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Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution

Case Study Description of Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge


The case describes Microsoft's first significant acquisition in Europe and its first in the telecom equipment (software) market. SendIt is a publicly listed Swedish start-up, which offers the only Windows based solutions to the IP-based mobile phone services market. The acquisition starts in high tone, loses momentum and is finally integrated with some degree of success.

Authors :: Maurizio Zollo, Robert J. Crawford

Topics :: Strategy & Execution

Tags :: Financial analysis, Mergers & acquisitions, Negotiations, SWOT Analysis, SWOT Matrix, TOWS, Weighted SWOT Analysis

Swot Analysis of "Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge" written by Maurizio Zollo, Robert J. Crawford includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Sendit Microsoft's facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Financial analysis, Mergers & acquisitions, Negotiations and Strategy & Execution.


Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge casestudy better are - – digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, increasing commodity prices, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, wage bills are increasing, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, etc



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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge


SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Sendit Microsoft's, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Sendit Microsoft's 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 Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Sendit Microsoft's
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 Sendit Microsoft's




Strengths Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of Sendit Microsoft's in Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge Harvard Business Review case study are -

Innovation driven organization

– Sendit Microsoft's is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge 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

– Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Sendit Microsoft's to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Sendit Microsoft's to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.

Cross disciplinary teams

– Horizontal connected teams at the Sendit Microsoft's 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.

Operational resilience

– The operational resilience strategy in the Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge 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.

Effective Research and Development (R&D)

– Sendit Microsoft's 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 Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.

Training and development

– Sendit Microsoft's has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge 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.

Analytics focus

– Sendit Microsoft's 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 Maurizio Zollo, Robert J. Crawford 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.

Highly skilled collaborators

– Sendit Microsoft's 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 Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.

Low bargaining power of suppliers

– Suppliers of Sendit Microsoft's in the sector have low bargaining power. Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Sendit Microsoft's to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.

High switching costs

– The high switching costs that Sendit Microsoft's 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.

Digital Transformation in Strategy & Execution segment

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

Strong track record of project management

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






Weaknesses Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge are -

Workers concerns about automation

– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Sendit Microsoft's 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.

High bargaining power of channel partners

– Because of the regulatory requirements, Maurizio Zollo, Robert J. Crawford suggests that, Sendit Microsoft's 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.

Compensation and incentives

– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge, is just above the industry average. Sendit Microsoft's needs to redesign the compensation structure and incentives to increase the revenue per employees. Some of the steps that it can take are – hiring more specialists on project basis, etc.

Slow to harness new channels of communication

– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Sendit Microsoft's is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.

Capital Spending Reduction

– Even during the low interest decade, Sendit Microsoft's 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 dependence on star products

– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge 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 Sendit Microsoft's has relatively successful track record of launching new products.

Interest costs

– Compare to the competition, Sendit Microsoft's 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 Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge HBR case study mentions - Sendit Microsoft's 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.

Increasing silos among functional specialists

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

High cash cycle compare to competitors

Sendit Microsoft's 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.

Aligning sales with marketing

– It come across in the case study Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge 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 Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Sendit Microsoft's is planning to shift buying processes online.




Opportunities Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge | 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 Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge are -

Manufacturing automation

– Sendit Microsoft's 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.

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

Creating value in data economy

– The success of analytics program of Sendit Microsoft's has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Sendit Microsoft's to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge case study. Sendit Microsoft's can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.

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. Sendit Microsoft's can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.

Buying journey improvements

– Sendit Microsoft's can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge 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.

Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains

– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Sendit Microsoft's 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, Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.

Using analytics as competitive advantage

– Sendit Microsoft's 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 Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Sendit Microsoft's to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.

Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities

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

Loyalty marketing

– Sendit Microsoft's 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.

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 Sendit Microsoft's in the consumer business. Now Sendit Microsoft's can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.

Redefining models of collaboration and team work

– As explained in the weaknesses section, Sendit Microsoft's is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge 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.

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. Sendit Microsoft's 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. Sendit Microsoft's 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.

Lowering marketing communication costs

– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Sendit Microsoft's 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.




Threats Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis


The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge are -

Consumer confidence and its impact on Sendit Microsoft's 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.

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. Sendit Microsoft's can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.

Learning curve for new practices

– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge, Sendit Microsoft's 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 .

Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution

– Sendit Microsoft's has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Strategy & Execution industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Sendit Microsoft's 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. Sendit Microsoft's needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Strategy & Execution industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.

Shortening product life cycle

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

Barriers of entry lowering

– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Sendit Microsoft's with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.

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 Sendit Microsoft's.

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

– Sendit Microsoft's 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.

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 Sendit Microsoft's in the Strategy & Execution sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.

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.

Environmental challenges

– Sendit Microsoft's 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. Sendit Microsoft's can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry.




Weighted SWOT Analysis of Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge 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 Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge 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 Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge 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 Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge 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 Microsoft's Acquisition of Sendit (C): The Integration Challenge 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 Sendit Microsoft's needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.



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