Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Strategy & Execution
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform
Case C gives an account of the last three months of negotiations. Negotiations lead to a win-win conclusion of the project for all stakeholders as activity on the installations continue - with all its positive effect on the local economy - through a third party and the Maxime Platforms workers are provided with an attractive remuneration package and redeployed in one of Vector's best plants in the region.
Swot Analysis of "Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform" written by Quy Huy, Ramina Samii, Marc Avanzo includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Maxime Negotiations facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Labor, Psychology and Strategy & Execution.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform casestudy better are - – challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, increasing commodity prices, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, increasing transportation and logistics costs, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs,
there is backlash against globalization, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Maxime Negotiations, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Maxime Negotiations 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 Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Maxime Negotiations
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 Maxime Negotiations
Strengths Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Maxime Negotiations in Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform Harvard Business Review case study are -
Analytics focus
– Maxime Negotiations 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 Quy Huy, Ramina Samii, Marc Avanzo 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.
Diverse revenue streams
– Maxime Negotiations is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Maxime Negotiations 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 Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Organizational Resilience of Maxime Negotiations
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Maxime Negotiations does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Maxime Negotiations 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 Maxime Negotiations 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.
Learning organization
- Maxime Negotiations 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 Maxime Negotiations is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Strong track record of project management
– Maxime Negotiations is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Maxime Negotiations in the sector have low bargaining power. Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Maxime Negotiations to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Maxime Negotiations has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Maxime Negotiations 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.
Training and development
– Maxime Negotiations has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Maxime Negotiations is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Weaknesses Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform are -
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Maxime Negotiations 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.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Maxime Negotiations 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Maxime Negotiations has some of the most successful products in the industry, this business model has made each new product launch extremely critical for continuous financial growth of the organization. firm in the HBR case study - Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Lack of clear differentiation of Maxime Negotiations products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Maxime Negotiations needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Maxime Negotiations 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform, in the dynamic environment Maxime Negotiations has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Maxime Negotiations has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform, it seems that the employees of Maxime Negotiations 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform, is just above the industry average. Maxime Negotiations 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.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform has high operating costs in the. This can be harder to sustain given the new emerging competition from nimble players who are using technology to attract Maxime Negotiations 's lucrative customers.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform 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 Maxime Negotiations has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform 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 Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Maxime Negotiations is planning to shift buying processes online.
Opportunities Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform | 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 Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform are -
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Maxime Negotiations 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.
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. Maxime Negotiations 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. Maxime Negotiations 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 Maxime Negotiations 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Maxime Negotiations 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Maxime Negotiations can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
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 Maxime Negotiations 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
– Maxime Negotiations 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 Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Maxime Negotiations to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Loyalty marketing
– Maxime Negotiations 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.
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. Maxime Negotiations 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 Maxime Negotiations can make experimentation a productive activity and build a culture of innovation using approaches such as – mining transaction data, A/B testing of websites and selling platforms, engaging potential customers over various needs, and building on small ideas in the Strategy & Execution segment.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Maxime Negotiations can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Maxime Negotiations operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Strategy & Execution sector.
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 Maxime Negotiations in the consumer business. Now Maxime Negotiations 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. Maxime Negotiations can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Threats Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform are -
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Maxime Negotiations has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Strategy & Execution industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Maxime Negotiations 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.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Maxime Negotiations 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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Maxime Negotiations 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.
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 Maxime Negotiations.
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. Maxime Negotiations 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Maxime Negotiations 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 Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform .
Consumer confidence and its impact on Maxime Negotiations 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Maxime Negotiations 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 Maxime Negotiations in the Strategy & Execution sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Maxime Negotiations 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.
Environmental challenges
– Maxime Negotiations 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. Maxime Negotiations 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. Maxime Negotiations can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Technology disruption because of hacks, piracy etc
– The colonial pipeline illustrated, how vulnerable modern organization are to international hackers, miscreants, and disruptors. The cyber security interruption, data leaks, etc can seriously jeopardize the future growth of the organization.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform 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 Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform 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 Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform 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 Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform 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 Vector (C): Labour Negotiations at Maxime Platform 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 Maxime Negotiations needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.