Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Strategy & Execution
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics
"Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics" explores the challenges associated with growing a start-up around a brand new technology. In October 2012, Eric Almgren became CEO of Keyssa. Founded in 2009, Keyssa reinvented the physical connector, an essential component in every computing and mobile device around the globe. Using a novel technology called Kiss Connectivity, Keyssa enabled contactless, wireless, secure, instant data flows within and between devices, while freeing product designers from the constraints of bulky but fragile metal connectors. Almgren was confident that this technology would have a huge impact on the next generation of mobile and computing devices. However, he faced several challenges in his efforts to grow Keyssa. Specific obstacles addressed include: replacing an existing CEO; raising money in a challenging fundraising environment; aligning on the company's go-to-market strategy; determining the right approach with regard to industry standards; and assessing opportunities outside of Keyssa's core computing and mobile markets. To Almgren and the Keyssa team, there was little doubt about the endless opportunities for Keyssa's revolutionary technology. Yet they also knew that it was only a matter of time before competitors would develop market ready products across multiple industries. Against that backdrop, Keyssa would need to continue innovating for the customers and industries that mattered most.
Swot Analysis of "Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics" written by Robert E. Siegel, Ryan Kissick includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Keyssa Almgren facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Intellectual property, International business, Joint ventures, Market research, Mobile and Strategy & Execution.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics casestudy better are - – increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing commodity prices, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, increasing transportation and logistics costs, there is backlash against globalization,
increasing energy prices, geopolitical disruptions, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Keyssa Almgren, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Keyssa Almgren 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 Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Keyssa Almgren
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 Keyssa Almgren
Strengths Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Keyssa Almgren in Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics Harvard Business Review case study are -
Digital Transformation in Strategy & Execution segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Keyssa Almgren digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Keyssa Almgren 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Keyssa Almgren in the sector have low bargaining power. Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Keyssa Almgren to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Keyssa Almgren is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
High brand equity
– Keyssa Almgren has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Keyssa Almgren to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Keyssa Almgren 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.
Ability to lead change in Strategy & Execution field
– Keyssa Almgren is one of the leading players in its industry. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in its segment but also across the whole industry. The ability to lead change has enabled Keyssa Almgren in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Learning organization
- Keyssa Almgren 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 Keyssa Almgren is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Diverse revenue streams
– Keyssa Almgren is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics 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.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Keyssa Almgren 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.
Analytics focus
– Keyssa Almgren 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 Robert E. Siegel, Ryan Kissick 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Keyssa Almgren is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Organizational Resilience of Keyssa Almgren
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Keyssa Almgren does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Weaknesses Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics are -
Products dominated business model
– Even though Keyssa Almgren 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 - Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics 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 Keyssa Almgren 's lucrative customers.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics 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 Keyssa Almgren has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics, is just above the industry average. Keyssa Almgren 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 bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Robert E. Siegel, Ryan Kissick suggests that, Keyssa Almgren 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Keyssa Almgren products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Keyssa Almgren needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Keyssa Almgren 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Keyssa Almgren is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Strategy & Execution segment. Keyssa Almgren needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Keyssa Almgren to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Keyssa Almgren 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.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Keyssa Almgren 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Keyssa Almgren 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.
Opportunities Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics | 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 Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics are -
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Keyssa Almgren is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics case study suggests that firm can utilize new technology to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Keyssa Almgren 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Keyssa Almgren 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Keyssa Almgren can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Keyssa Almgren operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Strategy & Execution sector.
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. Keyssa Almgren can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
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 Keyssa Almgren 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.
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 Keyssa Almgren in the consumer business. Now Keyssa Almgren can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
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. Keyssa Almgren 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. Keyssa Almgren 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Keyssa Almgren 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Keyssa Almgren can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Keyssa Almgren has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Keyssa Almgren to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics case study. Keyssa Almgren can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, 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. Keyssa Almgren 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 Keyssa Almgren 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.
Threats Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics are -
Increasing wage structure of Keyssa Almgren
– 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 Keyssa Almgren.
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
– Keyssa Almgren 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. Keyssa Almgren can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Keyssa Almgren 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 Keyssa Almgren with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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. Keyssa Almgren 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 Keyssa Almgren.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Keyssa Almgren has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Strategy & Execution industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Keyssa Almgren 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Keyssa Almgren 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 Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics .
Regulatory challenges
– Keyssa Almgren 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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Keyssa Almgren 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.
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 Keyssa Almgren in the Strategy & Execution sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Keyssa Almgren 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics 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 Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics 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 Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics 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 Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics 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 Keyssa: Unraveling the Laws of Physics 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 Keyssa Almgren needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
