Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Technology & Operations
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications
It is well known that almost all of the largest economies in the world are already dominated by services. What may be less well known is that many are also evolving towards becoming information economies in the sense of both value added (GNP) and jobs. While this evolution is less advanced in some countries, the U.S. is already well past the 60% mark in terms of economic value added. This article explores the confluence of these two trends by examining the double dichotomy of products versus services and information versus material (non-information) outputs, thus dividing the economy into four super-sectors. The data reveal that the U.S. job market is dominated by information work and that the largest part of the U.S. economy in terms of GNP value added is the "information services" super-sector. The largest job share in terms of the number of jobs is in the "material or non-information" jobs in services, but the largest share of the wage bill is in information-related jobs in services. This article discusses the reasons behind these trends, identifies major differences between information and non-information sectors, and examines the implications for management strategy in the information economy.
Authors :: Uday Karmarkar, Uday M Apte, Hiranya K Nath
Swot Analysis of "Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications" written by Uday Karmarkar, Uday M Apte, Hiranya K Nath includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Information Jobs facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Global strategy, Innovation and Technology & Operations.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications casestudy better are - – talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, increasing energy prices, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models,
increasing household debt because of falling income levels, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Information Jobs, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Information Jobs 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 Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Information Jobs
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 Information Jobs
Strengths Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Information Jobs in Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications Harvard Business Review case study are -
Innovation driven organization
– Information Jobs is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Information Jobs 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Information Jobs in the sector have low bargaining power. Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Information Jobs to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Diverse revenue streams
– Information Jobs is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Information Jobs 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 Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Information Jobs 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.
Analytics focus
– Information Jobs 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 Uday Karmarkar, Uday M Apte, Hiranya K Nath 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Technology & Operations industry
– Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Information Jobs to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Technology & Operations industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Information Jobs to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Digital Transformation in Technology & Operations segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Information Jobs digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Information Jobs 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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Information Jobs in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Ability to lead change in Technology & Operations field
– Information Jobs 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 Information Jobs in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Information Jobs has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Information Jobs 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.
Weaknesses Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications are -
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Information Jobs 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.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications, it seems that the employees of Information Jobs 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 strategic competitive environment developments
– As Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications HBR case study mentions - Information Jobs 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications 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 Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Information Jobs is planning to shift buying processes online.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Information Jobs 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. Information Jobs 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.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications 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 Information Jobs 's lucrative customers.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Information Jobs 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Information Jobs 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.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Information Jobs 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Information Jobs products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Information Jobs needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Information Jobs 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.
Opportunities Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications | 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 Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications are -
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Information Jobs 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 Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Information Jobs to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Information Jobs 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Information Jobs 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.
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. Information Jobs 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. Information Jobs 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.
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. Information Jobs can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Information Jobs 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, Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Information Jobs 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 Information Jobs to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Manufacturing automation
– Information Jobs 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.
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. Information Jobs can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Information Jobs can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Information Jobs 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Information Jobs can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Information Jobs operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Technology & Operations sector.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Information Jobs 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.
Threats Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications are -
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications, Information Jobs 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 .
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Information Jobs with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Information Jobs 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Information Jobs 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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Information Jobs has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Technology & Operations industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Information Jobs 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.
Increasing wage structure of Information Jobs
– 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 Information Jobs.
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 international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Information Jobs 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 Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications .
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 Information Jobs business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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 Information Jobs.
Regulatory challenges
– Information Jobs 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.
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. Information Jobs can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications 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 Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications 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 Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications 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 Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications 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 Information Services in the U.S. Economy: Value, Jobs, and Management Implications 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 Information Jobs needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
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