Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Sales & Marketing
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less
Supplement to case W16649. Somnath Chakrabarti is affiliated with Indian Institute of Management Kashipur. B. S. Kiran is affiliated with Indian Institute of Management Kashipur.
Swot Analysis of "Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less" written by Somnath Chakrabarti, B. S. Kiran includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Kashipur W16649 facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Customers, International business, Leadership, Organizational culture, Project management and Sales & Marketing.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less casestudy better are - – technology disruption, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, increasing commodity prices, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies,
banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, geopolitical disruptions, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Kashipur W16649, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Kashipur W16649 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 Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Kashipur W16649
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 Kashipur W16649
Strengths Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Kashipur W16649 in Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less Harvard Business Review case study are -
Innovation driven organization
– Kashipur W16649 is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Analytics focus
– Kashipur W16649 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 Somnath Chakrabarti, B. S. Kiran 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Kashipur W16649 in the sector have low bargaining power. Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Kashipur W16649 to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Learning organization
- Kashipur W16649 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 Kashipur W16649 is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Kashipur W16649 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Kashipur W16649 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 Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Kashipur W16649 has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Kashipur W16649 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.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less 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.
Digital Transformation in Sales & Marketing segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Kashipur W16649 digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Kashipur W16649 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.
Training and development
– Kashipur W16649 has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Sales & Marketing industry
– Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Kashipur W16649 to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Kashipur W16649 to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
High brand equity
– Kashipur W16649 has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Kashipur W16649 to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Weaknesses Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less are -
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Kashipur W16649 is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Sales & Marketing segment. Kashipur W16649 needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Kashipur W16649 to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less, in the dynamic environment Kashipur W16649 has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Kashipur W16649 has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Kashipur W16649 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.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less, it seems that the employees of Kashipur W16649 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.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Kashipur W16649 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.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Kashipur W16649 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. Kashipur W16649 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 Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less, is just above the industry average. Kashipur W16649 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less 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 Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Kashipur W16649 is planning to shift buying processes online.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less 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 Kashipur W16649 's lucrative customers.
Lack of clear differentiation of Kashipur W16649 products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Kashipur W16649 needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
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 Kashipur W16649 supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Kashipur W16649 vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Opportunities Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less | 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 Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less are -
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Kashipur W16649 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 Kashipur W16649 to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Kashipur W16649 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.
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. Kashipur W16649 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. Kashipur W16649 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Kashipur W16649 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Kashipur W16649 has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Kashipur W16649 to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less case study. Kashipur W16649 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. Kashipur W16649 can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Kashipur W16649 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Kashipur W16649 can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Sales & Marketing segment. It can use CAD and 3D printing to build a quick prototype and pilot testing products. It can leverage automation using machine learning and artificial intelligence to do faster production at lowers costs, and it can leverage the growth in satellite and tracking technologies to improve inventory management, transportation, and shipping.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Kashipur W16649 can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Kashipur W16649 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Kashipur W16649 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 Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Kashipur W16649 to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Kashipur W16649 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Kashipur W16649 is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less 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.
Threats Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less are -
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 Kashipur W16649 in the Sales & Marketing sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
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. Kashipur W16649 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Kashipur W16649 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Kashipur W16649 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Kashipur W16649 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 Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less .
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less, Kashipur W16649 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 .
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Kashipur W16649 can face lack of demand in the market place because of Fed actions to reduce inflation. This can lead to sluggish growth in the economy, lower demands, lower investments, higher borrowing costs, and consolidation in the field.
High level of anxiety and lack of motivation
– the Great Resignation in United States is the sign of broader dissatisfaction among the workforce in United States. Kashipur W16649 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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Kashipur W16649 has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Sales & Marketing industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Kashipur W16649 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.
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 Kashipur W16649.
Environmental challenges
– Kashipur W16649 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. Kashipur W16649 can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Kashipur W16649 with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less 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 Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less 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 Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less 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 Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less 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 Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (B): Doing More with Less 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 Kashipur W16649 needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
