Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Technology & Operations
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A)
Focuses on the ongoing competitive battles in the global home video game market that is estimated to exceed $15 billion by 1999 in the United States and Japan alone. Describes how Sega Enterprises has redesigned its development processes to create a revolutionary 128-bit video game console (named Dreamcast). Having lost its leading position in an accelerating market to Sony's Playstation console, Sega is trying to reclaim its former position through an aggressive entry strategy in the Japanese market. Integral to this strategy is the ability to bring its Dreamcast console to market rapidly and to manage its relationships with independent game developers. Focuses on: 1) hardware and game software development, 2) the role of market share in an environment of increasing economic returns, and 3) the dynamics of market entry strategies as a function of development capabilities and competitive responses.
Swot Analysis of "Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A)" written by Stefan Thomke, Andrew Robertson includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Dreamcast Sega facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Marketing, Product development, Strategy execution and Technology & Operations.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) casestudy better are - – increasing household debt because of falling income levels, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, increasing energy prices, increasing commodity prices, there is increasing trade war between United States & China,
banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Dreamcast Sega, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Dreamcast Sega 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 Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Dreamcast Sega
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 Dreamcast Sega
Strengths Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Dreamcast Sega in Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) Harvard Business Review case study are -
Digital Transformation in Technology & Operations segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Dreamcast Sega digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Dreamcast Sega has successfully integrated the four key components of digital transformation – digital integration in processes, digital integration in marketing and customer relationship management, digital integration into the value chain, and using technology to explore new products and market opportunities.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Technology & Operations industry
– Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Dreamcast Sega to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Technology & Operations industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Dreamcast Sega to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Dreamcast Sega 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 Dreamcast Sega 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.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) 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.
Training and development
– Dreamcast Sega has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) 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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Dreamcast Sega in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Dreamcast Sega is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Organizational Resilience of Dreamcast Sega
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Dreamcast Sega does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Strong track record of project management
– Dreamcast Sega is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Dreamcast Sega 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 Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Dreamcast Sega has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Dreamcast Sega 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.
Weaknesses Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) are -
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Dreamcast Sega 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.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Dreamcast Sega 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.
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 Dreamcast Sega supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A), it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Dreamcast Sega vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A), 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.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Dreamcast Sega 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.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) 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 Dreamcast Sega has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) 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 Dreamcast Sega 's lucrative customers.
Lack of clear differentiation of Dreamcast Sega products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Dreamcast Sega needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Stefan Thomke, Andrew Robertson suggests that, Dreamcast Sega 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.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Dreamcast Sega 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Dreamcast Sega is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Technology & Operations segment. Dreamcast Sega needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Dreamcast Sega to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Opportunities Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) | 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 Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) are -
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 Dreamcast Sega in the consumer business. Now Dreamcast Sega can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Loyalty marketing
– Dreamcast Sega 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Dreamcast Sega is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) 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
– Dreamcast Sega can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Dreamcast Sega 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 Dreamcast Sega 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Dreamcast Sega to increase its market reach. Dreamcast Sega 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Dreamcast Sega can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Technology & Operations industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Dreamcast Sega can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
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. Dreamcast Sega 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. Dreamcast Sega 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Dreamcast Sega 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Dreamcast Sega 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Dreamcast Sega has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Dreamcast Sega to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) case study. Dreamcast Sega can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Threats Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) are -
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 Dreamcast Sega in the Technology & Operations sector and impact the bottomline 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 Dreamcast Sega.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Dreamcast Sega 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 Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) .
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Dreamcast Sega 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Dreamcast Sega 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Dreamcast Sega with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Dreamcast Sega 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.
Increasing wage structure of Dreamcast Sega
– 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 Dreamcast Sega.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Dreamcast Sega has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Technology & Operations industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Dreamcast Sega 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 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. Dreamcast Sega needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Technology & Operations industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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. Dreamcast Sega 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.
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. Dreamcast Sega can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) 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 Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) 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 Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) 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 Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) 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 Project Dreamcast: Serious Play at Sega Enterprises Ltd. (A) 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 Dreamcast Sega needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.