Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution

Case Study Description of Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version

Cumberland Metal Industries has developed a new product to help contractors drive piles faster. They are trying to decide how to price it. Provides substantial information on the industry, competition, etc. Students must decide what factors are relevant in making an industrial pricing decision. Decisions must also be made about promotion and distribution channels. Software for this case is available (9-589-528).

Authors :: Benson P. Shapiro, Jeffrey J. Sherman

Topics :: Sales & Marketing

Tags :: Manufacturing, Marketing, Pricing, Product development, SWOT Analysis, SWOT Matrix, TOWS, Weighted SWOT Analysis

Swot Analysis of "Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version" written by Benson P. Shapiro, Jeffrey J. Sherman includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Cumberland Metal facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Manufacturing, Marketing, Pricing, Product development and Sales & Marketing.

Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version casestudy better are - – there is backlash against globalization, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, technology disruption, wage bills are increasing, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, increasing commodity prices, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, etc

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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version

SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Cumberland Metal, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Cumberland Metal 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.

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SWOT Objectives / Importance of SWOT Analysis and SWOT Matrix

SWOT analysis of Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Cumberland Metal
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 Cumberland Metal

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Strengths Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of Cumberland Metal in Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version Harvard Business Review case study are -

Superior customer experience

– The customer experience strategy of Cumberland Metal in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.

Strong track record of project management

– Cumberland Metal is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.

Ability to lead change in Sales & Marketing field

– Cumberland Metal 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 Cumberland Metal in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.

Effective Research and Development (R&D)

– Cumberland Metal 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 Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.

Organizational Resilience of Cumberland Metal

– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Cumberland Metal does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.

Successful track record of launching new products

– Cumberland Metal has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Cumberland Metal 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.

Sustainable margins compare to other players in Sales & Marketing industry

– Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Cumberland Metal to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Cumberland Metal to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.

Training and development

– Cumberland Metal has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version Harvard Business Review case study by analyzing – employees retention, in-house promotion, loyalty, new venture initiation, lack of conflict, and high level of both employees and customer engagement.

Highly skilled collaborators

– Cumberland Metal 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 Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.

Learning organization

- Cumberland Metal 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 Cumberland Metal is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.

High switching costs

– The high switching costs that Cumberland Metal 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.

Digital Transformation in Sales & Marketing segment

- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Cumberland Metal digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Cumberland Metal 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.

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Weaknesses Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version are -

Compensation and incentives

– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version, is just above the industry average. Cumberland Metal 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.

Slow to strategic competitive environment developments

– As Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version HBR case study mentions - Cumberland Metal 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 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 Cumberland Metal supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Cumberland Metal vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.

Workers concerns about automation

– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Cumberland Metal 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 Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version, it seems that the employees of Cumberland Metal 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.

Lack of clear differentiation of Cumberland Metal products

– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Cumberland Metal 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, Cumberland Metal is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.

Products dominated business model

– Even though Cumberland Metal 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 - Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.

High dependence on star products

– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version 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 Cumberland Metal has relatively successful track record of launching new products.

Increasing silos among functional specialists

– The organizational structure of Cumberland Metal is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Sales & Marketing segment. Cumberland Metal needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Cumberland Metal to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.

Capital Spending Reduction

– Even during the low interest decade, Cumberland Metal has not been able to do capital spending to the tune of the competition. This has resulted into fewer innovations and company facing stiff competition from both existing competitors and new entrants who are disrupting the industry using digital technology.

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Opportunities Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version | 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 Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version are -

Building a culture of innovation

– managers at Cumberland Metal 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.

Lowering marketing communication costs

– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Cumberland Metal 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.

Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains

– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Cumberland Metal 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, Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.

Increase in government spending

– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Cumberland Metal can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Cumberland Metal operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Sales & Marketing sector.

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. Cumberland Metal can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.

Low interest rates

– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Cumberland Metal 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.

Reforming the budgeting process

- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Cumberland Metal can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.

Using analytics as competitive advantage

– Cumberland Metal 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 Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Cumberland Metal to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.

Leveraging digital technologies

– Cumberland Metal 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.

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 Cumberland Metal in the consumer business. Now Cumberland Metal can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.

Creating value in data economy

– The success of analytics program of Cumberland Metal has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Cumberland Metal to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version case study. Cumberland Metal can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.

Redefining models of collaboration and team work

– As explained in the weaknesses section, Cumberland Metal is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version 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.

Loyalty marketing

– Cumberland Metal 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.

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Threats Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version are -

Learning curve for new practices

– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version, Cumberland Metal 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

– Cumberland Metal 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.

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 Cumberland Metal 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.

Trade war between China and United States

– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Cumberland Metal 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 acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution

– Cumberland Metal has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Sales & Marketing industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Cumberland Metal 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 Cumberland Metal with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.

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 Cumberland Metal.

Easy access to finance

– Easy access to finance in Sales & Marketing field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Cumberland Metal can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.

Consumer confidence and its impact on Cumberland Metal 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.

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. Cumberland Metal needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Sales & Marketing industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.

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 Cumberland Metal in the Sales & Marketing sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.

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.

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Weighted SWOT Analysis of Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version 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 Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version 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 Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version 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 Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version 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 Cumberland Metal Industries: Engineered Products Division--1980, Portuguese Version 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 Cumberland Metal needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.

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