Case Study Description of BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project
When BellSouth Enterprises decided to aggressively pursue the international cellular market, it needed new software in order to cope with the complexities of cellular billing and the country-specific variations in the international cellular market. BellSouth made the decision to enter into a strategic alliance with TeleSciences. This case explores why it made this decision and what the ramifications of this decision were for BellSouth and TeleSciences.
Authors :: John J. Sviokla, Mark Keil, Steve Simonson
Swot Analysis of "BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project" written by John J. Sviokla, Mark Keil, Steve Simonson includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Bellsouth Cellular facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, IT, Marketing and Technology & Operations.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project casestudy better are - – there is backlash against globalization, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, increasing transportation and logistics costs, increasing energy prices, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation,
increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, wage bills are increasing, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Bellsouth Cellular, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Bellsouth Cellular 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 BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Bellsouth Cellular
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 Bellsouth Cellular
Strengths BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Bellsouth Cellular in BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project Harvard Business Review case study are -
Innovation driven organization
– Bellsouth Cellular is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Bellsouth Cellular 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 BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Training and development
– Bellsouth Cellular has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Technology & Operations industry
– BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Bellsouth Cellular to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Technology & Operations industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Bellsouth Cellular to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Bellsouth Cellular 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Bellsouth Cellular in the sector have low bargaining power. BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Bellsouth Cellular to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
High brand equity
– Bellsouth Cellular has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Bellsouth Cellular to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Bellsouth Cellular 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.
Analytics focus
– Bellsouth Cellular 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 John J. Sviokla, Mark Keil, Steve Simonson 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
– Bellsouth Cellular 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 BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Strong track record of project management
– Bellsouth Cellular is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Diverse revenue streams
– Bellsouth Cellular is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project 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.
Weaknesses BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project are -
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Bellsouth Cellular is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Bellsouth Cellular 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
– Bellsouth Cellular 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 Bellsouth Cellular 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 - BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Bellsouth Cellular has a high cash cycle compare to other players in the industry. It needs to shorten the cash cycle by 12% to be more competitive in the marketplace, reduce inventory costs, and be more profitable.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project 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 Bellsouth Cellular 's lucrative customers.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Bellsouth Cellular 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. Bellsouth Cellular 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project, is just above the industry average. Bellsouth Cellular needs to redesign the compensation structure and incentives to increase the revenue per employees. Some of the steps that it can take are – hiring more specialists on project basis, etc.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project, in the dynamic environment Bellsouth Cellular has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Bellsouth Cellular 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, John J. Sviokla, Mark Keil, Steve Simonson suggests that, Bellsouth Cellular 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Bellsouth Cellular 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 BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project | 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 BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project are -
Buying journey improvements
– Bellsouth Cellular can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Bellsouth Cellular can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Bellsouth Cellular operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Technology & Operations sector.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Bellsouth Cellular 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, BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
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 Bellsouth Cellular in the consumer business. Now Bellsouth Cellular 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, Bellsouth Cellular 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.
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. Bellsouth Cellular 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
– Bellsouth Cellular 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Bellsouth Cellular can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Bellsouth Cellular to increase its market reach. Bellsouth Cellular 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Bellsouth Cellular is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Bellsouth Cellular 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 BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Bellsouth Cellular to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Bellsouth Cellular 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.
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 Bellsouth Cellular 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.
Threats BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project are -
Environmental challenges
– Bellsouth Cellular 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. Bellsouth Cellular can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Technology & Operations industry.
Regulatory challenges
– Bellsouth Cellular 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Bellsouth Cellular is facing in Technology & Operations sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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. Bellsouth Cellular can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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 wage structure of Bellsouth Cellular
– 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 Bellsouth Cellular.
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 Bellsouth Cellular business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Bellsouth Cellular 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.
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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project, Bellsouth Cellular may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Technology & Operations .
Consumer confidence and its impact on Bellsouth Cellular 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.
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 Bellsouth Cellular.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Bellsouth Cellular 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project 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 BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project 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 BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project 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 BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project 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 BellSouth Enterprises: The Cellular Billing Project 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 Bellsouth Cellular needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.