Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business
The chairman of Stag International faced a number of challenges. As the number one table tennis brand in India and one of the top five companies globally, Stag could go after market share, diversify into domestic distribution, do both or just sit tight. The chairman also needed to set the business up for the fourth generation to step in and drive the family-owned business forward. The dilemmas he faced were defining the strategic intent, strategic choices and resourcing for the business as it entered its 90th year of existence as a leading manufacturer and exporter of sports goods in India. Harsh W. Mishra is affiliated with Management Development Institute
Swot Analysis of "Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business" written by Sanjay Goyal, Harsh W. Mishra includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Stag Dilemmas facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, International business, Strategy and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business casestudy better are - – central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, increasing commodity prices, geopolitical disruptions, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, increasing energy prices, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies,
increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Stag Dilemmas, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Stag Dilemmas 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 Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Stag Dilemmas
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 Stag Dilemmas
Strengths Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Stag Dilemmas in Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business Harvard Business Review case study are -
Diverse revenue streams
– Stag Dilemmas is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Stag Dilemmas 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 Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Learning organization
- Stag Dilemmas 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 Stag Dilemmas is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Organizational Resilience of Stag Dilemmas
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Stag Dilemmas does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Training and development
– Stag Dilemmas has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business 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.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business 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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Stag Dilemmas in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Analytics focus
– Stag Dilemmas 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 Sanjay Goyal, Harsh W. Mishra 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.
Digital Transformation in Leadership & Managing People segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Stag Dilemmas digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Stag Dilemmas 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.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Stag Dilemmas 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.
High brand equity
– Stag Dilemmas has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Stag Dilemmas to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Stag Dilemmas in the sector have low bargaining power. Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Stag Dilemmas to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Weaknesses Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business are -
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Stag Dilemmas 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 operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business 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 Stag Dilemmas 's lucrative customers.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Stag Dilemmas is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Stag Dilemmas 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 - Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business, in the dynamic environment Stag Dilemmas has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Stag Dilemmas has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Sanjay Goyal, Harsh W. Mishra suggests that, Stag Dilemmas 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business 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 Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Stag Dilemmas is planning to shift buying processes online.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business, is just above the industry average. Stag Dilemmas 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.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Stag Dilemmas 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.
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 Stag Dilemmas supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Stag Dilemmas vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Need for greater diversity
– Stag Dilemmas 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.
Opportunities Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business | 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 Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business are -
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Stag Dilemmas has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Stag Dilemmas to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business case study. Stag Dilemmas 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
– Stag Dilemmas 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Stag Dilemmas in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Leadership & Managing People 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, Stag Dilemmas 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, Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Stag Dilemmas can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Stag Dilemmas operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Stag Dilemmas 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 Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Stag Dilemmas to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
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. Stag Dilemmas can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Stag Dilemmas to conduct training and development for its employees across the world. This will result in not only reducing the cost of training but also help employees in different part of the world to integrate with the headquarter work culture, ethos, and standards.
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. Stag Dilemmas can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Loyalty marketing
– Stag Dilemmas 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Stag Dilemmas is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Stag Dilemmas 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Stag Dilemmas to increase its market reach. Stag Dilemmas 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 Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business are -
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. Stag Dilemmas can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Stag Dilemmas 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Stag Dilemmas is facing in Leadership & Managing People sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Stag Dilemmas 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.
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 Stag Dilemmas business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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 Stag Dilemmas in the Leadership & Managing People sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Stag Dilemmas with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business, Stag Dilemmas 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 .
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Stag Dilemmas has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Stag Dilemmas 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.
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. Stag Dilemmas needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Regulatory challenges
– Stag Dilemmas 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 Leadership & Managing People industry regulations.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Stag Dilemmas 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 Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business .
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business 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 Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business 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 Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business 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 Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business 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 Stag International: Strategic Dilemmas of a Growing Family Owned Indian Business 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 Stag Dilemmas needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
