EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution

Case Study Description of EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist

Accompanied by product #PON214.Two-party negotiation between lawyers for an auto mechanic and a customer over a disputed auto repair bill. Susan Garfield has a billing dispute with John Eazer, owner of a local garage, over some work done on Garfield's car. Finding the bill significantly higher than the original informal estimate, Garfield angrily confronted Eazer. Eazer prepared a second bill at an even higher figure. Frustrated, Garfield returned to the garage after closing time with a spare key and drove her car home, without paying anything. Eazer turned to his child-in-law, an attorney, wishing to file a criminal complaint. When phoned, Garfield referred the attorney to her father, a senior partner in a local law firm. Garfield's father is letting one of his young associates handle the case. This is a role play case.

Authors :: Bruce Patton

Topics :: Strategy & Execution

Tags :: Conflict, Negotiations, Regulation, SWOT Analysis, SWOT Matrix, TOWS, Weighted SWOT Analysis

Swot Analysis of "EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist" written by Bruce Patton includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Garfield Eazer facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Conflict, Negotiations, Regulation and Strategy & Execution.

Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist casestudy better are - – banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, wage bills are increasing, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, geopolitical disruptions, etc

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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist

SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Garfield Eazer, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Garfield Eazer 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 EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Garfield Eazer
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 Garfield Eazer

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Strengths EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of Garfield Eazer in EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist Harvard Business Review case study are -

Successful track record of launching new products

– Garfield Eazer has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Garfield Eazer 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.

Diverse revenue streams

– Garfield Eazer is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist 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.

Superior customer experience

– The customer experience strategy of Garfield Eazer in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.

Training and development

– Garfield Eazer has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist 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

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

Analytics focus

– Garfield Eazer 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 Bruce Patton 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.

Organizational Resilience of Garfield Eazer

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

Ability to lead change in Strategy & Execution field

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

High switching costs

– The high switching costs that Garfield Eazer 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.

Cross disciplinary teams

– Horizontal connected teams at the Garfield Eazer 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.

Innovation driven organization

– Garfield Eazer is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.

Strong track record of project management

– Garfield Eazer is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.

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Weaknesses EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist are -

Aligning sales with marketing

– It come across in the case study EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist 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 EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Garfield Eazer is planning to shift buying processes online.

Skills based hiring

– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Garfield Eazer 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.

Increasing silos among functional specialists

– The organizational structure of Garfield Eazer is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Strategy & Execution segment. Garfield Eazer needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Garfield Eazer to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.

Compensation and incentives

– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist, is just above the industry average. Garfield Eazer 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.

Low market penetration in new markets

– Outside its home market of Garfield Eazer, firm in the HBR case study EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.

High cash cycle compare to competitors

Garfield Eazer 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.

High bargaining power of channel partners

– Because of the regulatory requirements, Bruce Patton suggests that, Garfield Eazer 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, Garfield Eazer is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist 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 EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist, it seems that the employees of Garfield Eazer 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, Garfield Eazer 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.

High dependence on existing supply chain

– The disruption in the global supply chains because of the Covid-19 pandemic and blockage of the Suez Canal illustrated the fragile nature of Garfield Eazer supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Garfield Eazer vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.

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Opportunities EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist | 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 EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist are -

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. Garfield Eazer can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.

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 Garfield Eazer 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.

Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains

– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Garfield Eazer 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, EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.

Buying journey improvements

– Garfield Eazer can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist 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.

Manufacturing automation

– Garfield Eazer 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.

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 Garfield Eazer in the consumer business. Now Garfield Eazer can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.

Loyalty marketing

– Garfield Eazer 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.

Reforming the budgeting process

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

Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities

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

Redefining models of collaboration and team work

– As explained in the weaknesses section, Garfield Eazer is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist 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.

Leveraging digital technologies

– Garfield Eazer 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. Garfield Eazer 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. Garfield Eazer 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.

Learning at scale

– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Garfield Eazer 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.

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Threats EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The threats mentioned in the HBR case study EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist are -

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 Garfield Eazer business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.

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. Garfield Eazer 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.

Environmental challenges

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

Stagnating economy with rate increase

– Garfield Eazer 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.

Trade war between China and United States

– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Garfield Eazer 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.

Increasing wage structure of Garfield Eazer

– 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 Garfield Eazer.

Shortening product life cycle

– it is one of the major threat that Garfield Eazer is facing in Strategy & Execution sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.

Learning curve for new practices

– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist, Garfield Eazer 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 .

High dependence on third party suppliers

– Garfield Eazer 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.

Regulatory challenges

– Garfield Eazer 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.

Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution

– Garfield Eazer has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Strategy & Execution industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Garfield Eazer 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.

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. Garfield Eazer can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.

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.

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Weighted SWOT Analysis of EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist 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 EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist 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 EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist 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 EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist 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 EAZY'S GARAGE - Confidential Instructions for the Counsel of Dr. Susan Garfield, Psychiatrist 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 Garfield Eazer needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.

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