Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Strategy & Execution
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com
Examines Orientation.com's approach of developing global content capability and its market advantages and disadvantages as a result of localizing its resource bases. In a post-bubble technology market in early 2000, Orientation.com faced fierce competition for capital; any funding for dot.com-based businesses was likely to occur through corporate takeovers by traditional companies. Orientation.com could survive only if it provided a strategic fit to a large corporation or added financial value based on its global content proposition. A likely suitor was Telenor Mobile, a large European telecommunications provider that was interested in exclusively accessing Orientation.com's worldwide content and delivering it to its own customer base. Telenor Mobile had to decide whether Orientation.com's valuation and capabilities made it suitable for acquisition.
Swot Analysis of "Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com" written by Ali Farhoomand, Shamza Khan includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Orientation.com Orientation.com's facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Financial management, Globalization, Internet, IT, Mergers & acquisitions and Strategy & Execution.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com casestudy better are - – central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, geopolitical disruptions, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, increasing energy prices, there is backlash against globalization,
customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Orientation.com Orientation.com's, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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 Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Orientation.com Orientation.com's
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 Orientation.com Orientation.com's
Strengths Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Orientation.com Orientation.com's in Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com Harvard Business Review case study are -
Highly skilled collaborators
– Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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 Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Innovation driven organization
– Orientation.com Orientation.com's is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Strategy & Execution industry
– Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Orientation.com Orientation.com's to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Orientation.com Orientation.com's to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Analytics focus
– Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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 Ali Farhoomand, Shamza Khan 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.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Orientation.com Orientation.com's is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Orientation.com Orientation.com's has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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
- Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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 Orientation.com Orientation.com's is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Training and development
– Orientation.com Orientation.com's has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com 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.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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.
High brand equity
– Orientation.com Orientation.com's has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Orientation.com Orientation.com's to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Orientation.com Orientation.com's in the sector have low bargaining power. Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Orientation.com Orientation.com's to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Weaknesses Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com are -
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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. Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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 - Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Ali Farhoomand, Shamza Khan suggests that, Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Orientation.com Orientation.com's is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Strategy & Execution segment. Orientation.com Orientation.com's needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Orientation.com Orientation.com's to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com, it seems that the employees of Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com 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 Orientation.com Orientation.com's has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com, in the dynamic environment Orientation.com Orientation.com's has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Orientation.com Orientation.com's has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Orientation.com Orientation.com's is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com 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 Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com | 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 Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com are -
Developing new processes and practices
– Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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.
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 Orientation.com Orientation.com's in the consumer business. Now Orientation.com Orientation.com's can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Orientation.com Orientation.com's to increase its market reach. Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Orientation.com Orientation.com's is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com case study suggests that firm can utilize new technology to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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, Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
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. Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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. Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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.
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. Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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 Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Orientation.com Orientation.com's can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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.
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. Orientation.com Orientation.com's can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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.
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 Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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.
Threats Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com are -
Regulatory challenges
– Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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.
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 Orientation.com Orientation.com's business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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. Orientation.com Orientation.com's can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com, Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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 .
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Orientation.com Orientation.com's has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Strategy & Execution industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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.
Environmental challenges
– Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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. Orientation.com Orientation.com's can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry.
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. Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Orientation.com Orientation.com's 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.
Increasing wage structure of Orientation.com Orientation.com's
– 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 Orientation.com Orientation.com's.
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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com 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 Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com 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 Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com 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 Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com 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 Online Business Valuation: No Bang, No Buck for Orientation.com 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 Orientation.com Orientation.com's needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.