Swot Analysis of "Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick" written by Paul A. Gompers, Catherine Conneely includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Fitzpatrick Paddy facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Venture capital and Finance & Accounting.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick casestudy better are - – increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, wage bills are increasing, increasing commodity prices, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs,
there is backlash against globalization, technology disruption, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Fitzpatrick Paddy, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Fitzpatrick Paddy 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 Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Fitzpatrick Paddy
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Finance & Accounting field.
4. Making a Finance & Accounting topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Fitzpatrick Paddy
Strengths Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Fitzpatrick Paddy in Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick Harvard Business Review case study are -
Ability to recruit top talent
– Fitzpatrick Paddy is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick 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
– Fitzpatrick Paddy is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick 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.
Diverse revenue streams
– Fitzpatrick Paddy is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Fitzpatrick Paddy 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 Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Fitzpatrick Paddy 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Fitzpatrick Paddy 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.
Analytics focus
– Fitzpatrick Paddy 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 Paul A. Gompers, Catherine Conneely 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 Fitzpatrick Paddy in the sector have low bargaining power. Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Fitzpatrick Paddy to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Fitzpatrick Paddy 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 Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Organizational Resilience of Fitzpatrick Paddy
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Fitzpatrick Paddy does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
High brand equity
– Fitzpatrick Paddy has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Fitzpatrick Paddy to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Weaknesses Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick are -
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick, in the dynamic environment Fitzpatrick Paddy has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Fitzpatrick Paddy has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Fitzpatrick Paddy is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick 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 Fitzpatrick Paddy 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 - Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Need for greater diversity
– Fitzpatrick Paddy 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.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Paul A. Gompers, Catherine Conneely suggests that, Fitzpatrick Paddy 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Fitzpatrick Paddy 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
Fitzpatrick Paddy 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.
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 Fitzpatrick Paddy supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Fitzpatrick Paddy vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Fitzpatrick Paddy 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Fitzpatrick Paddy, firm in the HBR case study Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Fitzpatrick Paddy 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 Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick | 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 Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick are -
Developing new processes and practices
– Fitzpatrick Paddy can develop new processes and procedures in Finance & Accounting 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.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Finance & Accounting industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Fitzpatrick Paddy can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Fitzpatrick Paddy 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 Fitzpatrick Paddy to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Fitzpatrick Paddy 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 Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Fitzpatrick Paddy to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Fitzpatrick Paddy 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Fitzpatrick Paddy 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, Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Manufacturing automation
– Fitzpatrick Paddy can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Finance & Accounting 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.
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 Fitzpatrick Paddy 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, Fitzpatrick Paddy 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Fitzpatrick Paddy 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 Finance & Accounting segment.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Fitzpatrick Paddy is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick case study suggests that firm can utilize new technology to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Finance & Accounting industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Fitzpatrick Paddy 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. Fitzpatrick Paddy 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Fitzpatrick Paddy 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.
Threats Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick are -
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 Fitzpatrick Paddy business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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. Fitzpatrick Paddy needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Finance & Accounting industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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 Fitzpatrick Paddy.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Fitzpatrick Paddy can face lack of demand in the market place because of Fed actions to reduce inflation. This can lead to sluggish growth in the economy, lower demands, lower investments, higher borrowing costs, and consolidation in the field.
Instability in the European markets
– European Union markets are facing three big challenges post Covid – expanded balance sheets, Brexit related business disruption, and aggressive Russia looking to distract the existing security mechanism. Fitzpatrick Paddy 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.
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 Fitzpatrick Paddy in the Finance & Accounting sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Environmental challenges
– Fitzpatrick Paddy 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. Fitzpatrick Paddy can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Finance & Accounting 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.
Increasing wage structure of Fitzpatrick Paddy
– 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 Fitzpatrick Paddy.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Fitzpatrick Paddy 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 Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick .
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Finance & Accounting field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Fitzpatrick Paddy 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 Fitzpatrick Paddy is facing in Finance & Accounting sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick 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 Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick 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 Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick 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 Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick 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 Fitzpatrick Hotel Group (B2): Paddy Fitzpatrick 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 Fitzpatrick Paddy needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
