Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Organizational Development
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project
This case describes a development decision faced by Stanford University's Office of Land, Building, and Real Estate. In 2004, Stanford had the opportunity to develop a a 21.4 acre swath of land in one of the premier business addresses in the country. Whitney Birdwell, an associate director of real estate development at Stanford Land Buildings and Real Estate (LBRE), has been asked to evaluate Stanford's building options. Specifically, she needs to prepare a development pro forma as for Stanford's senior staff which, following the staff's approval, will be presented before the Menlo Park City Council (MPCC). The MPCC's attitude towards growth had become more favorable over the last year and the city desperately wanted more hotel space in the city. However, due to traffic and other concerns, particularly those relating to fiscal issues, the city would be reluctant to approve a project dominated by office use. Birdwell could propose a project with a hotel only. This would give the project a high likelihood of obtaining approvals from the MPCC. Alternatively, she could suggest a project with the maximum developable office space and risk seeing it rejected. If Stanford's proposed project failed to gain approvals, the bigger risk was that the land could lie vacant, as it already had, for decades. In this case, the land would generate no current income for the university.
Swot Analysis of "Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project" written by Sara Gaviser Leslie, Douglas Abbey includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Land Stanford's facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Financial management, Government, Technology and Organizational Development.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project casestudy better are - – increasing household debt because of falling income levels, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, wage bills are increasing, increasing transportation and logistics costs, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic ,
increasing commodity prices, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Land Stanford's, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Land Stanford's 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 Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Land Stanford's
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Organizational Development field.
4. Making a Organizational Development topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Land Stanford's
Strengths Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Land Stanford's in Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project Harvard Business Review case study are -
Learning organization
- Land Stanford's 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 Land Stanford's is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Strong track record of project management
– Land Stanford's is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Digital Transformation in Organizational Development segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Land Stanford's digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Land Stanford's 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.
Training and development
– Land Stanford's has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project 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.
High brand equity
– Land Stanford's has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Land Stanford's to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Innovation driven organization
– Land Stanford's is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project 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
– Land Stanford's is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project 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.
Ability to lead change in Organizational Development field
– Land Stanford's 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 Land Stanford's in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Land Stanford's 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 Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Organizational Development industry
– Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Land Stanford's to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Organizational Development industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Land Stanford's to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Land Stanford's in the sector have low bargaining power. Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Land Stanford's to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Weaknesses Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project are -
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Land Stanford's 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. Land Stanford's 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 Land Stanford's products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Land Stanford's 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 Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project 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 Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Land Stanford's is planning to shift buying processes online.
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 Land Stanford's supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Land Stanford's vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project, in the dynamic environment Land Stanford's has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Land Stanford's has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Land Stanford's, firm in the HBR case study Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Sara Gaviser Leslie, Douglas Abbey suggests that, Land Stanford's 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Land Stanford's is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Land Stanford's is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Organizational Development segment. Land Stanford's needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Land Stanford's to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Organizational Development strategy. But it has very little resources allocation to manage the risks emerging from events such as natural disasters, climate change, melting of permafrost, tacking the rise of artificial intelligence, opportunities and threats emerging from commercialization of space etc.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project HBR case study mentions - Land Stanford's 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.
Opportunities Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project | 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 Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project are -
Leveraging digital technologies
– Land Stanford's 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Land Stanford's 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 Organizational Development segment.
Buying journey improvements
– Land Stanford's can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Land Stanford's 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, Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Organizational Development industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Land Stanford's can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Land Stanford's can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Land Stanford's operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Organizational Development sector.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Land Stanford's is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project 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 Land Stanford's has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Land Stanford's to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project case study. Land Stanford's can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Manufacturing automation
– Land Stanford's can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Organizational Development 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Land Stanford's 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 Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Land Stanford's 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. Land Stanford's can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Land Stanford's to increase its market reach. Land Stanford's 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Land Stanford's in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Organizational Development segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Threats Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project are -
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Land Stanford's in the Organizational Development industry. The Organizational Development 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Land Stanford's with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Land Stanford's 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Land Stanford's 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 Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project .
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. Land Stanford's needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Organizational Development industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Land Stanford's 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.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Organizational Development field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Land Stanford's can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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 Land Stanford's in the Organizational Development sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Regulatory challenges
– Land Stanford's 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 Organizational Development industry regulations.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Land Stanford's 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.
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 Land Stanford's business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Land Stanford's is facing in Organizational Development 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 Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project 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 Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project 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 Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project 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 Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project 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 Eucalyptus Sand Hill Hotel and Office Development Project 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 Land Stanford's needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.