Redefining the AXA Brand SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Strategy & Execution
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Redefining the AXA Brand
The case describes how AXA, a global insurance company headquartered in Paris, France, defined and implemented its new brand in May 2008. This is exactly 3 years after CEO Henri de Castries launched the initiative "Ambition 2012" aimed at doubling revenues and tripling underlying earnings between 2004 and 2012 and turning AXA into "the preferred company" in financial protection. In order to become "preferred" among consumers; AXA needed to differentiate itself from its competitors. But, the brand attributes - including the signature "Be Life Confident" - didn't seem to be totally up to it. In 2007-2008, Claude Brunet, AXA's Chief Operating Officer, led a project to investigate and reinforce the brand. He strengthened marketing through the creation of a Group marketing department reporting to him which was responsible for strategic marketing and customer insight, offer and innovation, customer programs and quality of service, distribution, and brand and advertising. The voices of executives, customers and employees were then thoroughly analyzed. This fed the AXA Brand Spirit, a multidisciplinary task force made responsible for proposing action to the management board. The research concluded that the three main core attributes for AXA were "available", "attentive", and "reliable". The AXA Brand Spirit decided AXA ought to "continuously work to prove it is worth trusting". This meant exiting the "land of promise" and settling into a "land of proof". This would be the spirit of the new signature "redefining / standards". The new AXA brand was launched internally on May 27, 2008 with a worldwide online forum in which 55,000 employees participated. Learning objectives: Brand management is more than designing a new logo and creating a new value proposition. The case shows the importance of building emotional momentum within a service organization and using brand management as a catalyst for a deeper cultural change.
Swot Analysis of "Redefining the AXA Brand" written by Stefan Michel, Jean-Pierre Baillot includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Axa Brand facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Redefining the AXA Brand case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Change management, Customer service, Customers, Motivating people, Strategy and Strategy & Execution.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Redefining the AXA Brand casestudy better are - – there is increasing trade war between United States & China, increasing energy prices, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, geopolitical disruptions, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, increasing transportation and logistics costs, increasing commodity prices,
talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Redefining the AXA Brand
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Redefining the AXA Brand case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Axa Brand, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Axa Brand 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 Redefining the AXA Brand can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Redefining the AXA Brand case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Axa Brand
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 Axa Brand
Strengths Redefining the AXA Brand | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Axa Brand in Redefining the AXA Brand Harvard Business Review case study are -
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Axa Brand in the sector have low bargaining power. Redefining the AXA Brand has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Axa Brand to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Redefining the AXA Brand 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Axa Brand 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.
Digital Transformation in Strategy & Execution segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Axa Brand digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Axa Brand 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.
Learning organization
- Axa Brand 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 Axa Brand is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Redefining the AXA Brand Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Diverse revenue streams
– Axa Brand is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Redefining the AXA Brand 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Strategy & Execution industry
– Redefining the AXA Brand firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Axa Brand to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Axa Brand to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Axa Brand has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Axa Brand 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Axa Brand 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 Redefining the AXA Brand HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Axa Brand is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Redefining the AXA Brand are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Training and development
– Axa Brand has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Redefining the AXA Brand 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Axa Brand is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Weaknesses Redefining the AXA Brand | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Redefining the AXA Brand are -
Need for greater diversity
– Axa Brand 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.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Axa Brand has a very deliberative decision making approach. This approach has resulted in prudent decisions, but it has also resulted in missing opportunities in the industry over the last five years. Axa Brand even though has strong showing on digital transformation primary two stages, it has struggled to capitalize the power of digital transformation in marketing efforts and new venture efforts.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Redefining the AXA Brand HBR case study mentions - Axa Brand 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.
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 Axa Brand supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Redefining the AXA Brand, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Axa Brand vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Axa Brand 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Axa Brand is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Redefining the AXA Brand can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Redefining the AXA Brand, it seems that the employees of Axa Brand 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 bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Stefan Michel, Jean-Pierre Baillot suggests that, Axa Brand 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Redefining the AXA Brand, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Strategy & Execution strategy. But it has very little resources allocation to manage the risks emerging from events such as natural disasters, climate change, melting of permafrost, tacking the rise of artificial intelligence, opportunities and threats emerging from commercialization of space etc.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Redefining the AXA Brand 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 Axa Brand 's lucrative customers.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Axa Brand 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.
Opportunities Redefining the AXA Brand | 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 Redefining the AXA Brand are -
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. Axa Brand can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Developing new processes and practices
– Axa Brand 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Axa Brand 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Axa Brand can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Redefining the AXA Brand 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Axa Brand 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Axa Brand 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Axa Brand to increase its market reach. Axa Brand 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Axa Brand 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 Axa Brand 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Axa Brand has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Axa Brand to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Redefining the AXA Brand case study. Axa Brand can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Use of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies for transactions
– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for Axa Brand in the consumer business. Now Axa Brand can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Axa Brand 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 Redefining the AXA Brand - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Axa Brand to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Axa Brand 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 Redefining the AXA Brand External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Redefining the AXA Brand are -
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Axa Brand 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Axa Brand 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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Axa Brand has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Strategy & Execution industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Axa Brand 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 Axa Brand with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Increasing wage structure of Axa Brand
– 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 Axa Brand.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Axa Brand 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 Redefining the AXA Brand .
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Redefining the AXA Brand, Axa Brand 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 .
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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Axa Brand is facing in Strategy & Execution sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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 Axa Brand.
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 Axa Brand in the Strategy & Execution sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Axa Brand 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.
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. Axa Brand 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 Redefining the AXA Brand 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 Redefining the AXA Brand 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 Redefining the AXA Brand 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 Redefining the AXA Brand 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 Redefining the AXA Brand 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 Axa Brand needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
