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Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution

Case Study Description of Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms


Presents suggestions for ensuring a good start in a professional services career.

Authors :: Thomas J. DeLong, Ashish Nanda, Scot Landry

Topics :: Technology & Operations

Tags :: Career planning, SWOT Analysis, SWOT Matrix, TOWS, Weighted SWOT Analysis

Swot Analysis of "Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms" written by Thomas J. DeLong, Ashish Nanda, Scot Landry includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Career Professional facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Career planning and Technology & Operations.


Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms casestudy better are - – supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, wage bills are increasing, increasing energy prices, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, geopolitical disruptions, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, etc



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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms


SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Career Professional, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Career Professional 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 Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Career Professional
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 Career Professional




Strengths Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of Career Professional in Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms Harvard Business Review case study are -

Cross disciplinary teams

– Horizontal connected teams at the Career Professional 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.

Highly skilled collaborators

– Career Professional 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 Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.

Successful track record of launching new products

– Career Professional has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Career Professional 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.

Ability to recruit top talent

– Career Professional is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.

Analytics focus

– Career Professional 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 Thomas J. DeLong, Ashish Nanda, Scot Landry 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.

Digital Transformation in Technology & Operations segment

- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Career Professional digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Career Professional 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.

Sustainable margins compare to other players in Technology & Operations industry

– Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Career Professional to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Technology & Operations industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Career Professional to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.

Innovation driven organization

– Career Professional is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.

Operational resilience

– The operational resilience strategy in the Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms 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.

Ability to lead change in Technology & Operations field

– Career Professional is one of the leading players in its industry. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in its segment but also across the whole industry. The ability to lead change has enabled Career Professional in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.

High brand equity

– Career Professional has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Career Professional to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.

Diverse revenue streams

– Career Professional is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms 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 Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms are -

High dependence on star products

– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms 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 Career Professional has relatively successful track record of launching new products.

Slow to strategic competitive environment developments

– As Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms HBR case study mentions - Career Professional 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.

Low market penetration in new markets

– Outside its home market of Career Professional, firm in the HBR case study Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.

Interest costs

– Compare to the competition, Career Professional 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.

Increasing silos among functional specialists

– The organizational structure of Career Professional is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Technology & Operations segment. Career Professional needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Career Professional to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.

Compensation and incentives

– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms, is just above the industry average. Career Professional 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.

Products dominated business model

– Even though Career Professional 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 - Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.

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 Career Professional supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Career Professional vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.

High cash cycle compare to competitors

Career Professional 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.

Ability to respond to the competition

– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms, in the dynamic environment Career Professional has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Career Professional has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.

Need for greater diversity

– Career Professional 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 Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms | 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 Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms are -

Buying journey improvements

– Career Professional can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms 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.

Reforming the budgeting process

- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Career Professional 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. Career Professional can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.

Learning at scale

– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Career Professional 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.

Redefining models of collaboration and team work

– As explained in the weaknesses section, Career Professional is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms 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

– Career Professional 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 Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Career Professional to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.

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 Career Professional 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.

Creating value in data economy

– The success of analytics program of Career Professional has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Career Professional to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms case study. Career Professional can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.

Developing new processes and practices

– Career Professional can develop new processes and procedures in Technology & Operations industry using technology such as automation using artificial intelligence, real time transportation and products tracking, 3D modeling for concept development and new products pilot testing etc.

Increase in government spending

– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Career Professional can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Career Professional operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Technology & Operations sector.

Building a culture of innovation

– managers at Career Professional 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 Career Professional 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.

Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities

– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Career Professional 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 Career Professional to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.




Threats Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis


The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms are -

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 Career Professional business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.

High level of anxiety and lack of motivation

– the Great Resignation in United States is the sign of broader dissatisfaction among the workforce in United States. Career Professional needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Technology & Operations industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.

Increasing wage structure of Career Professional

– 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 Career Professional.

Trade war between China and United States

– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Career Professional 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.

Environmental challenges

– Career Professional 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. Career Professional can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Technology & Operations industry.

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 Career Professional.

Learning curve for new practices

– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms, Career Professional 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 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.

Shortening product life cycle

– it is one of the major threat that Career Professional is facing in Technology & Operations sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.

Stagnating economy with rate increase

– Career Professional 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.

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. Career Professional can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.

High dependence on third party suppliers

– Career Professional 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.

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.




Weighted SWOT Analysis of Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms 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 Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms 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 Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms 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 Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms 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 Career Strategies and Tactics in Professional Service Firms 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 Career Professional needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.



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