Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Organizational Development
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management
Leo Burnett Co. Ltd. is a global advertising agency. The company is working with one of its largest clients to launch a new line of hair care products into the Canadian and Taiwanese test markets in preparation for a global rollout. Normally, after a brand launching, the global brand center turns over the responsibility for the brand and future campaigns to the local market offices. In this case, however, the brand launch was not successful. Team communications and team dynamics broke down in recent months and the relationships are strained. Further complicating matters are a number of client and agency staffing changes that could jeopardize the stability of the team and the agency-client relationship. The global account director must decide whether to proceed with the expected decision to modify the global team structure to give one of the teams more autonomy or whether to maintain greater centralized control over the team. She must also recommend how to move forward with the brand and determine what changes in team structure or management are necessary.
Authors :: Joerg Dietz, Fernando Olivera, Elizabeth O'Neil
Swot Analysis of "Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management" written by Joerg Dietz, Fernando Olivera, Elizabeth O'Neil includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Team Burnett facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Cross-cultural management, Globalization, Leading teams and Organizational Development.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management casestudy better are - – challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy,
banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Team Burnett, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Team Burnett 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 Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Team Burnett
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 Team Burnett
Strengths Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Team Burnett in Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management Harvard Business Review case study are -
Successful track record of launching new products
– Team Burnett has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Team Burnett 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Team Burnett 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
– Team Burnett has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management 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 switching costs
– The high switching costs that Team Burnett 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.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management 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.
Analytics focus
– Team Burnett 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 Joerg Dietz, Fernando Olivera, Elizabeth O'Neil 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.
High brand equity
– Team Burnett has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Team Burnett to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Digital Transformation in Organizational Development segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Team Burnett digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Team Burnett 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Organizational Development industry
– Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Team Burnett to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Organizational Development industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Team Burnett to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Diverse revenue streams
– Team Burnett is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management 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 recruit top talent
– Team Burnett is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Learning organization
- Team Burnett 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 Team Burnett is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Weaknesses Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management are -
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Team Burnett 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 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 Team Burnett supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Team Burnett vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Need for greater diversity
– Team Burnett 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.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management, it seems that the employees of Team Burnett 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management, is just above the industry average. Team Burnett 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Team Burnett 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management, 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 harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Team Burnett is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Lack of clear differentiation of Team Burnett products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Team Burnett needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Team Burnett is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Organizational Development segment. Team Burnett needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Team Burnett to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Team Burnett 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.
Opportunities Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management | 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 Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management are -
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. Team Burnett 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. Team Burnett 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Team Burnett to increase its market reach. Team Burnett 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Team Burnett can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Team Burnett operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Organizational Development sector.
Developing new processes and practices
– Team Burnett can develop new processes and procedures in Organizational Development industry using technology such as automation using artificial intelligence, real time transportation and products tracking, 3D modeling for concept development and new products pilot testing etc.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Team Burnett 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Team Burnett 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, Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management, 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
– Team Burnett 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Team Burnett 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 Team Burnett to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Team Burnett 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 Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Team Burnett to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Team Burnett 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Team Burnett 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.
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. Team Burnett can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Loyalty marketing
– Team Burnett 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.
Threats Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management are -
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. Team Burnett 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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Team Burnett has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Organizational Development industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Team Burnett 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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Team Burnett 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.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Team Burnett 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Team Burnett 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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management, Team Burnett 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
– Team Burnett 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Team Burnett 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.
Environmental challenges
– Team Burnett 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. Team Burnett can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Organizational Development industry.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Team Burnett 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 Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management .
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Team Burnett is facing in Organizational Development sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, 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. Team Burnett needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Organizational Development industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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 Team Burnett business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management 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 Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management 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 Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management 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 Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management 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 Leo Burnett Co. Ltd.: Virtual Team Management 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 Team Burnett needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.