Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Finance & Accounting
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement
On October 11, 2006, Istithmar, a subsidiary of Dubai World, the flagship investment company of the government of Dubai, purchased the 270-room W Hotel in Union Square from Related Companies for $285 million. LEM Capital, a mid-sized private equity firm, subsequently became a junior player in the stack of funders for the property. When Istithmar defaulted on its loan to its primary lender in 2009, LEM's $20 million investment was at risk. This case asks students to review the actual loan and intercreditor agreements to determine what strategy might help LEM to preserve its investment.
Swot Analysis of "Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement" written by Lynne B. Sagalyn, Fred Knapp includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Istithmar Lem facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Financial management, Recession, Strategy and Finance & Accounting.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement casestudy better are - – there is backlash against globalization, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, geopolitical disruptions, wage bills are increasing, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, technology disruption, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies,
increasing household debt because of falling income levels, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Istithmar Lem, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Istithmar Lem 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 Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Istithmar Lem
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 Istithmar Lem
Strengths Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Istithmar Lem in Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement Harvard Business Review case study are -
Organizational Resilience of Istithmar Lem
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Istithmar Lem does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Ability to lead change in Finance & Accounting field
– Istithmar Lem 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 Istithmar Lem in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Digital Transformation in Finance & Accounting segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Istithmar Lem digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Istithmar Lem 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Istithmar Lem 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.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Istithmar Lem 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
– Istithmar Lem is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Learning organization
- Istithmar Lem 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 Istithmar Lem is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Istithmar Lem has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Istithmar Lem 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Istithmar Lem is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Istithmar Lem 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 Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Istithmar Lem is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
High brand equity
– Istithmar Lem has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Istithmar Lem to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Weaknesses Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement are -
Products dominated business model
– Even though Istithmar Lem 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 - Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement 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 Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement, in the dynamic environment Istithmar Lem has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Istithmar Lem has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement, it seems that the employees of Istithmar Lem don’t have comprehensive understanding of the firm’s strategy. This is reflected in number of promotional campaigns over the last few years that had mixed messaging and competing priorities. Some of the strategic activities and services promoted in the promotional campaigns were not consistent with the organization’s strategy.
High 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 Istithmar Lem supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Istithmar Lem vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement 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 Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Istithmar Lem is planning to shift buying processes online.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Istithmar Lem has a very deliberative decision making approach. This approach has resulted in prudent decisions, but it has also resulted in missing opportunities in the industry over the last five years. Istithmar Lem even though has strong showing on digital transformation primary two stages, it has struggled to capitalize the power of digital transformation in marketing efforts and new venture efforts.
Lack of clear differentiation of Istithmar Lem products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Istithmar Lem needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Istithmar Lem is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Finance & Accounting segment. Istithmar Lem needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Istithmar Lem to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Istithmar Lem 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Istithmar Lem 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Istithmar Lem, firm in the HBR case study Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Opportunities Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement | 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 Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement are -
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Istithmar Lem 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Istithmar Lem 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Istithmar Lem 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 Finance & Accounting industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Istithmar Lem can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Manufacturing automation
– Istithmar Lem 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.
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. Istithmar Lem can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Istithmar Lem 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 Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Istithmar Lem to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Istithmar Lem 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Istithmar Lem is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Istithmar Lem 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Istithmar Lem can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Istithmar Lem operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Finance & Accounting sector.
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. Istithmar Lem 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. Istithmar Lem 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Istithmar Lem in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Finance & Accounting segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Threats Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement are -
Consumer confidence and its impact on Istithmar Lem 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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Istithmar Lem has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Finance & Accounting industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Istithmar Lem needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Finance & Accounting 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 dependence on third party suppliers
– Istithmar Lem high dependence on third party suppliers can disrupt its processes and delivery mechanism. For example -the current troubles of car makers because of chip shortage is because the chip companies started producing chips for electronic companies rather than car manufacturers.
High level of anxiety and lack of motivation
– the Great Resignation in United States is the sign of broader dissatisfaction among the workforce in United States. Istithmar Lem needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Finance & Accounting industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Istithmar Lem in the Finance & Accounting industry. The Finance & Accounting 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Istithmar Lem 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 Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement .
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 Istithmar Lem business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Istithmar Lem is facing in Finance & Accounting sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Regulatory challenges
– Istithmar Lem 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 Finance & Accounting industry regulations.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Istithmar Lem 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 Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement, Istithmar Lem may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Finance & Accounting .
Increasing wage structure of Istithmar Lem
– 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 Istithmar Lem.
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 Istithmar Lem.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement 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 Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement 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 Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement 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 Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement 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 Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Guaranty Agreement 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 Istithmar Lem needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.