Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Technology & Operations
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B)
In 2001 Veropoulos Spar, a 770 million Euro retailer in Greece and the Balkan region, intiated the implementation of a new Internet enabled collaborative ordering IT system with 3 suppliers: P&G, Unilever, and Elgeka. Two years later the project failed and had to stop. The CEO is now evaluating a new proposal for re-starting the initiative.
Swot Analysis of "Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B)" written by Theodoros Theos Evgeniou, Katerina Pramatari, Georgios Doukidis includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Veropoulos Spar facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, IT, Supply chain and Technology & Operations.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B) casestudy better are - – technology disruption, increasing commodity prices, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, there is backlash against globalization, wage bills are increasing, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models,
digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Veropoulos Spar, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Veropoulos Spar 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 Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Veropoulos Spar
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 Veropoulos Spar
Strengths Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Veropoulos Spar in Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B) Harvard Business Review case study are -
Highly skilled collaborators
– Veropoulos Spar 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 Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B) HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Digital Transformation in Technology & Operations segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Veropoulos Spar digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Veropoulos Spar 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Veropoulos Spar has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Veropoulos Spar 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
– Veropoulos Spar is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B) are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Veropoulos Spar 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Veropoulos Spar is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B) Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Analytics focus
– Veropoulos Spar 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 Theodoros Theos Evgeniou, Katerina Pramatari, Georgios Doukidis 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.
Training and development
– Veropoulos Spar has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B) 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.
Organizational Resilience of Veropoulos Spar
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Veropoulos Spar does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Learning organization
- Veropoulos Spar 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 Veropoulos Spar is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B) Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Strong track record of project management
– Veropoulos Spar is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (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 Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B) are -
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Veropoulos Spar 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Veropoulos Spar 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 - Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B) should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B), in the dynamic environment Veropoulos Spar has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Veropoulos Spar has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Veropoulos Spar is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B), 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.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (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 Veropoulos Spar 's lucrative customers.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Veropoulos Spar 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.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B) HBR case study mentions - Veropoulos Spar 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.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (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 Veropoulos Spar has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Theodoros Theos Evgeniou, Katerina Pramatari, Georgios Doukidis suggests that, Veropoulos Spar 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Veropoulos Spar products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Veropoulos Spar needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Opportunities Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (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 Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B) are -
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Veropoulos Spar has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Veropoulos Spar to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B) case study. Veropoulos Spar can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
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 Veropoulos Spar in the consumer business. Now Veropoulos Spar can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Buying journey improvements
– Veropoulos Spar can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B) 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.
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. Veropoulos Spar 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. Veropoulos Spar 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Veropoulos Spar 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Veropoulos Spar 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Veropoulos Spar can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Veropoulos Spar operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Technology & Operations sector.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Veropoulos Spar is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (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.
Manufacturing automation
– Veropoulos Spar 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Veropoulos Spar 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Veropoulos Spar can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Veropoulos Spar 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 Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B) - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Veropoulos Spar to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Veropoulos Spar 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.
Threats Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B) are -
Increasing wage structure of Veropoulos Spar
– 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 Veropoulos Spar.
Environmental challenges
– Veropoulos Spar 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. Veropoulos Spar can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Technology & Operations industry.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (B), Veropoulos Spar 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 .
Regulatory challenges
– Veropoulos Spar 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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Veropoulos Spar has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Technology & Operations industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Veropoulos Spar 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.
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 Veropoulos Spar in the Technology & Operations sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Veropoulos Spar 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
– Veropoulos Spar 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. Veropoulos Spar 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
– Veropoulos Spar 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.
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.
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 Veropoulos Spar.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Veropoulos Spar 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (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 Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (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 Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (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 Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (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 Internet Enabled Collaborative Store Ordering: Veropoulos Spar Retailer (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 Veropoulos Spar needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
