Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Organizational Development
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A)
In a 30-year career, a recently retired international manager of Xerox Corp. played a major role in the company's international expansion to emerging economies, assumed key responsibilities for the negotiation and founding of several international joint ventures, and served as an expatriate manager of these ventures in several countries (e.g., Mexico, Brazil, and China). The case presents issues surrounding these developments in the context of doing business in emerging economies.
Authors :: Leslie Steinberg, Aimin Yan
Topics :: Organizational Development
Tags :: Human resource management, International business, Organizational culture, SWOT Analysis, SWOT Matrix, TOWS, Weighted SWOT Analysis
Swot Analysis of "Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A)" written by Leslie Steinberg, Aimin Yan includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that International Ryckebosch facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Human resource management, International business, Organizational culture and Organizational Development.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) casestudy better are - – increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, there is backlash against globalization, geopolitical disruptions, technology disruption, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing commodity prices, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies,
central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the International Ryckebosch, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which International Ryckebosch 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 Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of International Ryckebosch
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 International Ryckebosch
Strengths Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of International Ryckebosch in Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) Harvard Business Review case study are -
Highly skilled collaborators
– International Ryckebosch 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 Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Training and development
– International Ryckebosch has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) 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 lead change in Organizational Development field
– International Ryckebosch is one of the leading players in its industry. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in its segment but also across the whole industry. The ability to lead change has enabled International Ryckebosch in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– International Ryckebosch has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. International Ryckebosch 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
– International Ryckebosch is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) 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.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that International Ryckebosch 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.
Learning organization
- International Ryckebosch 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 International Ryckebosch is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Digital Transformation in Organizational Development segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For International Ryckebosch digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. International Ryckebosch 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
– Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled International Ryckebosch to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Organizational Development industry. The sustainable margins have also helped International Ryckebosch to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of International Ryckebosch in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Ability to recruit top talent
– International Ryckebosch is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Weaknesses Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) are -
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at International Ryckebosch has created an environment where the organization is dominated by functional specialists rather than management generalist. This has resulted into product oriented approach rather than marketing oriented approach or consumers oriented approach.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of International Ryckebosch, firm in the HBR case study Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
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 International Ryckebosch supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A), it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left International Ryckebosch vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A), is just above the industry average. International Ryckebosch 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A), 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) 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 Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as International Ryckebosch is planning to shift buying processes online.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, International Ryckebosch 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 cash cycle compare to competitors
International Ryckebosch 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.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A), it seems that the employees of International Ryckebosch 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, International Ryckebosch 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though International Ryckebosch has some of the most successful products in the industry, this business model has made each new product launch extremely critical for continuous financial growth of the organization. firm in the HBR case study - Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Opportunities Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) | 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 Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) are -
Leveraging digital technologies
– International Ryckebosch 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.
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 International Ryckebosch in the consumer business. Now International Ryckebosch can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, International Ryckebosch is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for International Ryckebosch 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 International Ryckebosch to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– International Ryckebosch 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 Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help International Ryckebosch to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
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. International Ryckebosch 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. International Ryckebosch 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.
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. International Ryckebosch can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Loyalty marketing
– International Ryckebosch 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help International Ryckebosch to increase its market reach. International Ryckebosch 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of International Ryckebosch has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help International Ryckebosch to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) case study. International Ryckebosch can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
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. International Ryckebosch can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, International Ryckebosch 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, Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A), to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Buying journey improvements
– International Ryckebosch can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) 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.
Threats Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) are -
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents International Ryckebosch with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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. International Ryckebosch can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
New competition
– After the dotcom bust of 2001, financial crisis of 2008-09, the business formation in US economy had declined. But in 2020 alone, there are more than 1.5 million new business applications in United States. This can lead to greater competition for International Ryckebosch in the Organizational Development sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
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.
Increasing wage structure of International Ryckebosch
– 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 International Ryckebosch.
Consumer confidence and its impact on International Ryckebosch 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 International Ryckebosch.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A), International Ryckebosch 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 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. International Ryckebosch needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Organizational Development industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that International Ryckebosch is facing in Organizational Development sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, International Ryckebosch 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 Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) .
High dependence on third party suppliers
– International Ryckebosch 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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– International Ryckebosch has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Organizational Development industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, International Ryckebosch 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) 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 Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) 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 Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) 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 Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) 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 Frans Ryckebosch: An International Manager (A) 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 International Ryckebosch needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
