Case Study Description of Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B)
On June 12, 2008, Invitrogen and Applied Biosystems announced plans to merge. The combined company was to be renamed Life Technologies (NASDAQ: LIFE). Invitrogen offered to acquire Applied Biosystems for $6.7 billion in cash and stock. AB shareholders would receive $38 per share in cash and stock, representing a 17 percent premium over the share's closing price on Wednesday, June 11, 2008.
Authors :: Robert A. Burgelman, Robert E. Siegel, Rosy Lee
Swot Analysis of "Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B)" written by Robert A. Burgelman, Robert E. Siegel, Rosy Lee includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Invitrogen Biosystems facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, and Strategy & Execution.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B) casestudy better are - – increasing energy prices, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, increasing transportation and logistics costs, increasing commodity prices, increasing household debt because of falling income levels,
supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Invitrogen Biosystems, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Invitrogen Biosystems 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 Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Invitrogen Biosystems
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 Invitrogen Biosystems
Strengths Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Invitrogen Biosystems in Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B) Harvard Business Review case study are -
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Invitrogen Biosystems 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 Invitrogen/Life Technologies (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.
Innovation driven organization
– Invitrogen Biosystems is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B) Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Learning organization
- Invitrogen Biosystems 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 Invitrogen Biosystems is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B) Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Invitrogen Biosystems 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Invitrogen Biosystems has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Invitrogen Biosystems 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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Invitrogen Biosystems in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Strong track record of project management
– Invitrogen Biosystems is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Invitrogen Biosystems is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B) are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Invitrogen Biosystems 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.
Organizational Resilience of Invitrogen Biosystems
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Invitrogen Biosystems does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Training and development
– Invitrogen Biosystems has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B) 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.
High brand equity
– Invitrogen Biosystems has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Invitrogen Biosystems to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Weaknesses Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B) are -
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Invitrogen Biosystems is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Strategy & Execution segment. Invitrogen Biosystems needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Invitrogen Biosystems to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B), in the dynamic environment Invitrogen Biosystems has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Invitrogen Biosystems has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Invitrogen Biosystems 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.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Robert A. Burgelman, Robert E. Siegel, Rosy Lee suggests that, Invitrogen Biosystems 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Invitrogen Biosystems is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Invitrogen/Life Technologies (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.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B) 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 Invitrogen Biosystems has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B), is just above the industry average. Invitrogen Biosystems 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B) 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 Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B) can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Invitrogen Biosystems is planning to shift buying processes online.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Invitrogen Biosystems 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Invitrogen Biosystems 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 strategic competitive environment developments
– As Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B) HBR case study mentions - Invitrogen Biosystems 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.
Opportunities Invitrogen/Life Technologies (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 Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B) are -
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Invitrogen Biosystems can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Invitrogen Biosystems operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Strategy & Execution sector.
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. Invitrogen Biosystems can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Invitrogen Biosystems 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Invitrogen Biosystems can still utilize the low interest rates to borrow money for capital investment. Secondly it can also use the increase of government spending in infrastructure projects to get new business.
Reconfiguring business model
– The expansion of digital payment system, the bringing down of international transactions costs using Bitcoin and other blockchain based currencies, etc can help Invitrogen Biosystems 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Invitrogen Biosystems 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 Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B) - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Invitrogen Biosystems to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Invitrogen Biosystems to increase its market reach. Invitrogen Biosystems 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Invitrogen Biosystems 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, Invitrogen Biosystems 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, Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B), to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Use of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies for transactions
– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for Invitrogen Biosystems in the consumer business. Now Invitrogen Biosystems can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
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. Invitrogen Biosystems can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Invitrogen Biosystems 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.
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. Invitrogen Biosystems 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. Invitrogen Biosystems 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.
Threats Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B) are -
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. Invitrogen Biosystems 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.
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 Invitrogen Biosystems.
Increasing wage structure of Invitrogen Biosystems
– 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 Invitrogen Biosystems.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Invitrogen Biosystems 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 Invitrogen/Life Technologies (B) .
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Invitrogen Biosystems 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Invitrogen Biosystems 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Invitrogen Biosystems 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.
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 Invitrogen Biosystems business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Invitrogen Biosystems 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 acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Invitrogen Biosystems has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Strategy & Execution industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Invitrogen Biosystems 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.
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. Invitrogen Biosystems needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Strategy & Execution industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Invitrogen Biosystems with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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 Invitrogen Biosystems in the Strategy & Execution sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Invitrogen/Life Technologies (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 Invitrogen/Life Technologies (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 Invitrogen/Life Technologies (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 Invitrogen/Life Technologies (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 Invitrogen/Life Technologies (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 Invitrogen Biosystems needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
