Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Strategy & Execution
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer
The Hach subsidiary of global science and technology leader Danaher Corporation was about to introduce an innovative handheld water quality testing device: the SL1000 Portable Parallel Analyzer. There were, however, some critical decisions left regarding how best to bring it to market. Olaf Boettger, the Business Unit Director of Hach's Laboratory Solutions division, needed to decide on the exact timing of the launch and how the PPA would be priced and promoted. Boettger's decisions would impact a wide range of stakeholders inside and outside of the company, and he must carefully weigh a series of tradeoffs and concerns. Danaher's Business System, a culture emphasizing continuous improvement as well as a set of tools or structures that drive performance, provides him with the structure to frame these decisions. This case was used successfully as an introductory case at the start of the Darden Business School MBA program and would be useful in any class to emphasize the need for an "enterprise perspective."
Swot Analysis of "Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer" written by Marc Lipson includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Hach Sl1000 facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Leadership, Marketing, Pricing, Product development, Strategy and Strategy & Execution.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer casestudy better are - – there is increasing trade war between United States & China, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, technology disruption, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, wage bills are increasing, increasing commodity prices, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation,
increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Hach Sl1000, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Hach Sl1000 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 Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Hach Sl1000
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 Hach Sl1000
Strengths Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Hach Sl1000 in Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer Harvard Business Review case study are -
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Hach Sl1000 are driving operational speed, building greater agility, and keeping the organization nimble to compete with new competitors. It helps are organization to ideate new ideas, and execute them swiftly in the marketplace.
Organizational Resilience of Hach Sl1000
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Hach Sl1000 does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer 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)
– Hach Sl1000 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 Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Learning organization
- Hach Sl1000 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 Hach Sl1000 is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Diverse revenue streams
– Hach Sl1000 is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer 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.
Training and development
– Hach Sl1000 has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Hach Sl1000 in the sector have low bargaining power. Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Hach Sl1000 to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
High brand equity
– Hach Sl1000 has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Hach Sl1000 to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Hach Sl1000 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 Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Hach Sl1000 has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Hach Sl1000 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.
Digital Transformation in Strategy & Execution segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Hach Sl1000 digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Hach Sl1000 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.
Weaknesses Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer are -
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer HBR case study mentions - Hach Sl1000 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Hach Sl1000 products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Hach Sl1000 needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Hach Sl1000 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 - Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Hach Sl1000 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer 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 Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Hach Sl1000 is planning to shift buying processes online.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer, it seems that the employees of Hach Sl1000 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.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Hach Sl1000 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, Marc Lipson suggests that, Hach Sl1000 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Hach Sl1000 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.
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 Hach Sl1000 supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Hach Sl1000 vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Hach Sl1000 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.
Opportunities Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer | 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 Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer are -
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. Hach Sl1000 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. Hach Sl1000 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 Hach Sl1000 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Hach Sl1000 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, Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Hach Sl1000 has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Hach Sl1000 to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer case study. Hach Sl1000 can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Hach Sl1000 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 Hach Sl1000 to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Hach Sl1000 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.
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 Hach Sl1000 in the consumer business. Now Hach Sl1000 can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Hach Sl1000 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Hach Sl1000 is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Hach Sl1000 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Hach Sl1000 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Hach Sl1000 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Hach Sl1000 can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Hach Sl1000 operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Strategy & Execution sector.
Threats Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer 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 Hach Sl1000 business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Hach Sl1000 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.
Environmental challenges
– Hach Sl1000 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. Hach Sl1000 can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Hach Sl1000 is facing in Strategy & Execution sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Hach Sl1000 has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Strategy & Execution industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Hach Sl1000 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Hach Sl1000 with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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. Hach Sl1000 can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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. Hach Sl1000 needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Strategy & Execution industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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 Hach Sl1000.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Hach Sl1000 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.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Hach Sl1000 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.
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.
Regulatory challenges
– Hach Sl1000 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer 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 Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer 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 Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer 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 Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer 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 Danaher Corporation: The Hach SL1000 Portable Parallel Water Analyzer 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 Hach Sl1000 needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
