Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Strategy & Execution
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Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing
Seneca is a three-party negotiation-mediation simulation. The context is a product failure crisis in a manufacturing company with highly autonomous units. The heads of two divisions are in a dispute over who has responsibility for failures in a key product. The head of a third division is attempting to mediate a resolution to the dispute. Unlike many mediation simulations, the mediator has both independent interests and some power to influence outcomes. Two versions of the mediator role are available. In Seneca Systems (A), the mediator can make a financial contribution to solving the problem and hence has bargaining power. In Seneca Systems (B), the mediator has some coercive power in the form of influence with the CEO and could impose a solution if the parties are unable to resolve the dispute themselves. The core teaching issues concern the tradeoffs inherent in having vested interests and power as a mediator.
Swot Analysis of "Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing" written by Michael D. Watkins includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Mediator Seneca facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Conflict, Influence, Negotiations, Organizational culture and Strategy & Execution.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing casestudy better are - – there is increasing trade war between United States & China, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, there is backlash against globalization, wage bills are increasing, geopolitical disruptions, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies,
increasing household debt because of falling income levels, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Mediator Seneca, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Mediator Seneca 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 Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Mediator Seneca
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 Mediator Seneca
Strengths Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Mediator Seneca in Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing Harvard Business Review case study are -
Analytics focus
– Mediator Seneca 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 Michael D. Watkins 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
– Mediator Seneca is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Ability to lead change in Strategy & Execution field
– Mediator Seneca 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 Mediator Seneca in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Mediator Seneca has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Mediator Seneca 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.
Learning organization
- Mediator Seneca 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 Mediator Seneca is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing 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.
Training and development
– Mediator Seneca has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing Harvard Business Review case study by analyzing – employees retention, in-house promotion, loyalty, new venture initiation, lack of conflict, and high level of both employees and customer engagement.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Mediator Seneca in the sector have low bargaining power. Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Mediator Seneca to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Mediator Seneca 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 Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Mediator Seneca is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Organizational Resilience of Mediator Seneca
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Mediator Seneca does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Mediator Seneca 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.
Weaknesses Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing are -
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing 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 Mediator Seneca 's lucrative customers.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing HBR case study mentions - Mediator Seneca 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Mediator Seneca, firm in the HBR case study Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing, in the dynamic environment Mediator Seneca has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Mediator Seneca has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Michael D. Watkins suggests that, Mediator Seneca 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.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing 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 Mediator Seneca has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Mediator Seneca 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.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Mediator Seneca 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Mediator Seneca has not been able to do capital spending to the tune of the competition. This has resulted into fewer innovations and company facing stiff competition from both existing competitors and new entrants who are disrupting the industry using digital technology.
Need for greater diversity
– Mediator Seneca 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 to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Mediator Seneca is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Opportunities Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing | 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 Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing are -
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 Mediator Seneca in the consumer business. Now Mediator Seneca 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 Mediator Seneca has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Mediator Seneca to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing case study. Mediator Seneca can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Mediator Seneca 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 Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Mediator Seneca to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Manufacturing automation
– Mediator Seneca 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Mediator Seneca can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing 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.
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. Mediator Seneca 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 Mediator Seneca 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Mediator Seneca 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Mediator Seneca 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.
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. Mediator Seneca 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. Mediator Seneca 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Mediator Seneca 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 Mediator Seneca to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Mediator Seneca 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Mediator Seneca 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.
Threats Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing are -
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Mediator Seneca is facing in Strategy & Execution sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Technology disruption because of hacks, piracy etc
– The colonial pipeline illustrated, how vulnerable modern organization are to international hackers, miscreants, and disruptors. The cyber security interruption, data leaks, etc can seriously jeopardize the future growth of the organization.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Mediator Seneca 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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing, Mediator Seneca 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 .
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. Mediator Seneca can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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 Mediator Seneca in the Strategy & Execution sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Mediator Seneca has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Strategy & Execution industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Mediator Seneca 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, Mediator Seneca 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 Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing .
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Mediator Seneca 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.
Environmental challenges
– Mediator Seneca 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. Mediator Seneca can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry.
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 Mediator Seneca business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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. Mediator Seneca needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Strategy & Execution industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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. Mediator Seneca 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing 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 Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing 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 Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing 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 Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing 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 Seneca Systems (A): General and Confidential Instructions for R. Thompson, Vice President, Marketing 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 Mediator Seneca needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
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