Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Technology & Operations
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A)
AT&T's Universal Card Services (UCS) has been extremely successful during its short lifetime. Dedicated to improving service quality and customer satisfaction, chief quality officer Rob Davis and his quality team have designed and put into place an unusual measurement and compensation system based on more than 100 performance measures monitored and communicated daily.
Authors :: Roy D. Shapiro, Michael D. Watkins, Susan Rosegrant
Swot Analysis of "Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A)" written by Roy D. Shapiro, Michael D. Watkins, Susan Rosegrant includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Quality Universal facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Customers, Motivating people, Performance measurement, Policy, Product development, Supply chain and Technology & Operations.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) casestudy better are - – increasing energy prices, increasing transportation and logistics costs, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, geopolitical disruptions, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies,
supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , there is increasing trade war between United States & China, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Quality Universal, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Quality Universal 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 Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Quality Universal
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 Quality Universal
Strengths Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Quality Universal in Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) Harvard Business Review case study are -
Successful track record of launching new products
– Quality Universal has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Quality Universal 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
– Quality Universal is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Diverse revenue streams
– Quality Universal is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) 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.
Training and development
– Quality Universal has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) 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.
Analytics focus
– Quality Universal 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 Roy D. Shapiro, Michael D. Watkins, Susan Rosegrant 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Quality Universal is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Technology & Operations industry
– Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Quality Universal to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Technology & Operations industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Quality Universal to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Quality Universal 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 Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Quality Universal 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 Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) 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 Quality Universal in the sector have low bargaining power. Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Quality Universal to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Quality Universal 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 Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) are -
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Quality Universal 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. Quality Universal 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Quality Universal is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Technology & Operations segment. Quality Universal needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Quality Universal to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A), is just above the industry average. Quality Universal 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) that the firm needs to have more collaboration between its sales team and marketing team. Sales professionals in the industry have deep experience in developing customer relationships. Marketing department in the case Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Quality Universal is planning to shift buying processes online.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) HBR case study mentions - Quality Universal takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the industry in last five years.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Quality Universal has borrowed money from the capital market at higher rates. It needs to restructure the interest payment and costs so that it can compete better and improve profitability.
Need for greater diversity
– Quality Universal 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.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Quality Universal 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.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) 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 Quality Universal has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
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 Quality Universal supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A), it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Quality Universal vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Lack of clear differentiation of Quality Universal products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Quality Universal needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Opportunities Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) | 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 Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) are -
Manufacturing automation
– Quality Universal 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Quality Universal has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Quality Universal to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) case study. Quality Universal can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Developing new processes and practices
– Quality Universal 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Quality Universal 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Quality Universal 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, Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A), to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Loyalty marketing
– Quality Universal 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Quality Universal can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Quality Universal 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 Technology & Operations segment.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Quality Universal to increase its market reach. Quality Universal 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Quality Universal can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Quality Universal 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Quality Universal in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Technology & Operations segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Quality Universal can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Quality Universal operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Technology & Operations sector.
Threats Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) are -
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Quality Universal with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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 Quality Universal.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Quality Universal 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.
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. Quality Universal needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Technology & Operations industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Quality Universal has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Technology & Operations industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Quality Universal 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.
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.
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. Quality Universal can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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 Quality Universal business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Quality Universal 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 Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) .
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Quality Universal in the Technology & Operations industry. The Technology & Operations 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.
Environmental challenges
– Quality Universal 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. Quality Universal can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Technology & Operations industry.
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. Quality Universal 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 Quality Universal
– 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 Quality Universal.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) 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 Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) 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 Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) 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 Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) 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 Measure of Delight: The Pursuit of Quality at AT&T Universal Card Services (A) 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 Quality Universal needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
