National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Technology & Operations
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution
Discusses U.S. and Japanese innovation systems. Illustrates these with comparative studies of computer and pharmaceutical industries. Probes effects of labor, capital, and customer market institutions on these sectors in the United States and Japan.
Swot Analysis of "National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution" written by Henry W. Chesbrough, Gillian Morris includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Comparative Probes facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, National competitiveness, Technology and Technology & Operations.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution casestudy better are - – supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , there is increasing trade war between United States & China, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, technology disruption, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, increasing energy prices, there is backlash against globalization,
challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Comparative Probes, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Comparative Probes 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 National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Comparative Probes
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 Comparative Probes
Strengths National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Comparative Probes in National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution Harvard Business Review case study are -
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Comparative Probes in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Training and development
– Comparative Probes has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution 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.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution 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.
Ability to lead change in Technology & Operations field
– Comparative Probes 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 Comparative Probes in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Diverse revenue streams
– Comparative Probes is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Comparative Probes has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Comparative Probes 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.
Digital Transformation in Technology & Operations segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Comparative Probes digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Comparative Probes 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Comparative Probes 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 National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
High brand equity
– Comparative Probes has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Comparative Probes to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Comparative Probes 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 switching costs
– The high switching costs that Comparative Probes 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Comparative Probes is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Weaknesses National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution are -
Lack of clear differentiation of Comparative Probes products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Comparative Probes needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Comparative Probes is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Technology & Operations segment. Comparative Probes needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Comparative Probes to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution, in the dynamic environment Comparative Probes has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Comparative Probes has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Comparative Probes is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Comparative Probes 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.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution HBR case study mentions - Comparative Probes 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.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Comparative Probes 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. Comparative Probes 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution 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 National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Comparative Probes is planning to shift buying processes online.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Comparative Probes 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Comparative Probes 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 bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Henry W. Chesbrough, Gillian Morris suggests that, Comparative Probes 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.
Opportunities National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution | 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 National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution are -
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Comparative Probes can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Loyalty marketing
– Comparative Probes 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Comparative Probes 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.
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. Comparative Probes can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Buying journey improvements
– Comparative Probes can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution 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.
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. Comparative Probes 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. Comparative Probes 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Comparative Probes has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Comparative Probes to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution case study. Comparative Probes can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Use of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies for transactions
– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for Comparative Probes in the consumer business. Now Comparative Probes can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Comparative Probes 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 National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Comparative Probes to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Manufacturing automation
– Comparative Probes 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.
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 Comparative Probes 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Comparative Probes 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Comparative Probes is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution case study suggests that firm can utilize new technology to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.
Threats National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution are -
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Comparative Probes 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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution, Comparative Probes 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 .
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 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, Comparative Probes 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 National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution .
Consumer confidence and its impact on Comparative Probes 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.
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 Comparative Probes business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Increasing wage structure of Comparative Probes
– 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 Comparative Probes.
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. Comparative Probes 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.
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. Comparative Probes needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Technology & Operations industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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. Comparative Probes can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Comparative Probes is facing in Technology & Operations sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Comparative Probes has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Technology & Operations industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Comparative Probes 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution 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 National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution 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 National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution 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 National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution 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 National Innovation Systems and Comparative Industry Evolution 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 Comparative Probes needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.