The company Wildfire offers a product that is a virtual secretary--embedded in the phone system. Students can call 1-800-WILDFIRE and hear a product demonstration. All the commands, from calling, to setting up meetings, to providing reminders, are verbal--told to the user by the Wildfire assistant living in the network. CEO Bill Warner must decide on the key product or attribute of the product or service that he offers. He must address the following questions: What is his best means to sell this product/service? Who should his strategic partners be? This is a strategy case for a marketspace company, that is, a company that exists only in the realm of the marketspace.
Swot Analysis of "Wildfire" written by John J. Sviokla, Steven M. Salzinger includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Wildfire Marketspace facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Wildfire case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Market research and Technology & Operations.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Wildfire casestudy better are - – technology disruption, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, there is backlash against globalization, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, increasing transportation and logistics costs,
increasing energy prices, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, etc
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Wildfire case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Wildfire Marketspace, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Wildfire Marketspace 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 Wildfire can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Wildfire case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Wildfire Marketspace
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 Wildfire Marketspace
Strengths Wildfire | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Wildfire Marketspace in Wildfire Harvard Business Review case study are -
Organizational Resilience of Wildfire Marketspace
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Wildfire Marketspace does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Wildfire Marketspace in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Technology & Operations industry
– Wildfire firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Wildfire Marketspace to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Technology & Operations industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Wildfire Marketspace to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
High brand equity
– Wildfire Marketspace has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Wildfire Marketspace to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Strong track record of project management
– Wildfire Marketspace is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Wildfire Marketspace 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.
Training and development
– Wildfire Marketspace has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Wildfire 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 Wildfire Marketspace in the sector have low bargaining power. Wildfire has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Wildfire Marketspace to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Wildfire Marketspace 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 Wildfire HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Wildfire Marketspace is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Wildfire are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Learning organization
- Wildfire Marketspace 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 Wildfire Marketspace is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Wildfire Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Wildfire Marketspace has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Wildfire Marketspace 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 Wildfire | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Wildfire are -
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Wildfire 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 Wildfire Marketspace 's lucrative customers.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Wildfire HBR case study still accounts for major business revenue. This dependence on star products in has resulted into insufficient focus on developing new products, even though Wildfire Marketspace has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Lack of clear differentiation of Wildfire Marketspace products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Wildfire Marketspace needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
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 Wildfire Marketspace supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Wildfire, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Wildfire Marketspace vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Wildfire, it seems that the employees of Wildfire Marketspace 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 Wildfire HBR case study mentions - Wildfire Marketspace 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.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Wildfire Marketspace 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Wildfire Marketspace 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Wildfire Marketspace has borrowed money from the capital market at higher rates. It needs to restructure the interest payment and costs so that it can compete better and improve profitability.
Need for greater diversity
– Wildfire Marketspace 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Wildfire Marketspace 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 - Wildfire should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Opportunities Wildfire | 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 Wildfire are -
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Wildfire Marketspace can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Wildfire Marketspace operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Technology & Operations sector.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Wildfire Marketspace to increase its market reach. Wildfire Marketspace will be able to reach out to new customers. Secondly 5G will also provide technology framework to build new tools and products that can help more immersive consumer experience and faster consumer journey.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Wildfire Marketspace 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 Wildfire - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Wildfire Marketspace to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
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. Wildfire Marketspace 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. Wildfire Marketspace 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Wildfire Marketspace 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Wildfire Marketspace is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Wildfire 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Wildfire Marketspace can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Wildfire 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Wildfire Marketspace 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Wildfire Marketspace 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Wildfire Marketspace can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
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. Wildfire Marketspace can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
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 Wildfire Marketspace in the consumer business. Now Wildfire Marketspace can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Wildfire Marketspace can still utilize the low interest rates to borrow money for capital investment. Secondly it can also use the increase of government spending in infrastructure projects to get new business.
Threats Wildfire External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Wildfire are -
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. Wildfire Marketspace needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Technology & Operations industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Wildfire Marketspace is facing in Technology & Operations sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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.
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 Wildfire Marketspace.
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.
Environmental challenges
– Wildfire Marketspace 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. Wildfire Marketspace can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Technology & Operations industry.
Increasing wage structure of Wildfire Marketspace
– 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 Wildfire Marketspace.
Regulatory challenges
– Wildfire Marketspace 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.
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. Wildfire Marketspace 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.
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. Wildfire Marketspace can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Wildfire Marketspace 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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Wildfire, Wildfire Marketspace 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
– Wildfire Marketspace has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Technology & Operations industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Wildfire Marketspace 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 Wildfire 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 Wildfire 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 Wildfire 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 Wildfire 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 Wildfire 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 Wildfire Marketspace needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.