British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Strategy & Execution
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television
Describes the rivalry between two competitors who have attempted to become the dominant force in the emerging British satellite television industry. Can be used to examine issues of competitive positioning, technology adoption, and scenario analysis. Helps students make decisions given competitive challenges and industry uncertainties.
Swot Analysis of "British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television" written by Pankaj Ghemawat includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Satellite British facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Financial analysis, Product development and Strategy & Execution.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television casestudy better are - – increasing transportation and logistics costs, technology disruption, increasing commodity prices, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, wage bills are increasing, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic ,
increasing household debt because of falling income levels, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Satellite British, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Satellite British 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 British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Satellite British
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 Satellite British
Strengths British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Satellite British in British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television Harvard Business Review case study are -
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Satellite British is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Strategy & Execution industry
– British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Satellite British to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Satellite British to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Satellite British 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Satellite British 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 British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Organizational Resilience of Satellite British
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Satellite British does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Satellite British 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 British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Diverse revenue streams
– Satellite British is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television 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.
Analytics focus
– Satellite British 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 Pankaj Ghemawat 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.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Satellite British 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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Satellite British in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Satellite British is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television 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 British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television are -
Need for greater diversity
– Satellite British has taken concrete steps on diversity, equity, and inclusion. But the efforts so far has resulted in limited success. It needs to expand the recruitment and selection process to hire more people from the minorities and underprivileged background.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Satellite British is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television, it seems that the employees of Satellite British 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Satellite British is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Strategy & Execution segment. Satellite British needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Satellite British to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Satellite British 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.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television HBR case study mentions - Satellite British 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Satellite British 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.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Satellite British 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. Satellite British 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television, in the dynamic environment Satellite British has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Satellite British has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Satellite British 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 - British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Pankaj Ghemawat suggests that, Satellite British 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 British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television | 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 British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television are -
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Satellite British can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Satellite British 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Satellite British can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Strategy & Execution 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Satellite British in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Strategy & Execution segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Satellite British 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Satellite British 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, British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Satellite British has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Satellite British to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television case study. Satellite British can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
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. Satellite British 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. Satellite British 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Satellite British to increase its market reach. Satellite British 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Satellite British is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Satellite British can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Satellite British 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Satellite British 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.
Threats British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television are -
New competition
– After the dotcom bust of 2001, financial crisis of 2008-09, the business formation in US economy had declined. But in 2020 alone, there are more than 1.5 million new business applications in United States. This can lead to greater competition for Satellite British in the Strategy & Execution sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Satellite British 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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Satellite British can face lack of demand in the market place because of Fed actions to reduce inflation. This can lead to sluggish growth in the economy, lower demands, lower investments, higher borrowing costs, and consolidation in the field.
High level of anxiety and lack of motivation
– the Great Resignation in United States is the sign of broader dissatisfaction among the workforce in United States. Satellite British needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Strategy & Execution industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Satellite British 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.
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
– Satellite British 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.
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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television, Satellite British may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Strategy & Execution .
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 Satellite British.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Satellite British is facing in Strategy & Execution sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Environmental challenges
– Satellite British 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. Satellite British can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Satellite British 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 British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television .
Weighted SWOT Analysis of British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television 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 British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television 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 British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television 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 British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television 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 British Satellite Broadcasting versus Sky Television 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 Satellite British needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.