Swot Analysis of "Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B)" written by Lynda M. Applegate, Herminia Ibarra, Keri Ostrofsky includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Kodak Frantic facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Joint ventures, Leading teams, Supply chain, Technology and Technology & Operations.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) casestudy better are - – increasing household debt because of falling income levels, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, wage bills are increasing, increasing commodity prices, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion,
there is increasing trade war between United States & China, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Kodak Frantic, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Kodak Frantic 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 Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Kodak Frantic
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 Kodak Frantic
Strengths Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Kodak Frantic in Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) Harvard Business Review case study are -
Successful track record of launching new products
– Kodak Frantic has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Kodak Frantic 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.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Kodak Frantic 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.
Diverse revenue streams
– Kodak Frantic is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) 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.
Analytics focus
– Kodak Frantic 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 Lynda M. Applegate, Herminia Ibarra, Keri Ostrofsky can also help it to harness the power of analytics for – marketing optimization, demand forecasting, customer relationship management, inventory management, information sharing across the value chain etc.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Technology & Operations industry
– Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Kodak Frantic to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Technology & Operations industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Kodak Frantic to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Kodak Frantic in the sector have low bargaining power. Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Kodak Frantic to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Innovation driven organization
– Kodak Frantic is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Digital Transformation in Technology & Operations segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Kodak Frantic digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Kodak Frantic 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.
Organizational Resilience of Kodak Frantic
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Kodak Frantic 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 Kodak Frantic in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Kodak Frantic 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 Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) 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.
Weaknesses Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) are -
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) 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 Kodak Frantic 's lucrative customers.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B), it seems that the employees of Kodak Frantic 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.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Lynda M. Applegate, Herminia Ibarra, Keri Ostrofsky suggests that, Kodak Frantic 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) 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 Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Kodak Frantic is planning to shift buying processes online.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Kodak Frantic is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) 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 Kodak Frantic 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B), is just above the industry average. Kodak Frantic 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.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Kodak Frantic 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Kodak Frantic 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.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Kodak Frantic 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. Kodak Frantic even though has strong showing on digital transformation primary two stages, it has struggled to capitalize the power of digital transformation in marketing efforts and new venture efforts.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) 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 Kodak Frantic has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Opportunities Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) | 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 Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) are -
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Kodak Frantic is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Kodak Frantic to expand its talent hiring zone. According to McKinsey Global Institute, 20% of the high end workforce in fields such as finance, information technology, can continously work from remote local post Covid-19. This presents a really great opportunity for Kodak Frantic to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
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. Kodak Frantic can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Manufacturing automation
– Kodak Frantic 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Kodak Frantic can leverage digital technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning to automate the production process, customer analytics to get better insights into consumer behavior, realtime digital dashboards to get better sales tracking, logistics and transportation, product tracking, etc.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Kodak Frantic 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 Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Kodak Frantic to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Kodak Frantic has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Kodak Frantic to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) case study. Kodak Frantic can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Kodak Frantic 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.
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 Kodak Frantic in the consumer business. Now Kodak Frantic can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Loyalty marketing
– Kodak Frantic 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Kodak Frantic 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Kodak Frantic 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Kodak Frantic 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, Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B), to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Threats Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) are -
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B), Kodak Frantic 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 .
Environmental challenges
– Kodak Frantic 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. Kodak Frantic can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Technology & Operations industry.
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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Kodak Frantic 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Kodak Frantic with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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. Kodak Frantic needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Technology & Operations industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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 Kodak Frantic business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, 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. Kodak Frantic can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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 Kodak Frantic.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Kodak Frantic 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 Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) .
Increasing wage structure of Kodak Frantic
– 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 Kodak Frantic.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Kodak Frantic has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Technology & Operations industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Kodak Frantic 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 Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) 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 Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) 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 Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) 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 Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) 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 Digital Equipment Corp.: The Kodak Outsourcing Agreement (B) 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 Kodak Frantic needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
