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Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution

Case Study Description of Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision


In early 2015, the chief executive officer and the management team of Groupon India, a subsidiary of U.S.-based Groupon Inc., faced a management buyout decision. Buoyed by a high growth rate and huge market potential in India, they wanted more India-specific product positioning and greater control over technology. They explored growth options available to the company, but faced the constraints of being part of a global conglomerate. The management team had narrowed its options to either starting a new venture or acquiring ownership of the subsidiary through a management buyout. How could they ensure they made the right decision? The authors Rajesh Panda, Madhvi Sethi and Pooja Gupta are affiliated with Symbiosis International University.

Authors :: Rajesh Panda, Madhvi Sethi, Pooja Gupta

Topics :: Innovation & Entrepreneurship

Tags :: , SWOT Analysis, SWOT Matrix, TOWS, Weighted SWOT Analysis

Swot Analysis of "Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision" written by Rajesh Panda, Madhvi Sethi, Pooja Gupta includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Groupon Buyout facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, and Innovation & Entrepreneurship.


Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision casestudy better are - – 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, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, increasing transportation and logistics costs, there is backlash against globalization, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, geopolitical disruptions, etc



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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision


SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Groupon Buyout, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Groupon Buyout 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 Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Groupon Buyout
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Innovation & Entrepreneurship field.
4. Making a Innovation & Entrepreneurship topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Groupon Buyout




Strengths Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of Groupon Buyout in Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision Harvard Business Review case study are -

Superior customer experience

– The customer experience strategy of Groupon Buyout in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.

Organizational Resilience of Groupon Buyout

– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Groupon Buyout does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.

Low bargaining power of suppliers

– Suppliers of Groupon Buyout in the sector have low bargaining power. Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Groupon Buyout to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.

Diverse revenue streams

– Groupon Buyout is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision 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.

Operational resilience

– The operational resilience strategy in the Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision 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.

Ability to lead change in Innovation & Entrepreneurship field

– Groupon Buyout 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 Groupon Buyout in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.

Sustainable margins compare to other players in Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry

– Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Groupon Buyout to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Groupon Buyout to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.

Innovation driven organization

– Groupon Buyout is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.

Cross disciplinary teams

– Horizontal connected teams at the Groupon Buyout 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.

Analytics focus

– Groupon Buyout 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 Rajesh Panda, Madhvi Sethi, Pooja Gupta 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.

High brand equity

– Groupon Buyout has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Groupon Buyout to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.

Strong track record of project management

– Groupon Buyout 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 Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision are -

Slow decision making process

– As mentioned earlier in the report, Groupon Buyout 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. Groupon Buyout 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.

High bargaining power of channel partners

– Because of the regulatory requirements, Rajesh Panda, Madhvi Sethi, Pooja Gupta suggests that, Groupon Buyout 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 operating costs

– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision 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 Groupon Buyout 's lucrative customers.

Capital Spending Reduction

– Even during the low interest decade, Groupon Buyout 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.

Skills based hiring

– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Groupon Buyout 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 cash cycle compare to competitors

Groupon Buyout 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.

Aligning sales with marketing

– It come across in the case study Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision 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 Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Groupon Buyout is planning to shift buying processes online.

Compensation and incentives

– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision, is just above the industry average. Groupon Buyout 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.

Need for greater diversity

– Groupon Buyout has taken concrete steps on diversity, equity, and inclusion. But the efforts so far has resulted in limited success. It needs to expand the recruitment and selection process to hire more people from the minorities and underprivileged background.

Lack of clear differentiation of Groupon Buyout products

– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Groupon Buyout needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.

No frontier risks strategy

– After analyzing the HBR case study Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Innovation & Entrepreneurship 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.




Opportunities Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision | 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 Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision are -

Redefining models of collaboration and team work

– As explained in the weaknesses section, Groupon Buyout is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision 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.

Increase in government spending

– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Groupon Buyout can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Groupon Buyout operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Innovation & Entrepreneurship sector.

Better consumer reach

– The expansion of the 5G network will help Groupon Buyout to increase its market reach. Groupon Buyout 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.

Creating value in data economy

– The success of analytics program of Groupon Buyout has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Groupon Buyout to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision case study. Groupon Buyout can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.

Learning at scale

– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Groupon Buyout 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.

Lowering marketing communication costs

– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Groupon Buyout in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.

Developing new processes and practices

– Groupon Buyout can develop new processes and procedures in Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry using technology such as automation using artificial intelligence, real time transportation and products tracking, 3D modeling for concept development and new products pilot testing etc.

Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains

– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Groupon Buyout can build a diversified supply chain model across various countries in - South East Asia, India, and other parts of the world. This reconfiguration of global supply chain can help, as suggested in case study, Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.

Leveraging digital technologies

– Groupon Buyout 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.

Building a culture of innovation

– managers at Groupon Buyout 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 Innovation & Entrepreneurship segment.

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. Groupon Buyout can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.

Buying journey improvements

– Groupon Buyout can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision 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.

Reforming the budgeting process

- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Groupon Buyout can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.




Threats Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis


The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision are -

Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins

– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Groupon Buyout 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 Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision .

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. Groupon Buyout needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.

Stagnating economy with rate increase

– Groupon Buyout 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.

High dependence on third party suppliers

– Groupon Buyout 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.

Easy access to finance

– Easy access to finance in Innovation & Entrepreneurship field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Groupon Buyout can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.

Trade war between China and United States

– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Groupon Buyout in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. The Innovation & Entrepreneurship 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 Groupon Buyout in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.

Consumer confidence and its impact on Groupon Buyout 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.

Increasing wage structure of Groupon Buyout

– 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 Groupon Buyout.

Regulatory challenges

– Groupon Buyout 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 Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry regulations.

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.

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 Groupon Buyout business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.

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. Groupon Buyout 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.




Weighted SWOT Analysis of Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision 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 Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision 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 Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision 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 Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision 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 Groupon India: A Management Buyout Decision 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 Groupon Buyout needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.



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