Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Technology & Operations
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version
In an effort to improve its global distribution system and thus enhance customer service in its shops around the world, Laura Ashley entered into a path-breaking strategic alliance with Federal Express Business Logistics Services. Under the terms of a loosely structured partnership, Federal Express essentially takes over the warehouse and distribution activities formerly handled by Laura Ashley. The alliance is path breaking due to its largely informal structure, based more on trust and mutual benefit than on complicated rules and measures.
Swot Analysis of "Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version" written by Gary W. Loveman, Robert T. Anthony includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Ashley Laura facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, International business, Joint ventures, Marketing, Supply chain and Technology & Operations.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version casestudy better are - – increasing commodity prices, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy,
wage bills are increasing, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Ashley Laura, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Ashley Laura 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 Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Ashley Laura
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 Ashley Laura
Strengths Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Ashley Laura in Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version Harvard Business Review case study are -
Successful track record of launching new products
– Ashley Laura has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Ashley Laura 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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Ashley Laura in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
High brand equity
– Ashley Laura has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Ashley Laura to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Ability to lead change in Technology & Operations field
– Ashley Laura 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 Ashley Laura in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Diverse revenue streams
– Ashley Laura is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Technology & Operations industry
– Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Ashley Laura to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Technology & Operations industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Ashley Laura to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Ashley Laura 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 Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version 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 Ashley Laura digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Ashley Laura 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.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Ashley Laura 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Ashley Laura 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 Ashley Laura in the sector have low bargaining power. Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Ashley Laura to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Organizational Resilience of Ashley Laura
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Ashley Laura does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Weaknesses Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version are -
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Ashley Laura 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.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version 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 Ashley Laura 's lucrative customers.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version 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 Ashley Laura has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Gary W. Loveman, Robert T. Anthony suggests that, Ashley Laura 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.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Ashley Laura 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. Ashley Laura 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version, is just above the industry average. Ashley Laura 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.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version, it seems that the employees of Ashley Laura don’t have comprehensive understanding of the firm’s strategy. This is reflected in number of promotional campaigns over the last few years that had mixed messaging and competing priorities. Some of the strategic activities and services promoted in the promotional campaigns were not consistent with the organization’s strategy.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Ashley Laura 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Ashley Laura 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 - Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Ashley Laura is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Technology & Operations segment. Ashley Laura needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Ashley Laura to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Ashley Laura 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.
Opportunities Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version | 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 Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version are -
Manufacturing automation
– Ashley Laura 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Ashley Laura 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Ashley Laura 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.
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 Ashley Laura in the consumer business. Now Ashley Laura can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Ashley Laura to increase its market reach. Ashley Laura 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Ashley Laura 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.
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 Ashley Laura 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Ashley Laura can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Ashley Laura has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Ashley Laura to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version case study. Ashley Laura can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, 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, Ashley Laura can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Ashley Laura operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Technology & Operations sector.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Ashley Laura 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Ashley Laura 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 Ashley Laura to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
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. Ashley Laura 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. Ashley Laura 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.
Threats Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version are -
Environmental challenges
– Ashley Laura 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. Ashley Laura can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Technology & Operations industry.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Ashley Laura 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.
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 Ashley Laura in the Technology & Operations sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Ashley Laura 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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Ashley Laura has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Technology & Operations industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Ashley Laura 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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version, Ashley Laura 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 .
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. Ashley Laura can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Ashley Laura with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Ashley Laura 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Ashley Laura 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 Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version .
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. Ashley Laura needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Technology & Operations industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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 Ashley Laura.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version 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 Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version 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 Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version 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 Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version 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 Laura Ashley and Federal Express Strategic Alliance, Spanish Version 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 Ashley Laura needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
