Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Strategy & Execution
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Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets
The case series focuses on the diverse, innovative approaches taken by major players, domestic and foreign, to establish and grow chains of hypermarkets and supermarkets in India over the past decade, in the context of shifting FDI policies, changing consumer shopping habits, and an evolving food value chain.
Swot Analysis of "Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets" written by James Costantini includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Supermarkets Fork facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Innovation, Marketing, Supply chain and Strategy & Execution.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets casestudy better are - – increasing commodity prices, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, geopolitical disruptions, increasing transportation and logistics costs, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings,
technology disruption, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Supermarkets Fork, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Supermarkets Fork 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 Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Supermarkets Fork
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 Supermarkets Fork
Strengths Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Supermarkets Fork in Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets Harvard Business Review case study are -
Strong track record of project management
– Supermarkets Fork is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Diverse revenue streams
– Supermarkets Fork is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Supermarkets Fork 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.
Learning organization
- Supermarkets Fork 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 Supermarkets Fork is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Supermarkets Fork in the sector have low bargaining power. Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Supermarkets Fork to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Digital Transformation in Strategy & Execution segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Supermarkets Fork digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Supermarkets Fork 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Supermarkets Fork 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 Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Training and development
– Supermarkets Fork has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Supermarkets Fork 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 Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Strategy & Execution industry
– Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Supermarkets Fork to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Supermarkets Fork to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Supermarkets Fork has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Supermarkets Fork 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.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Supermarkets Fork is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Weaknesses Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets are -
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets HBR case study mentions - Supermarkets Fork 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Supermarkets Fork 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets, is just above the industry average. Supermarkets Fork 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, James Costantini suggests that, Supermarkets Fork 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Supermarkets Fork 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 - Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets, in the dynamic environment Supermarkets Fork has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Supermarkets Fork has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Supermarkets Fork, firm in the HBR case study Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Supermarkets Fork 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 operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets 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 Supermarkets Fork 's lucrative customers.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Supermarkets Fork 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. Supermarkets Fork 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.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Supermarkets Fork 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.
Opportunities Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets | 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 Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets are -
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Supermarkets Fork to increase its market reach. Supermarkets Fork 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Supermarkets Fork 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Supermarkets Fork 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Supermarkets Fork has focused on building a highly responsive customer relationship management platform. This platform is built on in-house data and driven by analytics and artificial intelligence. The customer analytics can help the organization to fine tune its loyalty marketing efforts, increase the wallet share of the organization, reduce wastage on mainstream advertising spending, build better pricing strategies using personalization, etc.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Supermarkets Fork 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 Supermarkets Fork to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Buying journey improvements
– Supermarkets Fork can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Supermarkets Fork 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, Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Developing new processes and practices
– Supermarkets Fork 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.
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. Supermarkets Fork 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. Supermarkets Fork 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.
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. Supermarkets Fork can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Supermarkets Fork 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 Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Supermarkets Fork to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Supermarkets Fork can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
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 Supermarkets Fork in the consumer business. Now Supermarkets Fork can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Threats Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets are -
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Supermarkets Fork 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Supermarkets Fork 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 Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets .
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 Supermarkets Fork in the Strategy & Execution sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Environmental challenges
– Supermarkets Fork 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. Supermarkets Fork can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Supermarkets Fork is facing in Strategy & Execution sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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. Supermarkets Fork 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Supermarkets Fork with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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. Supermarkets Fork needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Strategy & Execution industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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 Supermarkets Fork.
Increasing wage structure of Supermarkets Fork
– 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 Supermarkets Fork.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Supermarkets Fork 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.
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 Supermarkets Fork business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Supermarkets Fork 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 Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets 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 Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets 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 Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets 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 Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets 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 Development of Food Retailing in India (C): From Farm to Fork via Supermarkets 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 Supermarkets Fork needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.