Swot Analysis of "Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D)" written by Robert G. Eccles, Nitin Nohria, Norman Klein includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Giddings Lewis facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Mergers & acquisitions and Organizational Development.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) casestudy better are - – wage bills are increasing, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, increasing transportation and logistics costs, increasing commodity prices,
there is backlash against globalization, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Giddings Lewis, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Giddings Lewis 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 Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Giddings Lewis
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 Giddings Lewis
Strengths Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Giddings Lewis in Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) Harvard Business Review case study are -
Ability to recruit top talent
– Giddings Lewis is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) 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
– Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Giddings Lewis to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Organizational Development industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Giddings Lewis to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Analytics focus
– Giddings Lewis 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 Robert G. Eccles, Nitin Nohria, Norman Klein 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.
Ability to lead change in Organizational Development field
– Giddings Lewis 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 Giddings Lewis in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Organizational Resilience of Giddings Lewis
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Giddings Lewis does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Training and development
– Giddings Lewis has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) 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.
Digital Transformation in Organizational Development segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Giddings Lewis digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Giddings Lewis 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.
Learning organization
- Giddings Lewis 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 Giddings Lewis is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Diverse revenue streams
– Giddings Lewis is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Giddings Lewis is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) Harvard Business Review case study comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the industry, building diversified operations across different geographies so that disruption in one part of the world doesn’t impact the overall performance of the firm, and integrating the various business operations and processes through its digital transformation drive.
Strong track record of project management
– Giddings Lewis is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Weaknesses Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) are -
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D), in the dynamic environment Giddings Lewis has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Giddings Lewis has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Giddings Lewis 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D), is just above the industry average. Giddings Lewis 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 operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) 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 Giddings Lewis 's lucrative customers.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D), 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Giddings Lewis is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Organizational Development segment. Giddings Lewis needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Giddings Lewis to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Giddings Lewis, firm in the HBR case study Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Giddings Lewis 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.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Giddings Lewis 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. Giddings Lewis 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Giddings Lewis is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D), it seems that the employees of Giddings Lewis 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.
Opportunities Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) | 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 Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) are -
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Giddings Lewis 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 Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Giddings Lewis to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Developing new processes and practices
– Giddings Lewis 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.
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 Giddings Lewis in the consumer business. Now Giddings Lewis can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Giddings Lewis can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Giddings Lewis operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Organizational Development sector.
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. Giddings Lewis 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. Giddings Lewis 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 Giddings Lewis to increase its market reach. Giddings Lewis 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.
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 Giddings Lewis 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Giddings Lewis 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Giddings Lewis can make experimentation a productive activity and build a culture of innovation using approaches such as – mining transaction data, A/B testing of websites and selling platforms, engaging potential customers over various needs, and building on small ideas in the Organizational Development segment.
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. Giddings Lewis can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Giddings Lewis 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 Giddings Lewis 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 Giddings Lewis to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Giddings Lewis 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.
Threats Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) are -
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Giddings Lewis 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. Giddings Lewis 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Giddings Lewis 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.
Aging population
– As the populations of most advanced economies are aging, it will lead to high social security costs, higher savings among population, and lower demand for goods and services in the economy. The household savings in US, France, UK, Germany, and Japan are growing faster than predicted because of uncertainty caused by pandemic.
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 Giddings Lewis in the Organizational Development sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Giddings Lewis 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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Giddings Lewis has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Organizational Development industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Giddings Lewis 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Giddings Lewis 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.
Increasing wage structure of Giddings Lewis
– 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 Giddings Lewis.
Environmental challenges
– Giddings Lewis 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. Giddings Lewis can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Organizational Development industry.
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 Giddings Lewis business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D), Giddings Lewis 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 .
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) 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 Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) 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 Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) 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 Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) 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 Giddings & Lewis: In Search of the Cutting Edge (D) 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 Giddings Lewis needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.