Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Organizational Development
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative
The Barclay family, new owners (in July 2004) of the Telegraph Media Group in London, the United Kingdom, had acquired a great UK newspaper brand but an organization that has lost its customer focus and, by the time of the events described in the case series (2006-2008), an enterprise in an industry facing tectonic plate shifts because of digitization, the Internet, a 24x7 news and information cycle, the advent of citizen journalism, fundamentally changing reader and advertiser behavior and preferences, and a besieged centuries-old print-media business model. (All this without the additional pain of the 2008 global economic downturn and the consequent fall in advertising revenue.) While "change" was not new to the Telegraph Group (it has seen plenty since the Daily Telegraph was first published in 1855), the Barclay family and the Telegraph's new leadership and management team saw the business at a significant transition point with change an urgent imperative. The (A) case, the first of a five-part series, lays out the business and leadership case for change in the context of the Telegraph's 150-plus-year history.
Swot Analysis of "Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative" written by Anirudh Dhebar includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Telegraph Barclay facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Change management, Competition, Customers, Leadership, Technology and Organizational Development.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative casestudy better are - – competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, increasing energy prices, increasing commodity prices, wage bills are increasing,
there is increasing trade war between United States & China, geopolitical disruptions, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Telegraph Barclay, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Telegraph Barclay 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 Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Telegraph Barclay
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 Telegraph Barclay
Strengths Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Telegraph Barclay in Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative Harvard Business Review case study are -
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative 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
– Telegraph Barclay is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Telegraph Barclay has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Telegraph Barclay 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.
Diverse revenue streams
– Telegraph Barclay is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Telegraph Barclay in the sector have low bargaining power. Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Telegraph Barclay to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Telegraph Barclay 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 Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative - 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
– Telegraph Barclay is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Telegraph Barclay in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Digital Transformation in Organizational Development segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Telegraph Barclay digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Telegraph Barclay 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 Telegraph Barclay 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Telegraph Barclay is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Learning organization
- Telegraph Barclay 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 Telegraph Barclay is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Weaknesses Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative are -
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative 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 Telegraph Barclay has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Telegraph Barclay 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. Telegraph Barclay 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Telegraph Barclay, firm in the HBR case study Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Need for greater diversity
– Telegraph Barclay has taken concrete steps on diversity, equity, and inclusion. But the efforts so far has resulted in limited success. It needs to expand the recruitment and selection process to hire more people from the minorities and underprivileged background.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative 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 Telegraph Barclay 's lucrative customers.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Telegraph Barclay 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Telegraph Barclay is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Organizational Development segment. Telegraph Barclay needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Telegraph Barclay to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative, is just above the industry average. Telegraph Barclay needs to redesign the compensation structure and incentives to increase the revenue per employees. Some of the steps that it can take are – hiring more specialists on project basis, etc.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative HBR case study mentions - Telegraph Barclay 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Telegraph Barclay 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Telegraph Barclay products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Telegraph Barclay needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Opportunities Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative | 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 Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative are -
Leveraging digital technologies
– Telegraph Barclay 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
– Telegraph Barclay can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Telegraph Barclay 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 Telegraph Barclay to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Telegraph Barclay 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Telegraph Barclay has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Telegraph Barclay to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative case study. Telegraph Barclay can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
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 Telegraph Barclay in the consumer business. Now Telegraph Barclay can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Telegraph Barclay can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Telegraph Barclay operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Organizational Development sector.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Telegraph Barclay 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 Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Telegraph Barclay 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. Telegraph Barclay can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
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. Telegraph Barclay can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Telegraph Barclay is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Telegraph Barclay 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Telegraph Barclay 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.
Threats Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative are -
Consumer confidence and its impact on Telegraph Barclay 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.
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 Telegraph Barclay.
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 Telegraph Barclay business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Environmental challenges
– Telegraph Barclay 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. Telegraph Barclay can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Organizational Development industry.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Telegraph Barclay with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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 Telegraph Barclay in the Organizational Development sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Telegraph Barclay 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, Telegraph Barclay 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 Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative .
Instability in the European markets
– European Union markets are facing three big challenges post Covid – expanded balance sheets, Brexit related business disruption, and aggressive Russia looking to distract the existing security mechanism. Telegraph Barclay will face different problems in different parts of Europe. For example it will face inflationary pressures in UK, France, and Germany, balance sheet expansion and demand challenges in Southern European countries, and geopolitical instability in the Eastern Europe.
Increasing wage structure of Telegraph Barclay
– 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 Telegraph Barclay.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Telegraph Barclay has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Organizational Development industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Telegraph Barclay 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.
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. Telegraph Barclay needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Organizational Development industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Regulatory challenges
– Telegraph Barclay 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative 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 Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative 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 Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative 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 Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative 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 Telegraph Media Group: The Newspaper Is Dead, Long Live the... (A), Change, a Business and Leadership Imperative 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 Telegraph Barclay needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
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