The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Sales & Marketing
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle
"The kitchen purchase" is a simulation of bargaining over the price of a fitted kitchen. The case study consists of a briefing for the sellers (the Hase family) and a briefing for the buyers (the Stulle family). On the basis of these briefings the course participants negotiate individually or in teams of two. The case study has been kept simple so that the negotiations can be conducted with very little preparation time needed. At the same time the case study presents a few "stumbling blocks" and permits a profound discussion on the distributive and integrative conduct of negotiations, handling bargaining power, and the ethics of bargaining. The case study is therefore especially well-suited for course participants with intermediate to advanced negotiating experience.
Swot Analysis of "The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle" written by Johannes Habel includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Briefing Stulle facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Sales and Sales & Marketing.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle casestudy better are - – increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, wage bills are increasing, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%,
there is backlash against globalization, increasing commodity prices, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Briefing Stulle, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Briefing Stulle 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 The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Briefing Stulle
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 Briefing Stulle
Strengths The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Briefing Stulle in The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle Harvard Business Review case study are -
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Sales & Marketing industry
– The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Briefing Stulle to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Briefing Stulle to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle 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.
Analytics focus
– Briefing Stulle 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 Johannes Habel 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Briefing Stulle 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 The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle 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 Briefing Stulle in the sector have low bargaining power. The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Briefing Stulle to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Diverse revenue streams
– Briefing Stulle is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Briefing Stulle is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Digital Transformation in Sales & Marketing segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Briefing Stulle digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Briefing Stulle 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Briefing Stulle is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Organizational Resilience of Briefing Stulle
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Briefing Stulle does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Briefing Stulle 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.
Ability to lead change in Sales & Marketing field
– Briefing Stulle 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 Briefing Stulle in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Weaknesses The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle are -
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Briefing Stulle 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. Briefing Stulle 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.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Briefing Stulle 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.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Briefing Stulle 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle, in the dynamic environment Briefing Stulle has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Briefing Stulle has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle, it seems that the employees of Briefing Stulle 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle 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 The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Briefing Stulle is planning to shift buying processes online.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Briefing Stulle is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle 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 dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle 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 Briefing Stulle has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Briefing Stulle 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 operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle 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 Briefing Stulle 's lucrative customers.
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 Briefing Stulle supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Briefing Stulle vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Opportunities The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle | 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 The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle are -
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Briefing Stulle 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 The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Briefing Stulle to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Briefing Stulle 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Briefing Stulle to increase its market reach. Briefing Stulle 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.
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. Briefing Stulle can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Briefing Stulle 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Briefing Stulle can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Briefing Stulle is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle 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.
Use of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies for transactions
– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for Briefing Stulle in the consumer business. Now Briefing Stulle can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Briefing Stulle 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Briefing Stulle can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Briefing Stulle operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Sales & Marketing sector.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Briefing Stulle 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, The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Developing new processes and practices
– Briefing Stulle 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 Briefing Stulle 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 Briefing Stulle to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Threats The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle are -
Environmental challenges
– Briefing Stulle 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. Briefing Stulle can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Briefing Stulle 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Briefing Stulle 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.
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. Briefing Stulle 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.
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 Briefing Stulle.
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.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Briefing Stulle 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.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Briefing Stulle 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.
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.
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 Briefing Stulle business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Briefing Stulle has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Sales & Marketing industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Briefing Stulle 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Briefing Stulle with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Increasing wage structure of Briefing Stulle
– 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 Briefing Stulle.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle 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 The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle 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 The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle 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 The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle 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 The kitchen purchase: Briefing for buyers: Mr and Mrs Stulle 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 Briefing Stulle needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
