Swot Analysis of "Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion" written by Steven C. Wheelwright, Kerry Herman includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Propulsion Canoes facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Decision making and Technology & Operations.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion casestudy better are - – increasing commodity prices, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, technology disruption,
geopolitical disruptions, increasing energy prices, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Propulsion Canoes, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Propulsion Canoes 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 Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Propulsion Canoes
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 Propulsion Canoes
Strengths Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Propulsion Canoes in Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion Harvard Business Review case study are -
Successful track record of launching new products
– Propulsion Canoes has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Propulsion Canoes 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 Propulsion Canoes in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Propulsion Canoes 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 Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Propulsion Canoes in the sector have low bargaining power. Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Propulsion Canoes to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Digital Transformation in Technology & Operations segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Propulsion Canoes digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Propulsion Canoes 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 brand equity
– Propulsion Canoes has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Propulsion Canoes to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Organizational Resilience of Propulsion Canoes
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Propulsion Canoes does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Propulsion Canoes 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.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Propulsion Canoes is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Diverse revenue streams
– Propulsion Canoes is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion 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.
Learning organization
- Propulsion Canoes 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 Propulsion Canoes is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Strong track record of project management
– Propulsion Canoes is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Weaknesses Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion are -
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Propulsion Canoes needs to come up with a strategy to reduce the workers concern regarding automation. Without a clear strategy, it could lead to disruption and uncertainty within the organization.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion 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 Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Propulsion Canoes is planning to shift buying processes online.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion, in the dynamic environment Propulsion Canoes has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Propulsion Canoes has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion 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 Propulsion Canoes has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
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 Propulsion Canoes supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Propulsion Canoes vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Steven C. Wheelwright, Kerry Herman suggests that, Propulsion Canoes 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Propulsion Canoes 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Propulsion Canoes is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Technology & Operations segment. Propulsion Canoes needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Propulsion Canoes to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Propulsion Canoes 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.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion HBR case study mentions - Propulsion Canoes 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Propulsion Canoes products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Propulsion Canoes needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Opportunities Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion | 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 Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion are -
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Propulsion Canoes 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Propulsion Canoes 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 Propulsion Canoes to increase its market reach. Propulsion Canoes 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 Propulsion Canoes 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 Propulsion Canoes to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Propulsion Canoes 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Propulsion Canoes 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.
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. Propulsion Canoes 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. Propulsion Canoes 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Propulsion Canoes can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Propulsion Canoes operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Technology & Operations sector.
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. Propulsion Canoes can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Identify volunteer opportunities
– Covid-19 has impacted working population in two ways – it has led to people soul searching about their professional choices, resulting in mass resignation. Secondly it has encouraged people to do things that they are passionate about. This has opened opportunities for businesses to build volunteer oriented socially driven projects. Propulsion Canoes can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Propulsion Canoes 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 Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Propulsion Canoes to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Propulsion Canoes is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Propulsion Canoes can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion 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.
Threats Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion are -
Increasing wage structure of Propulsion Canoes
– 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 Propulsion Canoes.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion, Propulsion Canoes 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 .
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 Propulsion Canoes business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Propulsion Canoes 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Propulsion Canoes 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.
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 Propulsion Canoes.
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. Propulsion Canoes can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Propulsion Canoes has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Technology & Operations industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Propulsion Canoes 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.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Propulsion Canoes 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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Propulsion Canoes 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Propulsion Canoes 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.
Instability in the European markets
– European Union markets are facing three big challenges post Covid – expanded balance sheets, Brexit related business disruption, and aggressive Russia looking to distract the existing security mechanism. Propulsion Canoes will face different problems in different parts of Europe. For example it will face inflationary pressures in UK, France, and Germany, balance sheet expansion and demand challenges in Southern European countries, and geopolitical instability in the Eastern Europe.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Propulsion Canoes with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion 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 Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion 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 Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion 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 Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion 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 Boat Building Exercise: Four Modes of Propulsion 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 Propulsion Canoes needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
