Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Sales & Marketing
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV)
Managers at Zenith must decide what marketing research, if any, needs to be done now in order to assess market potential and consumer preference for a technological innovation, high definition television (HDTV) that is yet to be introduced. The case describes various marketing research options available to Zenith in August 1990. In particular managers have to decide whether to conduct a study to examine consumer preferences for the wider screen format of HDTV. They also need to forecast HDTV demand from 1992-2000 under pessimistic, most likely and optimistic scenarios that have to be defined. Can be used to expose students in an introductory marketing management course to various marketing research methods available to assess consumer preferences for new products and innovations. In particular it exposes students to conjoint analysis' methodology. Also allows students an opportunity to assess the situation facing Zenith and explore forecasting marketing potential via scenario analysis.
Swot Analysis of "Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV)" written by Fareena Sultan includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Zenith Hdtv facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, IT, Market research, Product development and Sales & Marketing.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) casestudy better are - – technology disruption, there is backlash against globalization, increasing commodity prices, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, wage bills are increasing, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%,
increasing energy prices, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Zenith Hdtv, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Zenith Hdtv 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 Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Zenith Hdtv
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 Zenith Hdtv
Strengths Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Zenith Hdtv in Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) Harvard Business Review case study are -
Ability to lead change in Sales & Marketing field
– Zenith Hdtv 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 Zenith Hdtv in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Learning organization
- Zenith Hdtv 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 Zenith Hdtv is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
High brand equity
– Zenith Hdtv has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Zenith Hdtv to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Zenith Hdtv has highly efficient outsourcing and offshoring strategy. It has resulted in greater operational flexibility and bringing down the costs in highly price sensitive segment. Secondly the value chain collaborators of the firm in Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Zenith Hdtv in the sector have low bargaining power. Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Zenith Hdtv to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Zenith Hdtv 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 Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) - 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
– Zenith Hdtv 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 Fareena Sultan 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.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) 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.
Training and development
– Zenith Hdtv has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) 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.
Diverse revenue streams
– Zenith Hdtv is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) 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 Zenith Hdtv 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.
Digital Transformation in Sales & Marketing segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Zenith Hdtv digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Zenith Hdtv 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.
Weaknesses Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) are -
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Zenith Hdtv has created an environment where the organization is dominated by functional specialists rather than management generalist. This has resulted into product oriented approach rather than marketing oriented approach or consumers oriented approach.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Zenith Hdtv 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV), is just above the industry average. Zenith Hdtv 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 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 Zenith Hdtv supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV), it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Zenith Hdtv vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Zenith Hdtv 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Zenith Hdtv 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 - Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Zenith Hdtv, firm in the HBR case study Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV), in the dynamic environment Zenith Hdtv has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Zenith Hdtv has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) 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 Zenith Hdtv 's lucrative customers.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Fareena Sultan suggests that, Zenith Hdtv 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Zenith Hdtv 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.
Opportunities Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) | 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 Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) are -
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Zenith Hdtv in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Sales & Marketing segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Zenith Hdtv can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Zenith Hdtv operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Sales & Marketing sector.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Zenith Hdtv 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Zenith Hdtv has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Zenith Hdtv to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) case study. Zenith Hdtv can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Developing new processes and practices
– Zenith Hdtv 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Zenith Hdtv 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 Zenith Hdtv to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
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. Zenith Hdtv can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Zenith Hdtv 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Zenith Hdtv 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.
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. Zenith Hdtv 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. Zenith Hdtv 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
– Zenith Hdtv can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) 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
– Zenith Hdtv 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Zenith Hdtv to increase its market reach. Zenith Hdtv 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.
Threats Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) are -
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Zenith Hdtv 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.
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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV), Zenith Hdtv 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 .
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.
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. Zenith Hdtv needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Sales & Marketing industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Zenith Hdtv 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Zenith Hdtv 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.
Environmental challenges
– Zenith Hdtv 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. Zenith Hdtv can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Zenith Hdtv 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.
Increasing wage structure of Zenith Hdtv
– 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 Zenith Hdtv.
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. Zenith Hdtv 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.
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 Zenith Hdtv in the Sales & Marketing sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Capital market disruption
– During the Covid-19, Dow Jones has touched record high. The valuations of a number of companies are way beyond their existing business model potential. This can lead to capital market correction which can put a number of suppliers, collaborators, value chain partners in great financial difficulty. It will directly impact the business of Zenith Hdtv.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) 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 Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) 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 Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) 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 Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) 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 Zenith: Marketing Research for High Definition Television (HDTV) 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 Zenith Hdtv needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.