Swot Analysis of "Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis" written by Frank V. Cespedes, Alex Godden includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that 813104 Faraway facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Marketing, Product development, Sales and Sales & Marketing.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis casestudy better are - – cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, increasing commodity prices, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , there is backlash against globalization,
increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, increasing energy prices, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the 813104 Faraway, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which 813104 Faraway 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 Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of 813104 Faraway
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 813104 Faraway
Strengths Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of 813104 Faraway in Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis Harvard Business Review case study are -
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– 813104 Faraway 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 Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Strong track record of project management
– 813104 Faraway 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 813104 Faraway 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.
Training and development
– 813104 Faraway has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis 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.
Ability to lead change in Sales & Marketing field
– 813104 Faraway 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 813104 Faraway in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Learning organization
- 813104 Faraway 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 813104 Faraway is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of 813104 Faraway in the sector have low bargaining power. Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps 813104 Faraway to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Diverse revenue streams
– 813104 Faraway is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis case study a diverse revenue stream that has helped it to survive disruptions such as global pandemic in Covid-19, financial disruption of 2008, and supply chain disruption of 2021.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Sales & Marketing industry
– Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled 813104 Faraway to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry. The sustainable margins have also helped 813104 Faraway to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Successful track record of launching new products
– 813104 Faraway has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. 813104 Faraway 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.
Ability to recruit top talent
– 813104 Faraway is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Weaknesses Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis are -
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis HBR case study mentions - 813104 Faraway 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, 813104 Faraway 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis, 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.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis, it seems that the employees of 813104 Faraway 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of 813104 Faraway, firm in the HBR case study Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Lack of clear differentiation of 813104 Faraway products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, 813104 Faraway needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis, in the dynamic environment 813104 Faraway has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. 813104 Faraway 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, 813104 Faraway 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.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at 813104 Faraway 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 dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis 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 813104 Faraway has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Frank V. Cespedes, Alex Godden suggests that, 813104 Faraway is facing high bargaining power of the channel partners. So far it has not able to streamline the operations to reduce the bargaining power of the value chain partners in the industry.
Opportunities Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis | 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 Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis are -
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help 813104 Faraway to increase its market reach. 813104 Faraway will be able to reach out to new customers. Secondly 5G will also provide technology framework to build new tools and products that can help more immersive consumer experience and faster consumer journey.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– 813104 Faraway 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 Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help 813104 Faraway to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
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. 813104 Faraway 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. 813104 Faraway 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, 813104 Faraway 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.
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. 813104 Faraway 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 813104 Faraway can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Manufacturing automation
– 813104 Faraway 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– 813104 Faraway 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.
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 813104 Faraway 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for 813104 Faraway 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for 813104 Faraway 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, 813104 Faraway 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, Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Buying journey improvements
– 813104 Faraway can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis 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.
Threats Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis are -
Increasing wage structure of 813104 Faraway
– 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 813104 Faraway.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– 813104 Faraway has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Sales & Marketing industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, 813104 Faraway 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 813104 Faraway.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that 813104 Faraway is facing in Sales & Marketing sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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. 813104 Faraway 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 813104 Faraway 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.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for 813104 Faraway 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.
Regulatory challenges
– 813104 Faraway 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.
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 813104 Faraway business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents 813104 Faraway with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– 813104 Faraway 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.
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. 813104 Faraway 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis 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 Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis 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 Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis 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 Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis 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 Andrew Sullivan and Faraway Ltd (C): Anthony Pierce of John Lewis 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 813104 Faraway needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
