Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Organizational Development
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee
Johannes Linden is the Director of the Washer and Dryer division of Fluss, a large Swiss appliance manufacturer. Soon after the company completes its revenue projections and bonus targets for the upcoming year, Linden shares some good news with his leadership team, the Global Executive Committee (GEC): an internal R&D effort to develop cheaper steel for the company's products has finished a year ahead of schedule. This will translate into a significant reduction in costs across the division. When Linden proposes readjusting revenue expectations and sales targets accordingly, he is surprised to find that the GEC does not agree with him. Among other issues, employee bonuses are involved. Linden, with a reputation for being open and knowledgeable yet sometimes intimidating, tries to convince the committee to come around to his way of thinking.
Authors :: Linda A. Hill, Mark Rennella
Topics :: Organizational Development
Tags :: Collaboration, Compensation, Human resource management, Influence, International business, Leadership, Leading teams, Manufacturing, Motivating people, Organizational culture, Product development, SWOT Analysis, SWOT Matrix, TOWS, Weighted SWOT Analysis
Swot Analysis of "Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee" written by Linda A. Hill, Mark Rennella includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Linden Gec facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Collaboration, Compensation, Human resource management, Influence, International business, Leadership, Leading teams, Manufacturing, Motivating people, Organizational culture, Product development and Organizational Development.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee casestudy better are - – cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , there is increasing trade war between United States & China, 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, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, there is backlash against globalization,
geopolitical disruptions, wage bills are increasing, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Linden Gec, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Linden Gec 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 Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Linden Gec
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 Linden Gec
Strengths Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Linden Gec in Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee Harvard Business Review case study are -
High brand equity
– Linden Gec has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Linden Gec to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Organizational Development industry
– Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Linden Gec to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Organizational Development industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Linden Gec to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Linden Gec has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Linden Gec 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Linden Gec is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Linden Gec 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.
Training and development
– Linden Gec has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee 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.
Organizational Resilience of Linden Gec
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Linden Gec does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Analytics focus
– Linden Gec 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 Linda A. Hill, Mark Rennella 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Linden Gec 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 Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Linden Gec in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Strong track record of project management
– Linden Gec 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)
– Linden Gec 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 Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Weaknesses Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee are -
Need for greater diversity
– Linden Gec 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.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Linden Gec 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. Linden Gec 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.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee 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 Linden Gec 's lucrative customers.
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 Linden Gec supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Linden Gec vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Linden Gec, firm in the HBR case study Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee 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 Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Linden Gec is planning to shift buying processes online.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee, it seems that the employees of Linden Gec 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Linden Gec 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Linden Gec has borrowed money from the capital market at higher rates. It needs to restructure the interest payment and costs so that it can compete better and improve profitability.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Linden Gec needs to come up with a strategy to reduce the workers concern regarding automation. Without a clear strategy, it could lead to disruption and uncertainty within the organization.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee HBR case study still accounts for major business revenue. This dependence on star products in has resulted into insufficient focus on developing new products, even though Linden Gec has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Opportunities Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee | 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 Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee are -
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Linden Gec to increase its market reach. Linden Gec 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.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Organizational Development industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Linden Gec 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. Linden Gec 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Linden Gec has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Linden Gec to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee case study. Linden Gec can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Linden Gec 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 Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Linden Gec to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Linden Gec 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Linden Gec 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Linden Gec 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Linden Gec 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, Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Linden Gec 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Linden Gec can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Linden Gec 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Linden Gec 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Linden Gec is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee 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.
Threats Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee are -
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee, Linden Gec may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Organizational Development .
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Linden Gec 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Linden Gec 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.
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. Linden Gec can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Linden Gec 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 Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee .
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 Linden Gec in the Organizational Development sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Linden Gec 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 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.
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 Linden Gec 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. Linden Gec needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Organizational Development industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Increasing wage structure of Linden Gec
– 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 Linden Gec.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Linden Gec with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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 Linden Gec.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee 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 Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee 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 Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee 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 Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee 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 Johannes Linden: Managing the Global Executive Committee 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 Linden Gec needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.