Case Study Description of Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle
This case is about the strategic-sourcing process: leading a major acquisition program with an unprecedented schedule and an unprepared industrial base. Soldiers in Iraq are dying in increasing numbers from improvised explosive devices planted in roads by insurgents. Up-armored Humvees offer little to no protection. Specialty vehicles with v-shaped bottoms to deflect blasts had been developed in South Africa and Rhodesia in the 1970s. The MRAP Vehicle Joint Program Office's mission was to procure up to 20,000 of these commercial off-the-shelf vehicles and get them to Iraq within 30 months. Yet U.S. production is fewer than 10 vehicles per month because not enough tires, ballistics-grade steel, and other raw materials are available. The daunting task: to undertake the fastest vehicle procurement since the Jeep in World War II, ramping up the industrial base, and overcoming the bureaucratic logjam in Department of Defense procedures.
Swot Analysis of "Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle" written by Thomas Cross includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Mrap Vehicles facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Strategic thinking, Supply chain and Organizational Development.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle casestudy better are - – talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, geopolitical disruptions, increasing energy prices, increasing household debt because of falling income levels,
increasing transportation and logistics costs, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Mrap Vehicles, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Mrap Vehicles 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 Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Mrap Vehicles
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 Mrap Vehicles
Strengths Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Mrap Vehicles in Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle Harvard Business Review case study are -
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Mrap Vehicles 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.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle 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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Mrap Vehicles in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Learning organization
- Mrap Vehicles 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 Mrap Vehicles is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Mrap Vehicles 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Organizational Development industry
– Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Mrap Vehicles to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Organizational Development industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Mrap Vehicles to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Mrap Vehicles is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Analytics focus
– Mrap Vehicles 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 Thomas Cross 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
– Mrap Vehicles has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Mrap Vehicles 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Mrap Vehicles is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Mrap Vehicles 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 Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Diverse revenue streams
– Mrap Vehicles is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle 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.
Weaknesses Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle are -
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle 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 Mrap Vehicles has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle HBR case study mentions - Mrap Vehicles takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the industry in last five years.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle, in the dynamic environment Mrap Vehicles has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Mrap Vehicles has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
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 Mrap Vehicles supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Mrap Vehicles vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle 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 Mrap Vehicles 's lucrative customers.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Mrap Vehicles 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle, 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
– Mrap Vehicles 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle, is just above the industry average. Mrap Vehicles 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 bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Thomas Cross suggests that, Mrap Vehicles 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, Mrap Vehicles is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Opportunities Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle | 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 Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle are -
Manufacturing automation
– Mrap Vehicles 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Mrap Vehicles 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 Mrap Vehicles to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Mrap Vehicles 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Mrap Vehicles 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.
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. Mrap Vehicles 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. Mrap Vehicles 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Mrap Vehicles can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Mrap Vehicles 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Mrap Vehicles 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 Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Mrap Vehicles to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
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. Mrap Vehicles can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Mrap Vehicles can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Mrap Vehicles can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Mrap Vehicles operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Organizational Development sector.
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 Mrap Vehicles in the consumer business. Now Mrap Vehicles 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, Mrap Vehicles is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle 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.
Threats Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle are -
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Mrap Vehicles with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle, Mrap Vehicles 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 .
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Mrap Vehicles 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.
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. Mrap Vehicles needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Organizational Development industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Mrap Vehicles has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Organizational Development industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Mrap Vehicles needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Organizational Development sector. According to Mckinsey study top managers believe that the adoption of technology in operations, communications is 20-25 times faster than what they planned in the beginning of 2019.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Mrap Vehicles 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Mrap Vehicles is facing in Organizational Development sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Mrap Vehicles 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.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Mrap Vehicles 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.
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 Mrap Vehicles.
Regulatory challenges
– Mrap Vehicles 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 wage structure of Mrap Vehicles
– 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 Mrap Vehicles.
Environmental challenges
– Mrap Vehicles 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. Mrap Vehicles can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Organizational Development industry.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle 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 Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle 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 Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle 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 Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle 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 Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) Vehicle 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 Mrap Vehicles needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
