Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
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Case Study Description of Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video
Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO of Biocon, discusses decisions related to the launch of a new cancer drug in India. Interviewed on May 6, 2009 by Professor Sunil Gupta at Harvard Business School.
Swot Analysis of "Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video" written by Sunil Gupta includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Mazumdar Biocon facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Pricing and Sales & Marketing.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video casestudy better are - – increasing commodity prices, wage bills are increasing, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies,
competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, technology disruption, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Mazumdar Biocon, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Mazumdar Biocon 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 Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Mazumdar Biocon
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 Mazumdar Biocon
Strengths Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Mazumdar Biocon in Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video Harvard Business Review case study are -
Organizational Resilience of Mazumdar Biocon
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Mazumdar Biocon does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Strong track record of project management
– Mazumdar Biocon is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Mazumdar Biocon in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Mazumdar Biocon 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 Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Ability to lead change in Sales & Marketing field
– Mazumdar Biocon 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 Mazumdar Biocon in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Sales & Marketing industry
– Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Mazumdar Biocon to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Mazumdar Biocon to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Mazumdar Biocon 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.
Learning organization
- Mazumdar Biocon 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 Mazumdar Biocon is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Mazumdar Biocon has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Mazumdar Biocon 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.
Analytics focus
– Mazumdar Biocon 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 Sunil Gupta 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
– Mazumdar Biocon 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 Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Digital Transformation in Sales & Marketing segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Mazumdar Biocon digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Mazumdar Biocon 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 Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video are -
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video, is just above the industry average. Mazumdar Biocon 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Mazumdar Biocon 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 - Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Mazumdar Biocon is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Sales & Marketing segment. Mazumdar Biocon needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Mazumdar Biocon to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Mazumdar Biocon 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.
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 Mazumdar Biocon supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Mazumdar Biocon vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Mazumdar Biocon, firm in the HBR case study Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video HBR case study mentions - Mazumdar Biocon takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the industry in last five years.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Mazumdar Biocon 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. Mazumdar Biocon 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 bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Sunil Gupta suggests that, Mazumdar Biocon 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Mazumdar Biocon products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Mazumdar Biocon needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Mazumdar Biocon is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Opportunities Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video | 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 Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video are -
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Mazumdar Biocon to increase its market reach. Mazumdar Biocon 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Mazumdar Biocon 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 Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Mazumdar Biocon to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Mazumdar Biocon 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, Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Loyalty marketing
– Mazumdar Biocon 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.
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. Mazumdar Biocon 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 Mazumdar Biocon can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Mazumdar Biocon 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Mazumdar Biocon 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Mazumdar Biocon has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Mazumdar Biocon to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video case study. Mazumdar Biocon can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
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. Mazumdar Biocon can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
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. Mazumdar Biocon 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. Mazumdar Biocon 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Mazumdar Biocon can leverage digital technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning to automate the production process, customer analytics to get better insights into consumer behavior, realtime digital dashboards to get better sales tracking, logistics and transportation, product tracking, etc.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Mazumdar Biocon 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.
Threats Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video are -
Increasing wage structure of Mazumdar Biocon
– 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 Mazumdar Biocon.
Environmental challenges
– Mazumdar Biocon 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. Mazumdar Biocon can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Mazumdar Biocon 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.
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. Mazumdar Biocon 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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Mazumdar Biocon has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Sales & Marketing industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Mazumdar Biocon 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 Mazumdar Biocon with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Mazumdar Biocon 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 Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video .
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 Mazumdar Biocon in the Sales & Marketing sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Mazumdar Biocon 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.
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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Mazumdar Biocon is facing in Sales & Marketing sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Regulatory challenges
– Mazumdar Biocon 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.
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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video 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 Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video 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 Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video 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 Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video 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 Biocon: Interview with Dr. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CEO, Video 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 Mazumdar Biocon needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.