Case Study Description of Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants
This case describes issues facing the founder-CEO of a high-tech start-up in Boston, as he negotiates with multiple large potential partners and investors. The negotiations include a potential business partnership with FleetCenter and Madison Square Garden, and a potential investment from two large venture capital firms. The case focuses on the sequencing among the parties, how to resolve conflicting interests among the parties, and the issues facing small entrepreneurial firms trying to negotiate with very large and powerful investors and business partners.
Authors :: Donald N. Sull, James K. Sebenius, Noam Wasserman
Swot Analysis of "Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants" written by Donald N. Sull, James K. Sebenius, Noam Wasserman includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Fleetcenter Dancing facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Venture capital and Strategy & Execution.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants casestudy better are - – increasing transportation and logistics costs, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, increasing energy prices,
challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, technology disruption, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Fleetcenter Dancing, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Fleetcenter Dancing 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 Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Fleetcenter Dancing
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 Fleetcenter Dancing
Strengths Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Fleetcenter Dancing in Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants Harvard Business Review case study are -
Highly skilled collaborators
– Fleetcenter Dancing 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 Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Learning organization
- Fleetcenter Dancing 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 Fleetcenter Dancing is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Innovation driven organization
– Fleetcenter Dancing is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Diverse revenue streams
– Fleetcenter Dancing is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants 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.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Fleetcenter Dancing in the sector have low bargaining power. Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Fleetcenter Dancing to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Analytics focus
– Fleetcenter Dancing 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 Donald N. Sull, James K. Sebenius, Noam Wasserman 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.
Digital Transformation in Strategy & Execution segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Fleetcenter Dancing digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Fleetcenter Dancing 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.
Training and development
– Fleetcenter Dancing has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants 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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Fleetcenter Dancing in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Fleetcenter Dancing is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants 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 Fleetcenter Dancing 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.
Weaknesses Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants are -
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants 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 Fleetcenter Dancing 's lucrative customers.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Fleetcenter Dancing 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Fleetcenter Dancing, firm in the HBR case study Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Fleetcenter Dancing 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 - Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants 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 Fleetcenter Dancing has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants HBR case study mentions - Fleetcenter Dancing 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Fleetcenter Dancing products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Fleetcenter Dancing needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Fleetcenter Dancing is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Strategy & Execution segment. Fleetcenter Dancing needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Fleetcenter Dancing to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Fleetcenter Dancing is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Fleetcenter Dancing 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 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 Fleetcenter Dancing supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Fleetcenter Dancing vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Opportunities Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants | 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 Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants are -
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 Fleetcenter Dancing to reconfigure its entire business model. For example it can used blockchain based technologies to reduce piracy of its products in the big markets such as China. Secondly it can use the popularity of e-commerce in various developing markets to build a Direct to Customer business model rather than the current Channel Heavy distribution network.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Strategy & Execution industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Fleetcenter Dancing 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. Fleetcenter Dancing can further use this consumer data to build better customer loyalty, provide better products and service collection, and improve the value proposition in inflationary times.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Fleetcenter Dancing 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, Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
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. Fleetcenter Dancing can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Fleetcenter Dancing 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 Fleetcenter Dancing to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Fleetcenter Dancing has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Fleetcenter Dancing to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants case study. Fleetcenter Dancing can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Fleetcenter Dancing 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Fleetcenter Dancing is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Fleetcenter Dancing can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Fleetcenter Dancing to increase its market reach. Fleetcenter Dancing 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, Fleetcenter Dancing can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Fleetcenter Dancing operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Strategy & Execution sector.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Fleetcenter Dancing 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 Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Fleetcenter Dancing to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Fleetcenter Dancing 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.
Threats Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants are -
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Fleetcenter Dancing 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 Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants .
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 Fleetcenter Dancing.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Fleetcenter Dancing is facing in Strategy & Execution sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Fleetcenter Dancing 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.
Environmental challenges
– Fleetcenter Dancing 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. Fleetcenter Dancing 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. Fleetcenter Dancing needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Strategy & Execution industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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. Fleetcenter Dancing can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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. Fleetcenter Dancing 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.
Increasing wage structure of Fleetcenter Dancing
– 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 Fleetcenter Dancing.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Fleetcenter Dancing 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Fleetcenter Dancing 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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Fleetcenter Dancing 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants 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 Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants 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 Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants 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 Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants 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 Smartix (A): Dancing with Elephants 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 Fleetcenter Dancing needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
