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Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution

Case Study Description of Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software


How does a firm in a high-tech industry compete when both innovation and cost effectiveness are critical? T.J. Rodgers, founder and CEO of Cypress Semiconductor, has developed a unique human resources system that attempts to do both. Describes the elements of this system and raises a series of questions about how aligned the HR system is with the business strategy. Also illustrates the role of formal and social control (culture) in stimulating innovation and change.

Authors :: Charles A. O'Reilly, David Caldwell

Topics :: Organizational Development

Tags :: Competitive strategy, Human resource management, Innovation, Leadership, Managing people, SWOT Analysis, SWOT Matrix, TOWS, Weighted SWOT Analysis

Swot Analysis of "Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software" written by Charles A. O'Reilly, David Caldwell includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Cypress Rodgers facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Competitive strategy, Human resource management, Innovation, Leadership, Managing people and Organizational Development.


Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software casestudy better are - – technology disruption, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, increasing commodity prices, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, etc



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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software


SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Cypress Rodgers, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Cypress Rodgers 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 Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Cypress Rodgers
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 Cypress Rodgers




Strengths Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of Cypress Rodgers in Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software Harvard Business Review case study are -

Innovation driven organization

– Cypress Rodgers is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.

Ability to lead change in Organizational Development field

– Cypress Rodgers 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 Cypress Rodgers in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.

Ability to recruit top talent

– Cypress Rodgers is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.

Sustainable margins compare to other players in Organizational Development industry

– Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Cypress Rodgers to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Organizational Development industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Cypress Rodgers to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.

Organizational Resilience of Cypress Rodgers

– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Cypress Rodgers does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.

High brand equity

– Cypress Rodgers has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Cypress Rodgers to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.

Diverse revenue streams

– Cypress Rodgers is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software 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.

Training and development

– Cypress Rodgers has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software 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.

Analytics focus

– Cypress Rodgers 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 Charles A. O'Reilly, David Caldwell 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.

Superior customer experience

– The customer experience strategy of Cypress Rodgers in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.

Successful track record of launching new products

– Cypress Rodgers has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Cypress Rodgers 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.

Effective Research and Development (R&D)

– Cypress Rodgers 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 Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.






Weaknesses Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software are -

Capital Spending Reduction

– Even during the low interest decade, Cypress Rodgers 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.

Workers concerns about automation

– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Cypress Rodgers 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.

No frontier risks strategy

– After analyzing the HBR case study Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software, 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.

Need for greater diversity

– Cypress Rodgers 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 bargaining power of channel partners

– Because of the regulatory requirements, Charles A. O'Reilly, David Caldwell suggests that, Cypress Rodgers is facing high bargaining power of the channel partners. So far it has not able to streamline the operations to reduce the bargaining power of the value chain partners in the industry.

Slow to harness new channels of communication

– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Cypress Rodgers is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software 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 Cypress Rodgers products

– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Cypress Rodgers needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.

High cash cycle compare to competitors

Cypress Rodgers 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.

High dependence on star products

– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software 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 Cypress Rodgers has relatively successful track record of launching new products.

Slow decision making process

– As mentioned earlier in the report, Cypress Rodgers 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. Cypress Rodgers 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.

Ability to respond to the competition

– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software, in the dynamic environment Cypress Rodgers has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Cypress Rodgers has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.




Opportunities Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software | 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 Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software are -

Lowering marketing communication costs

– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Cypress Rodgers 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.

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. Cypress Rodgers can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.

Developing new processes and practices

– Cypress Rodgers 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.

Learning at scale

– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Cypress Rodgers 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

– Cypress Rodgers 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.

Better consumer reach

– The expansion of the 5G network will help Cypress Rodgers to increase its market reach. Cypress Rodgers 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.

Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains

– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Cypress Rodgers 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, Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.

Reconfiguring business model

– The expansion of digital payment system, the bringing down of international transactions costs using Bitcoin and other blockchain based currencies, etc can help Cypress Rodgers to reconfigure its entire business model. For example it can used blockchain based technologies to reduce piracy of its products in the big markets such as China. Secondly it can use the popularity of e-commerce in various developing markets to build a Direct to Customer business model rather than the current Channel Heavy distribution network.

Reforming the budgeting process

- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Cypress Rodgers can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.

Loyalty marketing

– Cypress Rodgers 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.

Leveraging digital technologies

– Cypress Rodgers 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 Cypress Rodgers 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 Cypress Rodgers to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.

Low interest rates

– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Cypress Rodgers 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 Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis


The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software are -

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. Cypress Rodgers needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Organizational Development industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.

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. Cypress Rodgers can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.

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.

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 Cypress Rodgers.

Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution

– Cypress Rodgers has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Organizational Development industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Cypress Rodgers 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.

Environmental challenges

– Cypress Rodgers 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. Cypress Rodgers can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Organizational Development industry.

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. Cypress Rodgers 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.

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 Cypress Rodgers business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.

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 Cypress Rodgers in the Organizational Development sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.

Shortening product life cycle

– it is one of the major threat that Cypress Rodgers is facing in Organizational Development sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.

Regulatory challenges

– Cypress Rodgers 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.

Stagnating economy with rate increase

– Cypress Rodgers 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.

High dependence on third party suppliers

– Cypress Rodgers 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.




Weighted SWOT Analysis of Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software 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 Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software 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 Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software 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 Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software 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 Cypress Semiconductors (A): Vision, Values, and Killer Software 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 Cypress Rodgers needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.



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