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The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution

Case Study Description of The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc.


In fiscal 2000, Circuit City was at the top of its game. The world's leading consumer electronics retailer had delivered record sales and profits for the first year of the new millennium. It was a fitting moment for Richard Sharpe, the CEO of the last 14 years, to step down. Over his tenure, revenues had increased 18 times and operating profits 13 times. In June 2000, Alan McCollough succeeded him as CEO. A 12 year veteran of Circuit City, McCollough expressed confidence in the future, citing trends such as the digitization of televisions, music players, and cameras. But challenges loomed from the increasingly aggressive discount sector. Was Circuit City as strategically strong as its financial results suggested? Would it be able to maintain momentum and retain its leadership?

Authors :: John R. Wells, Galen Danskin

Topics :: Strategy & Execution

Tags :: Competition, Product development, Strategic planning, Strategy execution, SWOT Analysis, SWOT Matrix, TOWS, Weighted SWOT Analysis

Swot Analysis of "The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc." written by John R. Wells, Galen Danskin includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Circuit Mccollough facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Competition, Product development, Strategic planning, Strategy execution and Strategy & Execution.


Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. casestudy better are - – technology disruption, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, increasing energy prices, increasing commodity prices, increasing transportation and logistics costs, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, geopolitical disruptions, etc



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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc.


SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Circuit Mccollough, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Circuit Mccollough 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 The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Circuit Mccollough
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 Circuit Mccollough




Strengths The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of Circuit Mccollough in The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. Harvard Business Review case study are -

Superior customer experience

– The customer experience strategy of Circuit Mccollough in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.

Learning organization

- Circuit Mccollough 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 Circuit Mccollough is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.

Ability to lead change in Strategy & Execution field

– Circuit Mccollough 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 Circuit Mccollough in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.

Training and development

– Circuit Mccollough has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. 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 brand equity

– Circuit Mccollough has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Circuit Mccollough to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.

Strong track record of project management

– Circuit Mccollough is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.

Diverse revenue streams

– Circuit Mccollough is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. 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.

Ability to recruit top talent

– Circuit Mccollough is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.

Cross disciplinary teams

– Horizontal connected teams at the Circuit Mccollough 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.

Innovation driven organization

– Circuit Mccollough is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.

Operational resilience

– The operational resilience strategy in the The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. 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

– Circuit Mccollough has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Circuit Mccollough 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.






Weaknesses The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. are -

High cash cycle compare to competitors

Circuit Mccollough 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.

High dependence on existing supply chain

– The disruption in the global supply chains because of the Covid-19 pandemic and blockage of the Suez Canal illustrated the fragile nature of Circuit Mccollough supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc., it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Circuit Mccollough vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.

Need for greater diversity

– Circuit Mccollough 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.

Workers concerns about automation

– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Circuit Mccollough 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.

Lack of clear differentiation of Circuit Mccollough products

– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Circuit Mccollough needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.

Aligning sales with marketing

– It come across in the case study The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. 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 The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Circuit Mccollough is planning to shift buying processes online.

High dependence on star products

– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. 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 Circuit Mccollough has relatively successful track record of launching new products.

Slow decision making process

– As mentioned earlier in the report, Circuit Mccollough 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. Circuit Mccollough 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.

Slow to harness new channels of communication

– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Circuit Mccollough is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.

Low market penetration in new markets

– Outside its home market of Circuit Mccollough, firm in the HBR case study The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.

High operating costs

– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. 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 Circuit Mccollough 's lucrative customers.




Opportunities The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. | 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 The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. are -

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. Circuit Mccollough can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.

Developing new processes and practices

– Circuit Mccollough 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.

Manufacturing automation

– Circuit Mccollough 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

– Circuit Mccollough can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. 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

– Circuit Mccollough 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.

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. Circuit Mccollough 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. Circuit Mccollough 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.

Learning at scale

– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Circuit Mccollough 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.

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. Circuit Mccollough can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.

Creating value in data economy

– The success of analytics program of Circuit Mccollough has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Circuit Mccollough to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. case study. Circuit Mccollough can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.

Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities

– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Circuit Mccollough 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 Circuit Mccollough to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.

Increase in government spending

– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Circuit Mccollough can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Circuit Mccollough operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Strategy & Execution sector.

Reforming the budgeting process

- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Circuit Mccollough can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.

Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains

– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Circuit Mccollough 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, The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc., to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.




Threats The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis


The threats mentioned in the HBR case study The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. are -

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 Circuit Mccollough.

Increasing wage structure of Circuit Mccollough

– 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 Circuit Mccollough.

Learning curve for new practices

– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc., Circuit Mccollough 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 .

Environmental challenges

– Circuit Mccollough 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. Circuit Mccollough can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry.

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. Circuit Mccollough needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Strategy & Execution industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.

Barriers of entry lowering

– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Circuit Mccollough with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.

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.

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. Circuit Mccollough 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.

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 Circuit Mccollough in the Strategy & Execution sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.

Shortening product life cycle

– it is one of the major threat that Circuit Mccollough 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.

Regulatory challenges

– Circuit Mccollough 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.

Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins

– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Circuit Mccollough 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 The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. .




Weighted SWOT Analysis of The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. 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 The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. 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 The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. 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 The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. 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 The Rise of Circuit City Stores, Inc. 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 Circuit Mccollough needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.



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