Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Strategy & Execution
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B)
"Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (A) " (UV1135) describes the impetus for and the process of implementing a balanced scorecard (BSC) in a large, publicly held, multimedia news organization. The B case (UV1137) presents a situation where a business-unit manager turns to his region's BSC to evaluate the possible reasons for a quarterly revenue shortfall.
Swot Analysis of "Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B)" written by Mark E. Haskins, Darrell Eakes includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Scorecard Balanced facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Competitive strategy and Strategy & Execution.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) casestudy better are - – there is increasing trade war between United States & China, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%,
banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, increasing transportation and logistics costs, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Scorecard Balanced, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Scorecard Balanced 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 Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Scorecard Balanced
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 Scorecard Balanced
Strengths Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Scorecard Balanced in Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) Harvard Business Review case study are -
Ability to lead change in Strategy & Execution field
– Scorecard Balanced 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 Scorecard Balanced in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Strong track record of project management
– Scorecard Balanced is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Organizational Resilience of Scorecard Balanced
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Scorecard Balanced does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Scorecard Balanced 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Strategy & Execution industry
– Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Scorecard Balanced to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Scorecard Balanced to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
High brand equity
– Scorecard Balanced has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Scorecard Balanced to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Innovation driven organization
– Scorecard Balanced is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Scorecard Balanced has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Scorecard Balanced 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.
Digital Transformation in Strategy & Execution segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Scorecard Balanced digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Scorecard Balanced 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.
Diverse revenue streams
– Scorecard Balanced is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Scorecard Balanced 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 Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Scorecard Balanced in the sector have low bargaining power. Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Scorecard Balanced to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Weaknesses Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) are -
Need for greater diversity
– Scorecard Balanced 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.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Scorecard Balanced 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Scorecard Balanced products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Scorecard Balanced needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Scorecard Balanced 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B), in the dynamic environment Scorecard Balanced has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Scorecard Balanced has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) 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 Scorecard Balanced 's lucrative customers.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Scorecard Balanced is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Scorecard Balanced 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Scorecard Balanced 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 to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) HBR case study mentions - Scorecard Balanced 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B), is just above the industry average. Scorecard Balanced 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.
Opportunities Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) | 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 Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) are -
Loyalty marketing
– Scorecard Balanced has focused on building a highly responsive customer relationship management platform. This platform is built on in-house data and driven by analytics and artificial intelligence. The customer analytics can help the organization to fine tune its loyalty marketing efforts, increase the wallet share of the organization, reduce wastage on mainstream advertising spending, build better pricing strategies using personalization, etc.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Scorecard Balanced 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 Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Scorecard Balanced to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Scorecard Balanced has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Scorecard Balanced to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) case study. Scorecard Balanced can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Scorecard Balanced to increase its market reach. Scorecard Balanced 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Scorecard Balanced 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 Scorecard Balanced to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Scorecard Balanced is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Scorecard Balanced can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
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. Scorecard Balanced can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
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. Scorecard Balanced can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
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 Scorecard Balanced 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Scorecard Balanced 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Scorecard Balanced 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Scorecard Balanced can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Scorecard Balanced operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Strategy & Execution sector.
Threats Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) are -
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B), Scorecard Balanced 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 .
Environmental challenges
– Scorecard Balanced 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. Scorecard Balanced 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, Scorecard Balanced 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 Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) .
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Scorecard Balanced is facing in Strategy & Execution sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Increasing wage structure of Scorecard Balanced
– 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 Scorecard Balanced.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Scorecard Balanced 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.
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 Scorecard Balanced.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Strategy & Execution field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Scorecard Balanced can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Scorecard Balanced has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Strategy & Execution industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Scorecard Balanced needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Strategy & Execution 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Scorecard Balanced 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 Strategy & Execution 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 Scorecard Balanced 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 Scorecard Balanced in the Strategy & Execution sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Technology disruption because of hacks, piracy etc
– The colonial pipeline illustrated, how vulnerable modern organization are to international hackers, miscreants, and disruptors. The cyber security interruption, data leaks, etc can seriously jeopardize the future growth of the organization.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) 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 Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) 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 Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) 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 Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) 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 Media General and the Balanced Scorecard (B) 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 Scorecard Balanced needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.