A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Sales & Marketing
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria
The case takes place in 2006 and is focussed on Binatone's stabilizer business in Nigeria. Stabilizers are used in many developing countries to transform irregular current (from wall outlets) into a current that is safe for electrical appliances and equipment. Binatone's 1000W stabilizer business was under pressure due to multiple factors. The first source of pressure was that the market had become increasingly price sensitive. The buyers of stabilizers seemed unresponsive to quality differences between different brands in the 1000W category. Second, the market was flooded with low-priced, low quality brands that were not government approved. Finally, the Nigerian government has recently enacted a new set of regulations to ensure the safety of electrical equipment throughout the country. The regulations forced legitimate manufacturers like Binatone to go through a long, expensive and unpredictable approval process. Faced with this situation, management at Binatone was contemplating a number of potential responses to revitalize its 1000W stabilizer business. These included the possibility of changing the standard mark-up policy employed for all Binatone products, the launch of a 1000W stabilizer line extension, and new distribution and communication policies.
Swot Analysis of "A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria" written by David A. Soberman includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that 1000w Binatone facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Communication, Pricing and Sales & Marketing.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria casestudy better are - – increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, increasing transportation and logistics costs, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, technology disruption, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, geopolitical disruptions, increasing commodity prices,
increasing energy prices, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the 1000w Binatone, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which 1000w Binatone 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 A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of 1000w Binatone
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 1000w Binatone
Strengths A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of 1000w Binatone in A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria Harvard Business Review case study are -
Learning organization
- 1000w Binatone 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 1000w Binatone is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Ability to lead change in Sales & Marketing field
– 1000w Binatone 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 1000w Binatone in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of 1000w Binatone in the sector have low bargaining power. A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps 1000w Binatone to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Sales & Marketing industry
– A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled 1000w Binatone to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry. The sustainable margins have also helped 1000w Binatone to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Innovation driven organization
– 1000w Binatone is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Highly skilled collaborators
– 1000w Binatone 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 A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of 1000w Binatone 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
– 1000w Binatone is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that 1000w Binatone 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.
Organizational Resilience of 1000w Binatone
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that 1000w Binatone does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
High brand equity
– 1000w Binatone has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled 1000w Binatone to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Successful track record of launching new products
– 1000w Binatone has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. 1000w Binatone 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.
Weaknesses A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria are -
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria 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 1000w Binatone 's lucrative customers.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, 1000w Binatone is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria 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 A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as 1000w Binatone is planning to shift buying processes online.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, 1000w Binatone 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria, is just above the industry average. 1000w Binatone 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.
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 1000w Binatone supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left 1000w Binatone vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria, in the dynamic environment 1000w Binatone has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. 1000w Binatone has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at 1000w Binatone has created an environment where the organization is dominated by functional specialists rather than management generalist. This has resulted into product oriented approach rather than marketing oriented approach or consumers oriented approach.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
1000w Binatone 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of 1000w Binatone, firm in the HBR case study A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Products dominated business model
– Even though 1000w Binatone 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 - A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Opportunities A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria | 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 A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria are -
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of 1000w Binatone has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help 1000w Binatone to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria case study. 1000w Binatone can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects 1000w Binatone can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for 1000w Binatone 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 1000w Binatone to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Developing new processes and practices
– 1000w Binatone 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.
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. 1000w Binatone can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Leveraging digital technologies
– 1000w Binatone 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 1000w Binatone 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for 1000w Binatone 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, 1000w Binatone can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that 1000w Binatone operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Sales & Marketing sector.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for 1000w Binatone 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help 1000w Binatone to increase its market reach. 1000w Binatone 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, 1000w Binatone 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.
Reconfiguring business model
– The expansion of digital payment system, the bringing down of international transactions costs using Bitcoin and other blockchain based currencies, etc can help 1000w Binatone to reconfigure its entire business model. For example it can used blockchain based technologies to reduce piracy of its products in the big markets such as China. Secondly it can use the popularity of e-commerce in various developing markets to build a Direct to Customer business model rather than the current Channel Heavy distribution network.
Threats A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria are -
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 1000w Binatone.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, 1000w Binatone 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 A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria .
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 1000w Binatone business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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 1000w Binatone in the Sales & Marketing sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
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. 1000w Binatone can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– 1000w Binatone high dependence on third party suppliers can disrupt its processes and delivery mechanism. For example -the current troubles of car makers because of chip shortage is because the chip companies started producing chips for electronic companies rather than car manufacturers.
Consumer confidence and its impact on 1000w Binatone 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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– 1000w Binatone 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that 1000w Binatone is facing in Sales & Marketing sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Increasing wage structure of 1000w Binatone
– 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 1000w Binatone.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria, 1000w Binatone 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 .
Weighted SWOT Analysis of A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria 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 A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria 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 A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria 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 A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria 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 A Destabilizing Situation for Binatone: The Market for 1000W Stabilizers in Nigeria 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 1000w Binatone needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
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