Swot Analysis of "Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors" written by Benson P. Shapiro, Craig E. Cline includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Cumberland Beta facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Marketing, Negotiations, Pricing and Sales & Marketing.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors casestudy better are - – increasing energy prices, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing household debt because of falling income levels, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy,
wage bills are increasing, geopolitical disruptions, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Cumberland Beta, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Cumberland Beta 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 Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Cumberland Beta
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Sales & Marketing field.
4. Making a Sales & Marketing topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Cumberland Beta
Strengths Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Cumberland Beta in Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors Harvard Business Review case study are -
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Sales & Marketing industry
– Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Cumberland Beta to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Cumberland Beta to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Innovation driven organization
– Cumberland Beta is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Diverse revenue streams
– Cumberland Beta is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors 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.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors 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.
Learning organization
- Cumberland Beta 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 Cumberland Beta is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Strong track record of project management
– Cumberland Beta is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Cumberland Beta in the sector have low bargaining power. Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Cumberland Beta to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Ability to lead change in Sales & Marketing field
– Cumberland Beta 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 Cumberland Beta in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
High brand equity
– Cumberland Beta has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Cumberland Beta to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Analytics focus
– Cumberland Beta 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 Benson P. Shapiro, Craig E. Cline 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Cumberland Beta 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 Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Cumberland Beta in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Weaknesses Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors are -
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Sales & Marketing 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Cumberland Beta 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors that the firm needs to have more collaboration between its sales team and marketing team. Sales professionals in the industry have deep experience in developing customer relationships. Marketing department in the case Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Cumberland Beta is planning to shift buying processes online.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Cumberland Beta 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 - Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors 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 Cumberland Beta 's lucrative customers.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Benson P. Shapiro, Craig E. Cline suggests that, Cumberland Beta 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Cumberland Beta, firm in the HBR case study Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors, it seems that the employees of Cumberland Beta 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Cumberland Beta is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Cumberland Beta 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.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors HBR case study mentions - Cumberland Beta 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.
Opportunities Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors | 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 Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors are -
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Sales & Marketing industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Cumberland Beta 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
– Cumberland Beta can develop new processes and procedures in Sales & Marketing 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Cumberland Beta can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Cumberland Beta 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. Cumberland Beta can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Cumberland Beta 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, Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Sales & Marketing industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Cumberland Beta 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. Cumberland Beta 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.
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 Cumberland Beta 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Cumberland Beta 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 Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Cumberland Beta to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Cumberland Beta 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Cumberland Beta 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 Sales & Marketing segment.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Cumberland Beta has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Cumberland Beta to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors case study. Cumberland Beta can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Cumberland Beta 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 Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors are -
Increasing wage structure of Cumberland Beta
– 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 Cumberland Beta.
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. Cumberland Beta 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.
Environmental challenges
– Cumberland Beta 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. Cumberland Beta can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Sales & Marketing 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 Cumberland Beta business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Cumberland Beta 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 Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors .
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. Cumberland Beta needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Sales & Marketing industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Cumberland Beta has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Sales & Marketing industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Cumberland Beta needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Sales & Marketing 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.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Cumberland Beta in the Sales & Marketing industry. The Sales & Marketing 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Cumberland Beta with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Cumberland Beta 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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors, Cumberland Beta may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Sales & Marketing .
Regulatory challenges
– Cumberland Beta 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 Sales & Marketing industry regulations.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors 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 Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors 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 Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors 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 Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors 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 Cumberland Metal Industries (C): Model Year 1979 Negotiations with Beta Motors 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 Cumberland Beta needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
