Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
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Case Study Description of Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B)
A senior account manager at Boise Automation Canada Ltd. was disappointed with the news that he had just lost the $1.2 million opportunity with Northern Paper Inc. (Northern), a paper mill in Rocky Falls, Ontario.The opportunity was to design, supply and install an automated control system for Northern's wood-chip handling system. With over 20 years experience selling automation systems in heavy industry, had he won the order, it would have easily put him over his target quota for 2011 and significantly boosted his incentive payout. Now, with less than 3 months before the end of the year, he was unlikely to meet his target for the year. The senior account manager wanted to understand what had gone wrong, and to learn from the experience, to avoid repeating it. What should he have done differently?
Swot Analysis of "Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B)" written by Michael Taylor includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Boise Automation facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, and Sales & Marketing.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) casestudy better are - – customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, there is backlash against globalization, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, increasing energy prices, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic ,
increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, increasing transportation and logistics costs, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Boise Automation, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Boise Automation 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 Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Boise Automation
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 Boise Automation
Strengths Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Boise Automation in Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) Harvard Business Review case study are -
Training and development
– Boise Automation has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Boise Automation 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 Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) 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 Boise Automation in the sector have low bargaining power. Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Boise Automation to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) Harvard Business Review case study comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the industry, building diversified operations across different geographies so that disruption in one part of the world doesn’t impact the overall performance of the firm, and integrating the various business operations and processes through its digital transformation drive.
Strong track record of project management
– Boise Automation is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Boise Automation has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Boise Automation 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.
Ability to lead change in Sales & Marketing field
– Boise Automation 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 Boise Automation in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Diverse revenue streams
– Boise Automation is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Sales & Marketing industry
– Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Boise Automation to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Boise Automation to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Organizational Resilience of Boise Automation
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Boise Automation does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Boise Automation is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Boise Automation 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.
Weaknesses Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) are -
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Boise Automation 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. Boise Automation 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B), is just above the industry average. Boise Automation 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 star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) 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 Boise Automation has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B), it seems that the employees of Boise Automation 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Boise Automation 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.
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 Boise Automation supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B), it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Boise Automation vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Boise Automation 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 - Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Boise Automation is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Lack of clear differentiation of Boise Automation products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Boise Automation needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Michael Taylor suggests that, Boise Automation 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.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Boise Automation 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.
Opportunities Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) | 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 Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) are -
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Boise Automation 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.
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 Boise Automation 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Boise Automation has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Boise Automation to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) case study. Boise Automation 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
– Boise Automation 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.
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. Boise Automation 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 Boise Automation can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Loyalty marketing
– Boise Automation 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Boise Automation to increase its market reach. Boise Automation 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Boise Automation 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Boise Automation 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 Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Boise Automation to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
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. Boise Automation can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Boise Automation can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Boise Automation operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Sales & Marketing sector.
Buying journey improvements
– Boise Automation can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) 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.
Threats Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) are -
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B), Boise Automation 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 .
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 Boise Automation in the Sales & Marketing sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Regulatory challenges
– Boise Automation 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Boise Automation is facing in Sales & Marketing sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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. Boise Automation needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Sales & Marketing industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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.
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.
Increasing wage structure of Boise Automation
– 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 Boise Automation.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Boise Automation 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Boise Automation with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Boise Automation 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 dependence on third party suppliers
– Boise Automation 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 Boise Automation.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) 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 Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) 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 Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) 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 Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) 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 Boise Automation Canada Ltd.: The Lost Order at Northern Paper (B) 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 Boise Automation needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
