Case Study Description of Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery
Creemore Springs Brewery, a small, independent brewer, offered new, high quality alternatives to premium beer connoisseurs. Continuing quality problems with the company that cleaned its bottles prompted the president of Creemore Springs Brewery to decide whether or not to recommend moving the bottle cleaning operation from the external contractor and bring it in-house. To assess the company's options he must analyse the qualitative and quantitative costs and benefits of making such a move by performing a task analysis, reviewing the production process and calculating the payback.
Swot Analysis of "Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery" written by John S. Haywood-Farmer, Tim Tattersall includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Creemore Springs facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Financial analysis, Manufacturing and Technology & Operations.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery casestudy better are - – there is backlash against globalization, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, geopolitical disruptions, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing energy prices, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion,
increasing transportation and logistics costs, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Creemore Springs, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Creemore Springs 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 Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Creemore Springs
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 Creemore Springs
Strengths Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Creemore Springs in Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery Harvard Business Review case study are -
Diverse revenue streams
– Creemore Springs is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery 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.
Ability to lead change in Technology & Operations field
– Creemore Springs 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 Creemore Springs in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Innovation driven organization
– Creemore Springs is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Learning organization
- Creemore Springs 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 Creemore Springs is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Creemore Springs is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Creemore Springs in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Creemore Springs 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.
High brand equity
– Creemore Springs has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Creemore Springs to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Creemore Springs has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Creemore Springs 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Creemore Springs 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 Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery - 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
– Creemore Springs 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 Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery 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 Creemore Springs 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.
Weaknesses Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery are -
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Creemore Springs 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery, 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 Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery, in the dynamic environment Creemore Springs has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Creemore Springs has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
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 Creemore Springs supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Creemore Springs vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Creemore Springs is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Technology & Operations segment. Creemore Springs needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Creemore Springs to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Need for greater diversity
– Creemore Springs 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery 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 Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Creemore Springs is planning to shift buying processes online.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery, it seems that the employees of Creemore Springs 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 cash cycle compare to competitors
Creemore Springs has a high cash cycle compare to other players in the industry. It needs to shorten the cash cycle by 12% to be more competitive in the marketplace, reduce inventory costs, and be more profitable.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, John S. Haywood-Farmer, Tim Tattersall suggests that, Creemore Springs 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 Creemore Springs 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 - Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Opportunities Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery | 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 Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery are -
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Creemore Springs 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Creemore Springs 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
– Creemore Springs 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 Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Creemore Springs to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Manufacturing automation
– Creemore Springs 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Creemore Springs is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Creemore Springs 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 Creemore Springs to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Creemore Springs 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Creemore Springs 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Creemore Springs can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery 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.
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. Creemore Springs can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Creemore Springs has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Creemore Springs to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery case study. Creemore Springs can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Reconfiguring business model
– The expansion of digital payment system, the bringing down of international transactions costs using Bitcoin and other blockchain based currencies, etc can help Creemore Springs to reconfigure its entire business model. For example it can used blockchain based technologies to reduce piracy of its products in the big markets such as China. Secondly it can use the popularity of e-commerce in various developing markets to build a Direct to Customer business model rather than the current Channel Heavy distribution network.
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. Creemore Springs can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Threats Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery are -
Increasing wage structure of Creemore Springs
– 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 Creemore Springs.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Creemore Springs 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Creemore Springs 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Creemore Springs 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 Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery .
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Creemore Springs 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.
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. Creemore Springs can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Creemore Springs with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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.
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 Creemore Springs business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Environmental challenges
– Creemore Springs 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. Creemore Springs can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Technology & Operations industry.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery, Creemore Springs 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 .
Consumer confidence and its impact on Creemore Springs 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery 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 Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery 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 Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery 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 Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery 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 Bottling at Creemore Springs Brewery 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 Creemore Springs needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.