Case Study Description of chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity
In 2013, a team led by Gopalan Sunderraman, vice president of corporate development at Godrej & Boyce Mfg. Co. Ltd.-one of the companies owned by Godrej Group, a large Indian conglomerate-was preparing to launch an innovative low-cost refrigerator. Developed expressly for the approximately 80% of Indians who lacked access to refrigeration (a market Godrej had never before targeted), the chotuKool represented a technological marvel-a small, inexpensive thermoelectric appliance powered by a rechargeable battery. The case traces chotuKool's development and evolution from an initial product concept inspired by theories of innovation and the strategic vision of Jamshyd Godrej (managing director and chairman at Godrej & Boyce Mfg.) to a promising new line of business that emerged from a process of learning and discovery through market feedback. As the company geared up for the broader rollout of chotuKool, Sunderraman and his team faced some tough questions. What was the proper target and scope for the launch? Which strategy gave them the best chance of success? Could chotuKool really redefine the company and bring refrigeration to hundreds of millions of Indians?
Authors :: Rory McDonald, Derek van Bever, Efosa Ojomo
Swot Analysis of "chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity" written by Rory McDonald, Derek van Bever, Efosa Ojomo includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Godrej Chotukool facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Financial management, Marketing, Strategy and Strategy & Execution.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity casestudy better are - – increasing household debt because of falling income levels, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, technology disruption, geopolitical disruptions, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, increasing transportation and logistics costs, wage bills are increasing,
talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Godrej Chotukool, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Godrej Chotukool 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 chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Godrej Chotukool
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 Godrej Chotukool
Strengths chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Godrej Chotukool in chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity Harvard Business Review case study are -
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Godrej Chotukool in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Training and development
– Godrej Chotukool has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Godrej Chotukool 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 chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Learning organization
- Godrej Chotukool 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 Godrej Chotukool is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Innovation driven organization
– Godrej Chotukool is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity 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 Godrej Chotukool 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Godrej Chotukool is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Analytics focus
– Godrej Chotukool 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 Rory McDonald, Derek van Bever, Efosa Ojomo 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Godrej Chotukool 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 chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Godrej Chotukool has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Godrej Chotukool 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.
Ability to lead change in Strategy & Execution field
– Godrej Chotukool 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 Godrej Chotukool in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Weaknesses chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity are -
Need for greater diversity
– Godrej Chotukool 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.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Godrej Chotukool 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity 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 chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Godrej Chotukool is planning to shift buying processes online.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity 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 Godrej Chotukool 's lucrative customers.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Godrej Chotukool is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity 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 Godrej Chotukool has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity, it seems that the employees of Godrej Chotukool 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity, in the dynamic environment Godrej Chotukool has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Godrej Chotukool 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 Godrej Chotukool 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 - chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Godrej Chotukool 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.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Godrej Chotukool 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.
Opportunities chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity | 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 chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity are -
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Godrej Chotukool 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 Godrej Chotukool to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
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 Godrej Chotukool 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.
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. Godrej Chotukool 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. Godrej Chotukool 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Godrej Chotukool 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, chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Loyalty marketing
– Godrej Chotukool 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Godrej Chotukool to conduct training and development for its employees across the world. This will result in not only reducing the cost of training but also help employees in different part of the world to integrate with the headquarter work culture, ethos, and standards.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Godrej Chotukool 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Godrej Chotukool 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Godrej Chotukool can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
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. Godrej Chotukool can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Manufacturing automation
– Godrej Chotukool 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Godrej Chotukool 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Godrej Chotukool can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Godrej Chotukool operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Strategy & Execution sector.
Threats chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity are -
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. Godrej Chotukool can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Environmental challenges
– Godrej Chotukool 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. Godrej Chotukool can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Godrej Chotukool 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.
Increasing wage structure of Godrej Chotukool
– 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 Godrej Chotukool.
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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Godrej Chotukool with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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 Godrej Chotukool.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Godrej Chotukool 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.
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. Godrej Chotukool needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Strategy & Execution industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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 Godrej Chotukool business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity, Godrej Chotukool 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 .
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Godrej Chotukool 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Godrej Chotukool is facing in Strategy & Execution sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity 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 chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity 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 chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity 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 chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity 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 chotuKool: "Little Cool," Big Opportunity 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 Godrej Chotukool needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.