Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution

Case Study Description of Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information

Includes a series of three negotiation exercises portraying management/labor relations at ABC over a period of seven years. ABC, initially a family-owned business, had prided itself on its cooperative relationship with its union, Local 190. With the skyrocketing inflation of the 1970s, management considered drastic changes. Management and labor would undergo a series of negotiations over wages, benefits, and work conditions at ABC's main plant in Deloitte, Iowa.

Authors :: Victoria Medvec, Kathleen L. McGinn

Topics :: Strategy & Execution

Tags :: Human resource management, Labor, Leading teams, Negotiations, Workspaces, SWOT Analysis, SWOT Matrix, TOWS, Weighted SWOT Analysis

Swot Analysis of "Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information" written by Victoria Medvec, Kathleen L. McGinn includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Baxter 190 facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Human resource management, Labor, Leading teams, Negotiations, Workspaces and Strategy & Execution.

Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information casestudy better are - – increasing energy prices, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, there is backlash against globalization, increasing commodity prices, etc

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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information

SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Baxter 190, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Baxter 190 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 Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Baxter 190
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Strategy & Execution field.
4. Making a Strategy & Execution topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Baxter 190

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Strengths Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of Baxter 190 in Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information Harvard Business Review case study are -

Effective Research and Development (R&D)

– Baxter 190 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 Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.

Cross disciplinary teams

– Horizontal connected teams at the Baxter 190 are driving operational speed, building greater agility, and keeping the organization nimble to compete with new competitors. It helps are organization to ideate new ideas, and execute them swiftly in the marketplace.

Ability to lead change in Strategy & Execution field

– Baxter 190 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 Baxter 190 in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.

Learning organization

- Baxter 190 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 Baxter 190 is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.

Diverse revenue streams

– Baxter 190 is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information 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.

Innovation driven organization

– Baxter 190 is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.

Organizational Resilience of Baxter 190

– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Baxter 190 does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.

High switching costs

– The high switching costs that Baxter 190 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.

High brand equity

– Baxter 190 has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Baxter 190 to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.

Analytics focus

– Baxter 190 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 Victoria Medvec, Kathleen L. McGinn 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.

Digital Transformation in Strategy & Execution segment

- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Baxter 190 digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Baxter 190 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

– Baxter 190 has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information 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.

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Weaknesses Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information are -

Slow to harness new channels of communication

– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Baxter 190 is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.

Low market penetration in new markets

– Outside its home market of Baxter 190, firm in the HBR case study Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.

Ability to respond to the competition

– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information, in the dynamic environment Baxter 190 has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Baxter 190 has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.

High dependence on star products

– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information 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 Baxter 190 has relatively successful track record of launching new products.

Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy

– From the instances in the HBR case study Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information, it seems that the employees of Baxter 190 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.

Interest costs

– Compare to the competition, Baxter 190 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.

Workers concerns about automation

– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Baxter 190 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.

Aligning sales with marketing

– It come across in the case study Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information 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 Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Baxter 190 is planning to shift buying processes online.

Compensation and incentives

– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information, is just above the industry average. Baxter 190 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 decision making process

– As mentioned earlier in the report, Baxter 190 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. Baxter 190 even though has strong showing on digital transformation primary two stages, it has struggled to capitalize the power of digital transformation in marketing efforts and new venture efforts.

High operating costs

– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information 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 Baxter 190 's lucrative customers.

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Opportunities Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information | 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 Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information are -

Reforming the budgeting process

- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Baxter 190 can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.

Low interest rates

– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Baxter 190 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.

Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities

– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Baxter 190 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 Baxter 190 to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.

Increase in government spending

– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Baxter 190 can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Baxter 190 operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Strategy & Execution sector.

Using analytics as competitive advantage

– Baxter 190 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 Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Baxter 190 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 Strategy & Execution industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Baxter 190 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. Baxter 190 can further use this consumer data to build better customer loyalty, provide better products and service collection, and improve the value proposition in inflationary times.

Building a culture of innovation

– managers at Baxter 190 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 Strategy & Execution segment.

Learning at scale

– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Baxter 190 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.

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 Baxter 190 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.

Finding new ways to collaborate

– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Strategy & Execution industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Baxter 190 can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.

Developing new processes and practices

– Baxter 190 can develop new processes and procedures in Strategy & Execution 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.

Redefining models of collaboration and team work

– As explained in the weaknesses section, Baxter 190 is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information 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.

Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains

– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Baxter 190 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, Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.

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Threats Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information are -

Stagnating economy with rate increase

– Baxter 190 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 Baxter 190 business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.

Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins

– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Baxter 190 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 Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information .

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. Baxter 190 needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Strategy & Execution industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.

Environmental challenges

– Baxter 190 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. Baxter 190 can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry.

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 Baxter 190.

Consumer confidence and its impact on Baxter 190 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 dependence on third party suppliers

– Baxter 190 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.

Shortening product life cycle

– it is one of the major threat that Baxter 190 is facing in Strategy & Execution sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, 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 Baxter 190 in the Strategy & Execution sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.

Trade war between China and United States

– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Baxter 190 in the Strategy & Execution industry. The Strategy & Execution 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.

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. Baxter 190 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.

Increasing wage structure of Baxter 190

– 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 Baxter 190.

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Weighted SWOT Analysis of Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information 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 Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information 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 Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information 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 Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information 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 Adam Baxter Co./Local 190: 1985 Negotiation, Baxter Management Confidential Information 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 Baxter 190 needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.

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