AT&T: The Dallas Works (A) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Organizational Development
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of AT&T: The Dallas Works (A)
Describes the organizational challenges facing an AT&T plant a few years after the breakup of AT&T. In an effort to empower workers and to unite the factory behind change, management proposes an unusual team-based approach to driving the change. Teaching Objective: To encourage students to analyze the effectiveness of this team-based approach in driving change and empowering the workforce.
Authors :: Todd D. Jick, Susan Rosegrant, Philip Holland
Swot Analysis of "AT&T: The Dallas Works (A)" written by Todd D. Jick, Susan Rosegrant, Philip Holland includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Driving Breakup facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in AT&T: The Dallas Works (A) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Delegation, Leading teams, Motivating people, Organizational culture and Organizational Development.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the AT&T: The Dallas Works (A) casestudy better are - – digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, increasing commodity prices, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, there is increasing trade war between United States & China,
wage bills are increasing, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of AT&T: The Dallas Works (A)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in AT&T: The Dallas Works (A) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Driving Breakup, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Driving Breakup 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 AT&T: The Dallas Works (A) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in AT&T: The Dallas Works (A) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Driving Breakup
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 Driving Breakup
Strengths AT&T: The Dallas Works (A) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Driving Breakup in AT&T: The Dallas Works (A) Harvard Business Review case study are -
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Driving Breakup 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 AT&T: The Dallas Works (A) - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Analytics focus
– Driving Breakup 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 Todd D. Jick, Susan Rosegrant, Philip Holland 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Driving Breakup has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Driving Breakup 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.
Digital Transformation in Organizational Development segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Driving Breakup digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Driving Breakup 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.
Training and development
– Driving Breakup has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in AT&T: The Dallas Works (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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Organizational Development industry
– AT&T: The Dallas Works (A) firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Driving Breakup to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Organizational Development industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Driving Breakup to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Driving Breakup in the sector have low bargaining power. AT&T: The Dallas Works (A) has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Driving Breakup to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Organizational Resilience of Driving Breakup
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Driving Breakup does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Ability to lead change in Organizational Development field
– Driving Breakup 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 Driving Breakup 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
– Driving Breakup is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the AT&T: The Dallas Works (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.
Diverse revenue streams
– Driving Breakup is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in AT&T: The Dallas Works (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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Driving Breakup 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.
Weaknesses AT&T: The Dallas Works (A) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of AT&T: The Dallas Works (A) are -
Lack of clear differentiation of Driving Breakup products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Driving Breakup needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Need for greater diversity
– Driving Breakup 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 AT&T: The Dallas Works (A), it seems that the employees of Driving Breakup 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 AT&T: The Dallas Works (A), is just above the industry average. Driving Breakup 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.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the AT&T: The Dallas Works (A) 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 Driving Breakup has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Driving Breakup 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 - AT&T: The Dallas Works (A) should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study AT&T: The Dallas Works (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.
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 Driving Breakup supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - AT&T: The Dallas Works (A), it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Driving Breakup vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Driving Breakup is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Organizational Development segment. Driving Breakup needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Driving Breakup to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study AT&T: The Dallas Works (A) 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 Driving Breakup 's lucrative customers.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Driving Breakup 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 AT&T: The Dallas Works (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 AT&T: The Dallas Works (A) are -
Leveraging digital technologies
– Driving Breakup 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Driving Breakup can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Driving Breakup operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Organizational Development sector.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Driving Breakup to increase its market reach. Driving Breakup 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Driving Breakup can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Manufacturing automation
– Driving Breakup 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.
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. Driving Breakup can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Driving Breakup 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.
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. Driving Breakup can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Driving Breakup 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 Driving Breakup to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
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 Driving Breakup in the consumer business. Now Driving Breakup can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Driving Breakup 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 AT&T: The Dallas Works (A) - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Driving Breakup to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Driving Breakup 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Driving Breakup can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. AT&T: The Dallas Works (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 AT&T: The Dallas Works (A) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study AT&T: The Dallas Works (A) are -
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Driving Breakup 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.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Driving Breakup 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.
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 Driving Breakup business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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. Driving Breakup 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.
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. Driving Breakup needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Organizational Development industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study AT&T: The Dallas Works (A), Driving Breakup 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 .
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 Driving Breakup.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Driving Breakup 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.
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. Driving Breakup can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Environmental challenges
– Driving Breakup 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. Driving Breakup can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Organizational Development industry.
Regulatory challenges
– Driving Breakup 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Driving Breakup 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 AT&T: The Dallas Works (A) .
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Driving Breakup with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of AT&T: The Dallas Works (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 AT&T: The Dallas Works (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 AT&T: The Dallas Works (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 AT&T: The Dallas Works (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 AT&T: The Dallas Works (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 Driving Breakup needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
