Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Strategy & Execution
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking
Every solution you come up with-no matter how perfect it first appears-carries with it assumptions, leaps of faith and implicit conditions for success. If these are not recognized and attended to, they can turn out to be the Achilles heel in your great idea. So says the former creative advisor to Toyota, in a wide-ranging interview about his latest book, Winning the Brain Game. He presents and describes what he calls 'the seven fatal flaws of thinking': leaping, fixation, over-thinking, satisficing, downgrading, not-invented-here and self-censoring. Using a wide range of real-life examples-from Procter & Gamble to Xerox to Apple-he also shows how to avoid these common thinking flaws.
Swot Analysis of "Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking" written by Matthew E May, Karen Christensen includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Flaws Thinking facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Strategic thinking and Strategy & Execution.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking casestudy better are - – technology disruption, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, geopolitical disruptions, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic ,
challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Flaws Thinking, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Flaws Thinking 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 Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Flaws Thinking
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 Flaws Thinking
Strengths Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Flaws Thinking in Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking Harvard Business Review case study are -
High brand equity
– Flaws Thinking has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Flaws Thinking to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Organizational Resilience of Flaws Thinking
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Flaws Thinking does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Diverse revenue streams
– Flaws Thinking is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Strategy & Execution industry
– Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Flaws Thinking to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Flaws Thinking to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Flaws Thinking is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Learning organization
- Flaws Thinking 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 Flaws Thinking is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Innovation driven organization
– Flaws Thinking is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Analytics focus
– Flaws Thinking 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 Matthew E May, Karen Christensen 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Flaws Thinking 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Flaws Thinking has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Flaws Thinking 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.
Training and development
– Flaws Thinking has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking 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.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking 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.
Weaknesses Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking are -
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking 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 Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Flaws Thinking is planning to shift buying processes online.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Flaws Thinking is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Strategy & Execution segment. Flaws Thinking needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Flaws Thinking to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking 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 Flaws Thinking has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking HBR case study mentions - Flaws Thinking 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Flaws Thinking 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Flaws Thinking 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking, in the dynamic environment Flaws Thinking has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Flaws Thinking has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
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 Flaws Thinking supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Flaws Thinking vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Lack of clear differentiation of Flaws Thinking products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Flaws Thinking needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Flaws Thinking 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 - Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Flaws Thinking 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.
Opportunities Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking | 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 Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking are -
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 Flaws Thinking in the consumer business. Now Flaws Thinking can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Developing new processes and practices
– Flaws Thinking 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Flaws Thinking to increase its market reach. Flaws Thinking 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, Flaws Thinking can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Flaws Thinking operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Strategy & Execution sector.
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. Flaws Thinking can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Flaws Thinking 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 Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Flaws Thinking to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Flaws Thinking can still utilize the low interest rates to borrow money for capital investment. Secondly it can also use the increase of government spending in infrastructure projects to get new business.
Reconfiguring business model
– The expansion of digital payment system, the bringing down of international transactions costs using Bitcoin and other blockchain based currencies, etc can help Flaws Thinking 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Flaws Thinking 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 Flaws Thinking to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Buying journey improvements
– Flaws Thinking can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Flaws Thinking 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 Flaws Thinking has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Flaws Thinking to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking case study. Flaws Thinking 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, Flaws Thinking is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking 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.
Threats Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking 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 Flaws Thinking in the Strategy & Execution sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Flaws Thinking 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. Flaws Thinking can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Flaws Thinking 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 dependence on third party suppliers
– Flaws Thinking 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.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Flaws Thinking 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Flaws Thinking 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 Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking .
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. Flaws Thinking 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Flaws Thinking is facing in Strategy & Execution sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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 Flaws Thinking business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Flaws Thinking 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.
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 Flaws Thinking.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking, Flaws Thinking 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 .
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking 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 Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking 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 Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking 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 Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking 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 Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the Seven Fatal Flaws of Thinking 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 Flaws Thinking needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
