Vivonic was a start-up that was part of Intel's New Business Initiatives that sought to develop and sell personal health monitoring hardware and software. When it was first funded, Intel was in the midst of record growth and was seeking diversification. But the company lacked domain expertise and the unit faced many challenges working with existing Intel processes while it strove to establish its own. This case complements 609-043 "Intel NBI: Intel Corporation's New Business Initiatives," and 609-102 "Intel NBI: Intel Corporation's New Business Initiatives (B)." It is one of the failed ventures cited in those cases.
Swot Analysis of "Intel NBI: Vivonic" written by Willy Shih, Thomas Thurston includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Intel Nbi facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Intel NBI: Vivonic case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Organizational culture, Risk management, Technology and Technology & Operations.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Intel NBI: Vivonic casestudy better are - – wage bills are increasing, there is backlash against globalization, increasing commodity prices, increasing transportation and logistics costs, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%,
banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Intel NBI: Vivonic
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Intel NBI: Vivonic case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Intel Nbi, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Intel Nbi 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 Intel NBI: Vivonic can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Intel NBI: Vivonic case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Intel Nbi
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 Intel Nbi
Strengths Intel NBI: Vivonic | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Intel Nbi in Intel NBI: Vivonic Harvard Business Review case study are -
Training and development
– Intel Nbi has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Intel NBI: Vivonic 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Intel Nbi in the sector have low bargaining power. Intel NBI: Vivonic has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Intel Nbi to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Innovation driven organization
– Intel Nbi is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Intel NBI: Vivonic Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Intel Nbi 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
– Intel Nbi 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 Intel Nbi in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Technology & Operations industry
– Intel NBI: Vivonic firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Intel Nbi to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Technology & Operations industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Intel Nbi to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Analytics focus
– Intel Nbi 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 Willy Shih, Thomas Thurston 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Intel Nbi 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 Intel NBI: Vivonic HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Intel Nbi 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 Intel NBI: Vivonic - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Intel Nbi is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Intel NBI: Vivonic are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
High brand equity
– Intel Nbi has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Intel Nbi to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Learning organization
- Intel Nbi 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 Intel Nbi is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Intel NBI: Vivonic Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Weaknesses Intel NBI: Vivonic | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Intel NBI: Vivonic are -
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Intel NBI: Vivonic, in the dynamic environment Intel Nbi has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Intel Nbi has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Willy Shih, Thomas Thurston suggests that, Intel Nbi 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.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Intel NBI: Vivonic HBR case study mentions - Intel Nbi 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Intel Nbi 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Intel Nbi products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Intel Nbi needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Intel Nbi 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 Intel NBI: Vivonic, 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Intel Nbi is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Intel NBI: Vivonic can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Intel NBI: Vivonic 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 Intel NBI: Vivonic can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Intel Nbi is planning to shift buying processes online.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Intel Nbi 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Intel Nbi is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Technology & Operations segment. Intel Nbi needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Intel Nbi to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Opportunities Intel NBI: Vivonic | 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 Intel NBI: Vivonic are -
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Intel Nbi 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Intel Nbi can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Intel Nbi operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Technology & Operations sector.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Intel Nbi has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Intel Nbi to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Intel NBI: Vivonic case study. Intel Nbi can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Technology & Operations industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Intel Nbi can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Manufacturing automation
– Intel Nbi 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Intel Nbi 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, Intel NBI: Vivonic, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Developing new processes and practices
– Intel Nbi 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.
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. Intel Nbi can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
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 Intel Nbi 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Intel Nbi 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Intel Nbi can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Intel NBI: Vivonic 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 Intel Nbi 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Intel Nbi has focused on building a highly responsive customer relationship management platform. This platform is built on in-house data and driven by analytics and artificial intelligence. The customer analytics can help the organization to fine tune its loyalty marketing efforts, increase the wallet share of the organization, reduce wastage on mainstream advertising spending, build better pricing strategies using personalization, etc.
Threats Intel NBI: Vivonic External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Intel NBI: Vivonic are -
Increasing wage structure of Intel Nbi
– 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 Intel Nbi.
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. Intel Nbi 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 international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Intel Nbi 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 Intel NBI: Vivonic .
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Intel NBI: Vivonic, Intel Nbi 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 .
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Intel Nbi has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Technology & Operations industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Intel Nbi 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.
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 Intel Nbi business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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.
Regulatory challenges
– Intel Nbi 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.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Intel Nbi 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Intel Nbi 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Intel Nbi is facing in Technology & Operations sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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. Intel Nbi needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Technology & Operations industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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 Intel Nbi.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Intel NBI: Vivonic 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 Intel NBI: Vivonic 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 Intel NBI: Vivonic 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 Intel NBI: Vivonic 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 Intel NBI: Vivonic 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 Intel Nbi needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
