Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Strategy & Execution
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C)
Carlos obtained Fournier's approval to implement "Telesales" (i.e., Carlos's renamed version of Dubai's Telemarketing). Telesales was successful within a year of launch. Success factors were: project's IT aspect; salespeople's acceptance of using computers; salespeople not resisting potential added control of Telesales; and offering of a complete package.
Swot Analysis of "Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C)" written by Michael Casaburi, Gabriel Szulanski includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Telesales Carlos's facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Competitive strategy, Cross-cultural management, Knowledge management and Strategy & Execution.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) casestudy better are - – digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, increasing transportation and logistics costs, wage bills are increasing, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, there is backlash against globalization, increasing commodity prices,
cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Telesales Carlos's, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Telesales Carlos'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 Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Telesales Carlos'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 Telesales Carlos's
Strengths Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Telesales Carlos's in Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) Harvard Business Review case study are -
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Telesales Carlos's in the sector have low bargaining power. Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Telesales Carlos's to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Learning organization
- Telesales Carlos'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 Telesales Carlos's is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Innovation driven organization
– Telesales Carlos's is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Digital Transformation in Strategy & Execution segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Telesales Carlos's digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Telesales Carlos's has successfully integrated the four key components of digital transformation – digital integration in processes, digital integration in marketing and customer relationship management, digital integration into the value chain, and using technology to explore new products and market opportunities.
High brand equity
– Telesales Carlos's has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Telesales Carlos's to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Telesales Carlos'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 Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Strong track record of project management
– Telesales Carlos's is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Strategy & Execution industry
– Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Telesales Carlos's to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Telesales Carlos's to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Telesales Carlos's is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Training and development
– Telesales Carlos's has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) 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.
Diverse revenue streams
– Telesales Carlos's is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Telesales Carlos's has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Telesales Carlos'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.
Weaknesses Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) are -
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C), in the dynamic environment Telesales Carlos's has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Telesales Carlos's has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Telesales Carlos's is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Strategy & Execution segment. Telesales Carlos's needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Telesales Carlos's to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Michael Casaburi, Gabriel Szulanski suggests that, Telesales Carlos'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.
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 Telesales Carlos's supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C), it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Telesales Carlos's vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Telesales Carlos's needs to come up with a strategy to reduce the workers concern regarding automation. Without a clear strategy, it could lead to disruption and uncertainty within the organization.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Telesales Carlos'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.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) 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 Telesales Carlos's has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C), it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Strategy & Execution strategy. But it has very little resources allocation to manage the risks emerging from events such as natural disasters, climate change, melting of permafrost, tacking the rise of artificial intelligence, opportunities and threats emerging from commercialization of space etc.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C), is just above the industry average. Telesales Carlos's needs to redesign the compensation structure and incentives to increase the revenue per employees. Some of the steps that it can take are – hiring more specialists on project basis, etc.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) HBR case study mentions - Telesales Carlos's 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Telesales Carlos'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.
Opportunities Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) | 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 Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) are -
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Telesales Carlos's can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Telesales Carlos's 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 Telesales Carlos'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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Telesales Carlos'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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Telesales Carlos'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.
Manufacturing automation
– Telesales Carlos's 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Telesales Carlos's has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Telesales Carlos's to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) case study. Telesales Carlos's can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Identify volunteer opportunities
– Covid-19 has impacted working population in two ways – it has led to people soul searching about their professional choices, resulting in mass resignation. Secondly it has encouraged people to do things that they are passionate about. This has opened opportunities for businesses to build volunteer oriented socially driven projects. Telesales Carlos's can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Telesales Carlos's to increase its market reach. Telesales Carlos'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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Telesales Carlos's can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Telesales Carlos's operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Strategy & Execution sector.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Telesales Carlos'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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Telesales Carlos's 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 Telesales Carlos's to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Buying journey improvements
– Telesales Carlos's can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) 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.
Threats Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) are -
New competition
– After the dotcom bust of 2001, financial crisis of 2008-09, the business formation in US economy had declined. But in 2020 alone, there are more than 1.5 million new business applications in United States. This can lead to greater competition for Telesales Carlos's in the Strategy & Execution sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
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 Telesales Carlos's.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Telesales Carlos's 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.
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. Telesales Carlos'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 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. Telesales Carlos's needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Strategy & Execution industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Telesales Carlos'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.
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 Telesales Carlos'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.
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.
Increasing wage structure of Telesales Carlos'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 Telesales Carlos's.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Telesales Carlos's with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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. Telesales Carlos's can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Telesales Carlos's 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 Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) 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 Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) 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 Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) 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 Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) 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 Rank Xerox : The Success of Telesales (C) 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 Telesales Carlos's needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.