Swot Analysis of "Enspire Learning" written by Roger Hallowell, Bjorn Billhardt, Frank Andrasco, Hans Ten Cate includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Enspire Founds facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Enspire Learning case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Entrepreneurship, Internet, IT, Organizational structure, Strategic planning, Strategy execution, Supply chain and Technology & Operations.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Enspire Learning casestudy better are - – challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, wage bills are increasing, increasing energy prices, geopolitical disruptions, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%,
there is increasing trade war between United States & China, increasing commodity prices, etc
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Enspire Learning case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Enspire Founds, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Enspire Founds 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 Enspire Learning can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Enspire Learning case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Enspire Founds
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Technology & Operations field.
4. Making a Technology & Operations topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Enspire Founds
Strengths Enspire Learning | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Enspire Founds in Enspire Learning Harvard Business Review case study are -
Strong track record of project management
– Enspire Founds is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Training and development
– Enspire Founds has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Enspire Learning 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.
Digital Transformation in Technology & Operations segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Enspire Founds digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Enspire Founds 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Enspire Founds is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Enspire Learning Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Enspire Founds 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 Enspire Learning HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Enspire Founds has built up over years in its products and services combo offer has resulted in high retention of customers, lower marketing costs, and greater ability of the firm to focus on its customers.
High brand equity
– Enspire Founds has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Enspire Founds to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Organizational Resilience of Enspire Founds
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Enspire Founds does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Enspire Founds 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 Enspire Learning - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Diverse revenue streams
– Enspire Founds is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Enspire Learning 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 Technology & Operations industry
– Enspire Learning firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Enspire Founds to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Technology & Operations industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Enspire Founds to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Enspire Founds 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 Enspire Learning | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Enspire Learning are -
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Roger Hallowell, Bjorn Billhardt, Frank Andrasco, Hans Ten Cate suggests that, Enspire Founds 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.
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 Enspire Founds supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Enspire Learning, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Enspire Founds vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Enspire Founds 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.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Enspire Learning, it seems that the employees of Enspire Founds 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.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Enspire Learning 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 Enspire Founds has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Enspire Founds 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Enspire Founds is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Technology & Operations segment. Enspire Founds needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Enspire Founds to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Enspire Founds, firm in the HBR case study Enspire Learning needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Enspire Founds is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Enspire Learning can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Enspire Learning, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Technology & Operations strategy. But it has very little resources allocation to manage the risks emerging from events such as natural disasters, climate change, melting of permafrost, tacking the rise of artificial intelligence, opportunities and threats emerging from commercialization of space etc.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Enspire Learning, in the dynamic environment Enspire Founds has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Enspire Founds has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Opportunities Enspire Learning | 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 Enspire Learning are -
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Enspire Founds is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Enspire Learning 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Enspire Founds can develop new processes and procedures in Technology & Operations 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.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Technology & Operations industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Enspire Founds can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Technology & Operations industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Enspire Founds 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. Enspire Founds 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Enspire Founds to increase its market reach. Enspire Founds 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Enspire Founds 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, Enspire Learning, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Enspire Founds has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Enspire Founds to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Enspire Learning case study. Enspire Founds can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Buying journey improvements
– Enspire Founds can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Enspire Learning 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Enspire Founds can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Enspire Founds operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Technology & Operations sector.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Enspire Founds 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 Enspire Learning - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Enspire Founds to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Manufacturing automation
– Enspire Founds can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Technology & Operations 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
– Enspire Founds 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
– Enspire Founds 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.
Threats Enspire Learning External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Enspire Learning are -
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Technology & Operations field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Enspire Founds can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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 Enspire Founds in the Technology & Operations sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Enspire Founds 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.
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. Enspire Founds 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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Enspire Founds has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Technology & Operations industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Enspire Founds needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Technology & Operations 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.
Technology disruption because of hacks, piracy etc
– The colonial pipeline illustrated, how vulnerable modern organization are to international hackers, miscreants, and disruptors. The cyber security interruption, data leaks, etc can seriously jeopardize the future growth of the organization.
Increasing wage structure of Enspire Founds
– 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 Enspire Founds.
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 Enspire Founds business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Enspire Founds 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Enspire Founds demand
– There is a high probability of declining consumer confidence, given – high inflammation rate, rise of gig economy, lower job stability, increasing cost of living, higher interest rates, and aging demography. All the factors contribute to people saving higher rate of their income, resulting in lower consumer demand in the industry and other sectors.
Aging population
– As the populations of most advanced economies are aging, it will lead to high social security costs, higher savings among population, and lower demand for goods and services in the economy. The household savings in US, France, UK, Germany, and Japan are growing faster than predicted because of uncertainty caused by pandemic.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Enspire Learning, Enspire Founds may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Technology & Operations .
Regulatory challenges
– Enspire Founds 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 Technology & Operations industry regulations.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Enspire Learning 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 Enspire Learning 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 Enspire Learning 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 Enspire Learning 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 Enspire Learning 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 Enspire Founds needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.