Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Strategy & Execution
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Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys
On June 8, 2003, Dream International signed a contract with Warner Bros. to manufacture licensed beanbags and plush stuffed toys using famous branded characters such as Looney Tunes and Tom & Jerry. The contract allowed Dream to distribute its character product through Warner-appointed distributors worldwide, except for the U.S. territories and Canada. For Dream, the contract not only added a new revenue source but also provided a stepping stone to eventually sell character brands and other plush toy products directly to retailers. Despite Dream's remarkable growth, Chairman and founder Kyoo Yoon Choi, who was in his 50s and based in Seoul, was not satisfied with the size of the operation. In the highly fragmented plush toy market, Dream had less than a 2% share of the global market. Choi's goal was at least 5% to 6%. What was Dream's strategic plan for achieving this target? Was vertical integration the best way forward? What were the success factors that built Dream into the world's largest manufacturer of plush toys?
Swot Analysis of "Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys" written by Simon Tam, Monica Wong includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Plush Dream facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Manufacturing, Marketing, Mergers & acquisitions, Negotiations, Strategic planning and Strategy & Execution.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys casestudy better are - – technology disruption, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, geopolitical disruptions, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs,
increasing energy prices, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Plush Dream, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Plush Dream 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 Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Plush Dream
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 Plush Dream
Strengths Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Plush Dream in Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys Harvard Business Review case study are -
Digital Transformation in Strategy & Execution segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Plush Dream digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Plush Dream 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.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Plush Dream is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Analytics focus
– Plush Dream 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 Simon Tam, Monica Wong 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
– Plush Dream is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Diverse revenue streams
– Plush Dream is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Plush Dream 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Plush Dream has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Plush Dream 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.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Plush Dream in the sector have low bargaining power. Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Plush Dream to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Plush Dream 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 Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys 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 Strategy & Execution industry
– Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Plush Dream to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Plush Dream to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Organizational Resilience of Plush Dream
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Plush Dream does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Weaknesses Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys are -
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Plush Dream 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.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Simon Tam, Monica Wong suggests that, Plush Dream 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 Plush Dream has created an environment where the organization is dominated by functional specialists rather than management generalist. This has resulted into product oriented approach rather than marketing oriented approach or consumers oriented approach.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Plush Dream 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 - Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Plush Dream 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Plush Dream is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Strategy & Execution segment. Plush Dream needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Plush Dream 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, Plush Dream is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys 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 Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys, it seems that the employees of Plush Dream 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys 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 Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Plush Dream is planning to shift buying processes online.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys, is just above the industry average. Plush Dream 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.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys HBR case study mentions - Plush Dream 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.
Opportunities Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys | 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 Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys are -
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Plush Dream 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 Plush Dream to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Plush Dream 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 Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Plush Dream to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Plush Dream can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Plush Dream operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Strategy & Execution sector.
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 Plush Dream 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 Plush Dream has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Plush Dream to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys case study. Plush Dream 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. Plush Dream can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Plush Dream 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Plush Dream can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Plush Dream 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.
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. Plush Dream can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Plush Dream to increase its market reach. Plush Dream 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.
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 Plush Dream in the consumer business. Now Plush Dream 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. Plush Dream 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. Plush Dream 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.
Threats Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys 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 Plush Dream in the Strategy & Execution sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Regulatory challenges
– Plush Dream 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Plush Dream with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Plush Dream 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.
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. Plush Dream 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.
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 Plush Dream business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Plush Dream 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.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Plush Dream 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.
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.
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 Plush Dream.
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. Plush Dream needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Strategy & Execution industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys, Plush Dream 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 .
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Plush Dream 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 Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys .
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys 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 Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys 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 Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys 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 Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys 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 Dream International Ltd.: Creating the World's Largest Manufacturer of Plush Toys 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 Plush Dream needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
