Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Sales & Marketing
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past
The Alcatel Access Systems Division case highlights the issues and challenges, mainly in terms of product development and innovation, within a multinational organization traditionally organized on a country-based unit structure. The case focuses on the strategic organization and management issues aimed at developing adequate international integration, innovation and transformation processes amidst a fiercely changing competitive environment.
Authors :: Rudi Bogaert, Paul Verdin, Arnoud De Meyer
Swot Analysis of "Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past" written by Rudi Bogaert, Paul Verdin, Arnoud De Meyer includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Alcatel Access facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Innovation, Regulation and Sales & Marketing.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past casestudy better are - – geopolitical disruptions, there is backlash against globalization, increasing commodity prices, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies,
technology disruption, wage bills are increasing, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Alcatel Access, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Alcatel Access 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 Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Alcatel Access
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 Alcatel Access
Strengths Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Alcatel Access in Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past Harvard Business Review case study are -
Digital Transformation in Sales & Marketing segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Alcatel Access digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Alcatel Access 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.
Diverse revenue streams
– Alcatel Access is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past 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.
Training and development
– Alcatel Access has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Alcatel Access 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 Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Organizational Resilience of Alcatel Access
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Alcatel Access does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Alcatel Access 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.
High brand equity
– Alcatel Access has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Alcatel Access to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Alcatel Access is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Alcatel Access in the sector have low bargaining power. Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Alcatel Access to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Alcatel Access 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.
Analytics focus
– Alcatel Access 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 Rudi Bogaert, Paul Verdin, Arnoud De Meyer 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
– Alcatel Access has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Alcatel Access 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.
Weaknesses Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past are -
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past, 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past 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 Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Alcatel Access is planning to shift buying processes online.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Alcatel Access 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. Alcatel Access 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.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Alcatel Access 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past, is just above the industry average. Alcatel Access 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Alcatel Access 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.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Alcatel Access 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.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past, it seems that the employees of Alcatel Access 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Alcatel Access is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Sales & Marketing segment. Alcatel Access needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Alcatel Access to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
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 Alcatel Access supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Alcatel Access vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past, in the dynamic environment Alcatel Access has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Alcatel Access has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Opportunities Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past | 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 Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past are -
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Alcatel Access 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, Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Alcatel Access 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.
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 Alcatel Access 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Alcatel Access is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Alcatel Access 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Alcatel Access has focused on building a highly responsive customer relationship management platform. This platform is built on in-house data and driven by analytics and artificial intelligence. The customer analytics can help the organization to fine tune its loyalty marketing efforts, increase the wallet share of the organization, reduce wastage on mainstream advertising spending, build better pricing strategies using personalization, etc.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Alcatel Access 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Alcatel Access 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.
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. Alcatel Access 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. Alcatel Access 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Alcatel Access can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Alcatel Access 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 Alcatel Access to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Alcatel Access to increase its market reach. Alcatel Access 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Alcatel Access can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Alcatel Access operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Sales & Marketing sector.
Threats Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past are -
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Alcatel Access 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.
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. Alcatel Access needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Sales & Marketing industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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. Alcatel Access 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Alcatel Access 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 Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past .
Environmental challenges
– Alcatel Access 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. Alcatel Access can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Alcatel Access 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.
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 Alcatel Access in the Sales & Marketing sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Alcatel Access is facing in Sales & Marketing sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Sales & Marketing field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Alcatel Access can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Increasing wage structure of Alcatel Access
– 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 Alcatel Access.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past, Alcatel Access 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.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Alcatel Access 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past 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 Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past 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 Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past 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 Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past 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 Alcatel Access Systems Division (A): Lessons from the Past 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 Alcatel Access needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
