Measurement and Management at CitySoft SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Finance & Accounting
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Measurement and Management at CitySoft
This case is available in only hard copy format (HBP does not have digital distribution rights to the content). As a result, a digital Educator Copy of the case is not available through this web site.CitySoft is a very small software developer that is grappling with issues of cost measurement and management.
Swot Analysis of "Measurement and Management at CitySoft" written by V.G. Narayanan, Sanjay T. Pothen includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Site.citysoft Measurement facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Measurement and Management at CitySoft case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Financial analysis, Growth strategy, IT, Performance measurement and Finance & Accounting.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Measurement and Management at CitySoft casestudy better are - – increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, geopolitical disruptions, wage bills are increasing, increasing energy prices, there is backlash against globalization, increasing transportation and logistics costs, there is increasing trade war between United States & China,
increasing household debt because of falling income levels, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Measurement and Management at CitySoft
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Measurement and Management at CitySoft case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Site.citysoft Measurement, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Site.citysoft Measurement 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 Measurement and Management at CitySoft can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Measurement and Management at CitySoft case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Site.citysoft Measurement
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Finance & Accounting field.
4. Making a Finance & Accounting topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Site.citysoft Measurement
Strengths Measurement and Management at CitySoft | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Site.citysoft Measurement in Measurement and Management at CitySoft Harvard Business Review case study are -
Ability to lead change in Finance & Accounting field
– Site.citysoft Measurement 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 Site.citysoft Measurement in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Analytics focus
– Site.citysoft Measurement 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 V.G. Narayanan, Sanjay T. Pothen 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.
Learning organization
- Site.citysoft Measurement 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 Site.citysoft Measurement is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Measurement and Management at CitySoft Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Site.citysoft Measurement in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Site.citysoft Measurement 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 Site.citysoft Measurement
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Site.citysoft Measurement does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
High brand equity
– Site.citysoft Measurement has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Site.citysoft Measurement to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Site.citysoft Measurement 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 Measurement and Management at CitySoft HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Finance & Accounting industry
– Measurement and Management at CitySoft firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Site.citysoft Measurement to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Finance & Accounting industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Site.citysoft Measurement to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Innovation driven organization
– Site.citysoft Measurement is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Measurement and Management at CitySoft Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Site.citysoft Measurement 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Site.citysoft Measurement 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 Measurement and Management at CitySoft - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Weaknesses Measurement and Management at CitySoft | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Measurement and Management at CitySoft are -
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Measurement and Management at CitySoft, is just above the industry average. Site.citysoft Measurement 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 dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Measurement and Management at CitySoft 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 Site.citysoft Measurement has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Measurement and Management at CitySoft 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 Measurement and Management at CitySoft can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Site.citysoft Measurement is planning to shift buying processes online.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Measurement and Management at CitySoft, in the dynamic environment Site.citysoft Measurement has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Site.citysoft Measurement has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Site.citysoft Measurement 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 - Measurement and Management at CitySoft should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Site.citysoft Measurement is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Finance & Accounting segment. Site.citysoft Measurement needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Site.citysoft Measurement to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Site.citysoft Measurement is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Measurement and Management at CitySoft can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Measurement and Management at CitySoft HBR case study mentions - Site.citysoft Measurement 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 Site.citysoft Measurement products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Site.citysoft Measurement needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, V.G. Narayanan, Sanjay T. Pothen suggests that, Site.citysoft Measurement 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.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Site.citysoft Measurement 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.
Opportunities Measurement and Management at CitySoft | 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 Measurement and Management at CitySoft are -
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 Site.citysoft Measurement 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Site.citysoft Measurement can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Site.citysoft Measurement operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Finance & Accounting sector.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Site.citysoft Measurement in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Finance & Accounting segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Site.citysoft Measurement 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Site.citysoft Measurement 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, Measurement and Management at CitySoft, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Finance & Accounting industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Site.citysoft Measurement can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Finance & Accounting industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Site.citysoft Measurement 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. Site.citysoft Measurement 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Site.citysoft Measurement 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 Measurement and Management at CitySoft - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Site.citysoft Measurement to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
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 Site.citysoft Measurement in the consumer business. Now Site.citysoft Measurement can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Site.citysoft Measurement has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Site.citysoft Measurement to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Measurement and Management at CitySoft case study. Site.citysoft Measurement can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Site.citysoft Measurement 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Site.citysoft Measurement 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Site.citysoft Measurement can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Threats Measurement and Management at CitySoft External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Measurement and Management at CitySoft are -
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 Site.citysoft Measurement in the Finance & Accounting sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Site.citysoft Measurement 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
– Site.citysoft Measurement 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 Finance & Accounting industry regulations.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Site.citysoft Measurement is facing in Finance & Accounting sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Site.citysoft Measurement in the Finance & Accounting industry. The Finance & Accounting 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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Site.citysoft Measurement has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Finance & Accounting industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Site.citysoft Measurement needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Finance & Accounting 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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Measurement and Management at CitySoft, Site.citysoft Measurement may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Finance & Accounting .
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Site.citysoft Measurement 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 Measurement and Management at CitySoft .
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. Site.citysoft Measurement 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.
Environmental challenges
– Site.citysoft Measurement 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. Site.citysoft Measurement can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Finance & Accounting industry.
Increasing wage structure of Site.citysoft Measurement
– 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 Site.citysoft Measurement.
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. Site.citysoft Measurement needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Finance & Accounting industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Site.citysoft Measurement with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Measurement and Management at CitySoft 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 Measurement and Management at CitySoft 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 Measurement and Management at CitySoft 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 Measurement and Management at CitySoft 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 Measurement and Management at CitySoft 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 Site.citysoft Measurement needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
