Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Technology & Operations
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain
Despite much improvement in supply chain visibility and collaboration, even supply chain masters have not yet fully grasped the maximum performance potential in this era of the Internet. Now is the time for corporate America to rethink managing business and the supply chain. Future success in business competition relies on harnessing the power of process chain, a new paradigm toward achieving global optimization of a common performance goal for a total supply chain. It is imperative that corporate executives embrace this new vision of collaborative commerce and synchronized supply chain.
Swot Analysis of "Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain" written by Daniel Kim, Daesoo Kim includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Chain Supply facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Supply chain and Technology & Operations.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain casestudy better are - – there is increasing trade war between United States & China, there is backlash against globalization, wage bills are increasing, technology disruption, increasing commodity prices, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, increasing transportation and logistics costs,
competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Chain Supply, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Chain Supply 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 Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Chain Supply
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 Chain Supply
Strengths Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Chain Supply in Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain Harvard Business Review case study are -
Digital Transformation in Technology & Operations segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Chain Supply digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Chain Supply 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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Chain Supply in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Analytics focus
– Chain Supply 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 Daniel Kim, Daesoo Kim 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.
Learning organization
- Chain Supply 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 Chain Supply is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Chain Supply 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Technology & Operations industry
– Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Chain Supply to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Technology & Operations industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Chain Supply to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Chain Supply 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 Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Innovation driven organization
– Chain Supply is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Training and development
– Chain Supply has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Chain Supply 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 Chain Supply in the sector have low bargaining power. Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Chain Supply to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Chain Supply has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Chain Supply 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 Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain are -
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Chain Supply, firm in the HBR case study Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Chain Supply 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain 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 Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Chain Supply is planning to shift buying processes online.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Chain Supply 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 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 Chain Supply supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Chain Supply vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain, in the dynamic environment Chain Supply has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Chain Supply has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Chain Supply 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Chain Supply 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.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Chain Supply 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. Chain Supply 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 bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Daniel Kim, Daesoo Kim suggests that, Chain Supply 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Chain Supply 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.
Opportunities Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain | 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 Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain are -
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 Chain Supply in the consumer business. Now Chain Supply can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Chain Supply 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Chain Supply 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Chain Supply can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Chain Supply operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Technology & Operations sector.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Chain Supply 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.
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. Chain Supply 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. Chain Supply 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Chain Supply 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Chain Supply 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 Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Chain Supply to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Chain Supply to increase its market reach. Chain Supply 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Chain Supply 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, Chain Supply 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, Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Chain Supply 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 Chain Supply 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. Chain Supply can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Threats Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain are -
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.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Chain Supply high dependence on third party suppliers can disrupt its processes and delivery mechanism. For example -the current troubles of car makers because of chip shortage is because the chip companies started producing chips for electronic companies rather than car manufacturers.
New competition
– After the dotcom bust of 2001, financial crisis of 2008-09, the business formation in US economy had declined. But in 2020 alone, there are more than 1.5 million new business applications in United States. This can lead to greater competition for Chain Supply in the Technology & Operations sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Chain Supply is facing in Technology & Operations sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain, Chain Supply 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 .
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Chain Supply 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 Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain .
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. Chain Supply needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Technology & Operations industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Chain Supply 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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Chain Supply has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Technology & Operations industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Chain Supply 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.
Increasing wage structure of Chain Supply
– 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 Chain Supply.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Chain Supply with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Chain Supply 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Chain Supply 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain 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 Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain 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 Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain 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 Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain 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 Process Chain: A New Paradigm of Collaborative Commerce and Synchronized Supply Chain 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 Chain Supply needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
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