 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.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As The World Wrestling Federation (B): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart HBR case study mentions - Bret Mcmahon 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.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Bret Mcmahon has created an environment where the organization is dominated by functional specialists rather than management generalist. This has resulted into product oriented approach rather than marketing oriented approach or consumers oriented approach.
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.
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 (B): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Lack of clear differentiation of Bret Mcmahon products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Bret Mcmahon needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study The World Wrestling Federation (B): 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 (B): 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.
Opportunities The World Wrestling Federation (B): 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 (B): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart are -
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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Bret Mcmahon can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Bret Mcmahon operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.
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 Bret Mcmahon in the consumer business. Now Bret Mcmahon can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
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. Bret Mcmahon 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. Bret Mcmahon 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.
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.
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.
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 (B): 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.
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 (B): 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.
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 (B): 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Bret Mcmahon is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. The World Wrestling Federation (B): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Bret Mcmahon has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Bret Mcmahon to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the The World Wrestling Federation (B): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart case study. Bret Mcmahon can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Bret Mcmahon can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Threats The World Wrestling Federation (B): 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 (B): Vince McMahon vs. Bret "the Hitman" Hart are -
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Bret Mcmahon 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.
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 (B): 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 .
Backlash against dominant players
– US Congress and other legislative arms of the government are getting tough on big business especially technology companies. The digital arm of Bret Mcmahon business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, 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. 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.
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.
Environmental challenges
– Bret Mcmahon 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. Bret Mcmahon can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry.
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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of The World Wrestling Federation (B): 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 (B): 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 (B): 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 (B): 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 (B): 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.
