ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Organizational Development
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version
Describes the development and management of the relays business area (BA) in ABB's global matrix organization. Focuses on three levels of management--corporate, BA, and operating company. Highlights the roles and responsibilities of individuals at each level as ABB creates a unique, highly successful organization structure and management process that enables it to integrate its disparate worldwide operations while maintaining a highly entrepreneurial front-line environment.
Swot Analysis of "ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version" written by Christopher A. Bartlett includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Relays Ba facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, International business, Labor, Organizational culture, Organizational structure, Strategy execution and Organizational Development.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version casestudy better are - – talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, geopolitical disruptions, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, wage bills are increasing, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings,
increasing commodity prices, there is backlash against globalization, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Relays Ba, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Relays Ba 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 ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Relays Ba
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 Relays Ba
Strengths ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Relays Ba in ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version Harvard Business Review case study are -
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Relays Ba 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
– Relays Ba is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Relays Ba in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Relays Ba is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Analytics focus
– Relays Ba 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 Christopher A. Bartlett 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Relays Ba 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
– Relays Ba has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version 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.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Relays Ba is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Relays Ba 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 ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version - 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
– ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Relays Ba to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Organizational Development industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Relays Ba to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
High brand equity
– Relays Ba has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Relays Ba to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Weaknesses ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version are -
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version, 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.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version 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 Relays Ba 's lucrative customers.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Relays Ba is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Organizational Development segment. Relays Ba needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Relays Ba 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, Relays Ba 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Relays Ba 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Relays Ba, firm in the HBR case study ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Relays Ba 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.
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 Relays Ba supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Relays Ba vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Relays Ba 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Relays Ba is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version, in the dynamic environment Relays Ba has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Relays Ba has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Opportunities ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version | 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 ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version are -
Loyalty marketing
– Relays Ba has focused on building a highly responsive customer relationship management platform. This platform is built on in-house data and driven by analytics and artificial intelligence. The customer analytics can help the organization to fine tune its loyalty marketing efforts, increase the wallet share of the organization, reduce wastage on mainstream advertising spending, build better pricing strategies using personalization, etc.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Relays Ba is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Relays Ba can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version 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.
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. Relays Ba 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, Relays Ba can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Relays Ba operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Organizational Development sector.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Relays Ba 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 ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Relays Ba 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. Relays Ba can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Relays Ba 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Relays Ba 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 Relays Ba to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Relays Ba 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Relays Ba 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.
Use of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies for transactions
– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for Relays Ba in the consumer business. Now Relays Ba can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Relays Ba can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Threats ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version are -
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 Relays Ba.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Relays Ba 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.
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 Relays Ba business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Relays Ba 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.
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 Relays Ba in the Organizational Development sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
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. Relays Ba can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version, Relays Ba 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 .
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Relays Ba with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Environmental challenges
– Relays Ba 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. Relays Ba can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Organizational Development industry.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Relays Ba has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Organizational Development industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Relays Ba needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Organizational Development 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Relays Ba 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 ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version .
Increasing wage structure of Relays Ba
– 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 Relays Ba.
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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version 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 ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version 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 ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version 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 ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version 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 ABB's Relays Business: Building and Managing a Global Matrix, Spanish Version 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 Relays Ba needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
