Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Technology & Operations
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce
Over the last five years, a variety of market mechanisms have emerged to address various issues pertaining to business-to-business (B2B) e-commerce. However, there is a general lack of understanding on the part of researchers and practitioners on two key issues: What are the key characteristics of these market mechanisms? What factors drive the choice of one market mechanism over the other? Addresses these questions through a study of 12 different market mechanisms in 200 B2B electronic marketplaces. Four factors--degree of fragmentation, asset specificity, complexity of product description, and complexity of value assessment--significantly drive the choice of an appropriate market mechanism for an organization. To gainfully exploit these market structures, organizations need to devise new strategies and reconfigure their supply chains.
Swot Analysis of "Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce" written by B. Mahadevan includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that B2b Mechanisms facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Financial markets, Supply chain and Technology & Operations.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce casestudy better are - – increasing transportation and logistics costs, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, geopolitical disruptions, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, wage bills are increasing,
there is increasing trade war between United States & China, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the B2b Mechanisms, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which B2b Mechanisms 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 Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of B2b Mechanisms
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 B2b Mechanisms
Strengths Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of B2b Mechanisms in Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce Harvard Business Review case study are -
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of B2b Mechanisms in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Diverse revenue streams
– B2b Mechanisms is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce 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.
Strong track record of project management
– B2b Mechanisms is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Successful track record of launching new products
– B2b Mechanisms has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. B2b Mechanisms 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 B2b Mechanisms 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– B2b Mechanisms 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 Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce - 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 Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the B2b Mechanisms 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.
High brand equity
– B2b Mechanisms has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled B2b Mechanisms to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Ability to lead change in Technology & Operations field
– B2b Mechanisms 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 B2b Mechanisms in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Highly skilled collaborators
– B2b Mechanisms 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 Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of B2b Mechanisms in the sector have low bargaining power. Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps B2b Mechanisms to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Weaknesses Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce are -
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce 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 B2b Mechanisms has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, B2b Mechanisms 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Technology & Operations strategy. But it has very little resources allocation to manage the risks emerging from events such as natural disasters, climate change, melting of permafrost, tacking the rise of artificial intelligence, opportunities and threats emerging from commercialization of space etc.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, B2b Mechanisms has borrowed money from the capital market at higher rates. It needs to restructure the interest payment and costs so that it can compete better and improve profitability.
Need for greater diversity
– B2b Mechanisms 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of B2b Mechanisms, firm in the HBR case study Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce 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, B2b Mechanisms 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.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce HBR case study mentions - B2b Mechanisms 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce 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 Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as B2b Mechanisms is planning to shift buying processes online.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
B2b Mechanisms 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 Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce 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 B2b Mechanisms 's lucrative customers.
Opportunities Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce | 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 Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce are -
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. B2b Mechanisms 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. B2b Mechanisms 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– B2b Mechanisms 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.
Loyalty marketing
– B2b Mechanisms 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.
Buying journey improvements
– B2b Mechanisms can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– B2b Mechanisms 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help B2b Mechanisms to increase its market reach. B2b Mechanisms 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for B2b Mechanisms 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 B2b Mechanisms to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for B2b Mechanisms 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects B2b Mechanisms can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, B2b Mechanisms 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, Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Manufacturing automation
– B2b Mechanisms 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.
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 B2b Mechanisms 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.
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. B2b Mechanisms can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Threats Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce are -
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that B2b Mechanisms is facing in Technology & Operations sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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 B2b Mechanisms.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for B2b Mechanisms in the Technology & Operations industry. The Technology & Operations industry is already at various protected from local competition in China, with the rise of trade war the protection levels may go up. This presents a clear threat of current business model in Chinese market.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce, B2b Mechanisms 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 .
High dependence on third party suppliers
– B2b Mechanisms 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.
Environmental challenges
– B2b Mechanisms 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. B2b Mechanisms can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Technology & Operations industry.
Consumer confidence and its impact on B2b Mechanisms 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.
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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– B2b Mechanisms has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Technology & Operations industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, B2b Mechanisms 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents B2b Mechanisms with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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 B2b Mechanisms business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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 B2b Mechanisms in the Technology & Operations sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– B2b Mechanisms 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 Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce 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 Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce 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 Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce 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 Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce 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 Making Sense of Emerging Market Structures in B2B E-Commerce 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 B2b Mechanisms needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.