Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
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Case Study Description of Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes
In this increasingly complex world, managers understandably seek experts' advice to chart a path forward. Yet they encounter a jumble of metaphors, methods, and models; too often, old wine in new bottles. This article helps managers cut through the clutter. It presents a triangular framework which integrates concepts that, despite contrasting language, are more similar than different. The schema is based on the three kinds of Venn diagram: disjunction, containment, and intersection. Disjunction implies autonomy; containment, control; and intersection, cooperation. Every organizational strategy is a balance of these three variables. Once the triadic pattern has been grasped, managers can 'speed-read' the literatures on strategy, technology/organization, mergers and acquisitions, and cognition-as well as see parallels across these writings. They also become better able to address strategic issues systemically and efficiently, and to communicate to a wide organizational audience.
Swot Analysis of "Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes" written by Robert W. Keidel includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Disjunction Containment facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Mergers & acquisitions and Strategy & Execution.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes casestudy better are - – increasing transportation and logistics costs, increasing energy prices, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, wage bills are increasing, there is backlash against globalization, technology disruption,
increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Disjunction Containment, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Disjunction Containment 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 Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Disjunction Containment
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 Disjunction Containment
Strengths Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Disjunction Containment in Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes Harvard Business Review case study are -
Organizational Resilience of Disjunction Containment
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Disjunction Containment does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
High brand equity
– Disjunction Containment has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Disjunction Containment to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Disjunction Containment 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 Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Ability to lead change in Strategy & Execution field
– Disjunction Containment 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 Disjunction Containment in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Disjunction Containment in the sector have low bargaining power. Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Disjunction Containment to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Disjunction Containment is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes 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 Disjunction Containment 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.
Digital Transformation in Strategy & Execution segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Disjunction Containment digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Disjunction Containment 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 switching costs
– The high switching costs that Disjunction Containment 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Disjunction Containment has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Disjunction Containment 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Disjunction Containment 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 Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Training and development
– Disjunction Containment has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes 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.
Weaknesses Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes are -
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Disjunction Containment 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 Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes 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 Disjunction Containment has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Disjunction Containment is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Strategy & Execution segment. Disjunction Containment needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Disjunction Containment to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Disjunction Containment has borrowed money from the capital market at higher rates. It needs to restructure the interest payment and costs so that it can compete better and improve profitability.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Disjunction Containment 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes 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 Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Disjunction Containment is planning to shift buying processes online.
Need for greater diversity
– Disjunction Containment has taken concrete steps on diversity, equity, and inclusion. But the efforts so far has resulted in limited success. It needs to expand the recruitment and selection process to hire more people from the minorities and underprivileged background.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Disjunction Containment 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. Disjunction Containment 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes, is just above the industry average. Disjunction Containment 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.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Robert W. Keidel suggests that, Disjunction Containment 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.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes HBR case study mentions - Disjunction Containment 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.
Opportunities Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes | 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 Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes 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. Disjunction Containment can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
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. Disjunction Containment can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Disjunction Containment can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Disjunction Containment has spent a significant amount of money and effort to integrate analytics and machine learning into its operations in the sector. This continuous investment in analytics has enabled, as illustrated in the Harvard case study Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Disjunction Containment to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Disjunction Containment has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Disjunction Containment to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes case study. Disjunction Containment can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Disjunction Containment is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes 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.
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. Disjunction Containment 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. Disjunction Containment 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.
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 Disjunction Containment in the consumer business. Now Disjunction Containment can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Disjunction Containment can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Disjunction Containment operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Strategy & Execution sector.
Developing new processes and practices
– Disjunction Containment 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.
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 Disjunction Containment 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Disjunction Containment 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Disjunction Containment 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 Disjunction Containment to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Threats Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes are -
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Disjunction Containment 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 international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Disjunction Containment 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 Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes .
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Disjunction Containment 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.
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. Disjunction Containment needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Strategy & Execution industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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 Disjunction Containment in the Strategy & Execution sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Disjunction Containment 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.
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.
Environmental challenges
– Disjunction Containment 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. Disjunction Containment can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry.
Regulatory challenges
– Disjunction Containment 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.
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.
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 Disjunction Containment business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Disjunction Containment 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. Disjunction Containment can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes 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 Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes 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 Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes 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 Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes 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 Strategy Made Simple: Thinking in Threes 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 Disjunction Containment needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.