Swot Analysis of "Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths"" written by John Deighton, Leora Kornfeld includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Unvolunteered Truths facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, and Sales & Marketing.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" casestudy better are - – banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, increasing transportation and logistics costs, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, increasing energy prices, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%,
geopolitical disruptions, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths"
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Unvolunteered Truths, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Unvolunteered Truths 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 Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Unvolunteered Truths
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 Unvolunteered Truths
Strengths Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Unvolunteered Truths in Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" Harvard Business Review case study are -
High brand equity
– Unvolunteered Truths has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Unvolunteered Truths to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Digital Transformation in Sales & Marketing segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Unvolunteered Truths digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Unvolunteered Truths 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.
Analytics focus
– Unvolunteered Truths 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 John Deighton, Leora Kornfeld 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.
Training and development
– Unvolunteered Truths has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" 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)
– Unvolunteered Truths 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 Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Innovation driven organization
– Unvolunteered Truths is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Unvolunteered Truths 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Sales & Marketing industry
– Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Unvolunteered Truths to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Unvolunteered Truths to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Ability to lead change in Sales & Marketing field
– Unvolunteered Truths 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 Unvolunteered Truths in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" 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
– Unvolunteered Truths is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Unvolunteered Truths in the sector have low bargaining power. Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Unvolunteered Truths to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Weaknesses Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" are -
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Unvolunteered Truths 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. Unvolunteered Truths 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
Unvolunteered Truths 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.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" HBR case study mentions - Unvolunteered Truths 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.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" 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 Unvolunteered Truths 's lucrative customers.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Unvolunteered Truths 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths", 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Unvolunteered Truths has borrowed money from the capital market at higher rates. It needs to restructure the interest payment and costs so that it can compete better and improve profitability.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Unvolunteered Truths is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Sales & Marketing segment. Unvolunteered Truths needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Unvolunteered Truths to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Unvolunteered Truths needs to come up with a strategy to reduce the workers concern regarding automation. Without a clear strategy, it could lead to disruption and uncertainty within the organization.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Unvolunteered Truths 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 - Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths", in the dynamic environment Unvolunteered Truths has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Unvolunteered Truths has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Opportunities Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" | 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 Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" are -
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. Unvolunteered Truths can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Unvolunteered Truths 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 Unvolunteered Truths to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
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. Unvolunteered Truths can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Unvolunteered Truths 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 Unvolunteered Truths 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.
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. Unvolunteered Truths 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. Unvolunteered Truths 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Unvolunteered Truths 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.
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 Unvolunteered Truths in the consumer business. Now Unvolunteered Truths can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Unvolunteered Truths can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Unvolunteered Truths operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Sales & Marketing sector.
Buying journey improvements
– Unvolunteered Truths can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Unvolunteered Truths 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Unvolunteered Truths 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Unvolunteered Truths 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, Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths", to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Threats Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" are -
Regulatory challenges
– Unvolunteered Truths 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.
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 Unvolunteered Truths.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths", Unvolunteered Truths 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 acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Unvolunteered Truths has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Sales & Marketing industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Unvolunteered Truths 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.
Increasing wage structure of Unvolunteered Truths
– 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 Unvolunteered Truths.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Unvolunteered Truths with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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 Unvolunteered Truths in the Sales & Marketing industry. The Sales & Marketing industry is already at various protected from local competition in China, with the rise of trade war the protection levels may go up. This presents a clear threat of current business model in Chinese market.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Unvolunteered Truths 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 Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" .
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 Unvolunteered Truths business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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.
Environmental challenges
– Unvolunteered Truths 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. Unvolunteered Truths can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Unvolunteered Truths 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" 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 Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" 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 Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" 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 Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" 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 Target Stores: The Hunt for "Unvolunteered Truths" 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 Unvolunteered Truths needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
