Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Strategy & Execution
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act
Through in-depth interviews with Intel's most senior executives, this case examines Intel's efforts to establish itself in new markets by developing and acquiring competencies in areas beyond PC microprocessors. Intel pioneered the market for computer memories, which eventually became commoditized. Next, the company pioneered the market for microprocessors for personal computers. By 2003, that market had slowed. Now Intel was looking closely at wireless and mobile technologies for its future growth. As it entered these new areas, the company would need to develop new competencies and new organizational structures from those that made the company successful in PC microprocessors.
Swot Analysis of "Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act" written by Robert A. Burgelman, Philip Meza includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Microprocessors Intel facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Organizational structure and Strategy & Execution.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act casestudy better are - – customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, there is backlash against globalization, technology disruption, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, wage bills are increasing,
competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Microprocessors Intel, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Microprocessors Intel 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 Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Microprocessors Intel
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 Microprocessors Intel
Strengths Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Microprocessors Intel in Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act Harvard Business Review case study are -
Diverse revenue streams
– Microprocessors Intel is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act 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.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act 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.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Microprocessors Intel has built up over years in its products and services combo offer has resulted in high retention of customers, lower marketing costs, and greater ability of the firm to focus on its customers.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Microprocessors Intel in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Organizational Resilience of Microprocessors Intel
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Microprocessors Intel does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
High brand equity
– Microprocessors Intel has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Microprocessors Intel to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Microprocessors Intel in the sector have low bargaining power. Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Microprocessors Intel to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Microprocessors Intel is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Learning organization
- Microprocessors Intel 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 Microprocessors Intel is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Strong track record of project management
– Microprocessors Intel is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Microprocessors Intel 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 Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Microprocessors Intel 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 Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Weaknesses Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act are -
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Microprocessors Intel 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 Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act 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 Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Microprocessors Intel is planning to shift buying processes online.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act HBR case study mentions - Microprocessors Intel 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Microprocessors Intel, firm in the HBR case study Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Need for greater diversity
– Microprocessors Intel 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act, in the dynamic environment Microprocessors Intel has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Microprocessors Intel has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Microprocessors Intel is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Strategy & Execution segment. Microprocessors Intel needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Microprocessors Intel to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act, it seems that the employees of Microprocessors Intel 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, Microprocessors Intel 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 bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Robert A. Burgelman, Philip Meza suggests that, Microprocessors Intel 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.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Microprocessors Intel 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.
Opportunities Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act | 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 Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act 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. Microprocessors Intel 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 Microprocessors Intel 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Microprocessors Intel can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Developing new processes and practices
– Microprocessors Intel 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Microprocessors Intel 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Microprocessors Intel 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.
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. Microprocessors Intel 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. Microprocessors Intel 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Microprocessors Intel can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Microprocessors Intel can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Microprocessors Intel operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Strategy & Execution sector.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Microprocessors Intel 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Microprocessors Intel to increase its market reach. Microprocessors Intel 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Microprocessors Intel has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Microprocessors Intel to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act case study. Microprocessors Intel can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Microprocessors Intel 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 Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act are -
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.
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. Microprocessors Intel 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.
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 Microprocessors Intel in the Strategy & Execution sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Microprocessors Intel 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Microprocessors Intel with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Microprocessors Intel 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Microprocessors Intel 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Microprocessors Intel is facing in Strategy & Execution sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Regulatory challenges
– Microprocessors Intel 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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act, Microprocessors Intel 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 .
Increasing wage structure of Microprocessors Intel
– 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 Microprocessors Intel.
Environmental challenges
– Microprocessors Intel 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. Microprocessors Intel can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry.
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. Microprocessors Intel can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act 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 Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act 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 Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act 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 Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act 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 Intel Beyond 2003: Looking for Its Third Act 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 Microprocessors Intel needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.