Case Study Description of Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage
Examines Boeing's new strategy of offering services to regain market dominance and help its struggling airline customers improve efficiency and profitability.
Authors :: Lynda M. Applegate, Joseph S. Valacich, Mara E. Vatz, Christoph Schneider
Swot Analysis of "Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage" written by Lynda M. Applegate, Joseph S. Valacich, Mara E. Vatz, Christoph Schneider includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Boeing's Regain facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Networking, Sales, Strategy execution, Technology and Strategy & Execution.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage casestudy better are - – banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, geopolitical disruptions, increasing energy prices,
central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Boeing's Regain, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Boeing's Regain 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 Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Boeing's Regain
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 Boeing's Regain
Strengths Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Boeing's Regain in Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage Harvard Business Review case study are -
Ability to lead change in Strategy & Execution field
– Boeing's Regain 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 Boeing's Regain in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Boeing's Regain 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 Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Boeing's Regain in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Boeing's Regain is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Boeing's Regain 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 Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Innovation driven organization
– Boeing's Regain is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Strong track record of project management
– Boeing's Regain is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Learning organization
- Boeing's Regain 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 Boeing's Regain is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Diverse revenue streams
– Boeing's Regain is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage 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.
Digital Transformation in Strategy & Execution segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Boeing's Regain digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Boeing's Regain 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Boeing's Regain has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Boeing's Regain 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Strategy & Execution industry
– Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Boeing's Regain to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Boeing's Regain to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Weaknesses Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage are -
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Boeing's Regain 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage, in the dynamic environment Boeing's Regain has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Boeing's Regain has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage, is just above the industry average. Boeing's Regain 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Boeing's Regain has not been able to do capital spending to the tune of the competition. This has resulted into fewer innovations and company facing stiff competition from both existing competitors and new entrants who are disrupting the industry using digital technology.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Boeing's Regain 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 - Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
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 Boeing's Regain supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Boeing's Regain vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Lack of clear differentiation of Boeing's Regain products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Boeing's Regain needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage 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 Boeing's Regain 's lucrative customers.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage, it seems that the employees of Boeing's Regain don’t have comprehensive understanding of the firm’s strategy. This is reflected in number of promotional campaigns over the last few years that had mixed messaging and competing priorities. Some of the strategic activities and services promoted in the promotional campaigns were not consistent with the organization’s strategy.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Boeing's Regain is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Boeing's Regain is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Strategy & Execution segment. Boeing's Regain needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Boeing's Regain to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Opportunities Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage | 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 Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage are -
Manufacturing automation
– Boeing's Regain 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 Boeing's Regain has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Boeing's Regain to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage case study. Boeing's Regain can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Boeing's Regain 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 Boeing's Regain to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
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. Boeing's Regain can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Boeing's Regain 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Boeing's Regain 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
– Boeing's Regain 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 Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Boeing's Regain 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 Boeing's Regain 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Boeing's Regain can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage 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, Boeing's Regain 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, Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Boeing's Regain 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Boeing's Regain to conduct training and development for its employees across the world. This will result in not only reducing the cost of training but also help employees in different part of the world to integrate with the headquarter work culture, ethos, and standards.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Boeing's Regain is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage 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 Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage are -
Regulatory challenges
– Boeing's Regain 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
– Boeing's Regain 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, Boeing's Regain 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 Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage .
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Boeing's Regain 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 wage structure of Boeing's Regain
– 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 Boeing's Regain.
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. Boeing's Regain 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 Boeing's Regain is facing in Strategy & Execution sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage, Boeing's Regain 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 .
Environmental challenges
– Boeing's Regain 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. Boeing's Regain can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry.
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.
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. Boeing's Regain needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Strategy & Execution industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Boeing's Regain 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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Boeing's Regain has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Strategy & Execution industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Boeing's Regain needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Strategy & Execution sector. According to Mckinsey study top managers believe that the adoption of technology in operations, communications is 20-25 times faster than what they planned in the beginning of 2019.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage 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 Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage 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 Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage 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 Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage 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 Boeing's e-Enabled Advantage 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 Boeing's Regain needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.