Case Study Description of Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand
The launch of the Chase Sapphire Reserve credit card was enthusiastically received by Millennial consumers, a cohort that had previously eluded JPMorgan Chase and its competitors. With the one year anniversary of the launch approaching, managers are focused on retaining customers attracted by a one-time signup bonus of 100,000 reward points and on acquiring new customers now that the bonus had been reduced to 50,000 points. They were also refocusing on the remainder of the Chase Sapphire product porfolio to assess differentiation among the products and to identify white space in the market that could support additional new product launches.
Swot Analysis of "Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand" written by Shelle Santana, Jill Avery, Christine Snively includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Chase Sapphire facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Customers, Generational issues, Product development, Sales, Supply chain and Sales & Marketing.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand casestudy better are - – banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, technology disruption, increasing energy prices,
talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Chase Sapphire, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Chase Sapphire 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 Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Chase Sapphire
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Sales & Marketing field.
4. Making a Sales & Marketing topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Chase Sapphire
Strengths Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Chase Sapphire in Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand Harvard Business Review case study are -
Analytics focus
– Chase Sapphire 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 Shelle Santana, Jill Avery, Christine Snively 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.
Ability to lead change in Sales & Marketing field
– Chase Sapphire 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 Chase Sapphire in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Training and development
– Chase Sapphire has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Chase Sapphire 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 Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand 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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Chase Sapphire in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Chase Sapphire are driving operational speed, building greater agility, and keeping the organization nimble to compete with new competitors. It helps are organization to ideate new ideas, and execute them swiftly in the marketplace.
Innovation driven organization
– Chase Sapphire is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Sales & Marketing industry
– Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Chase Sapphire to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Chase Sapphire to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Chase Sapphire is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Chase Sapphire has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Chase Sapphire 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.
High brand equity
– Chase Sapphire has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Chase Sapphire to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Weaknesses Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand are -
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand, it seems that the employees of Chase Sapphire 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Chase Sapphire 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand, is just above the industry average. Chase Sapphire 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Chase Sapphire 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 - Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Shelle Santana, Jill Avery, Christine Snively suggests that, Chase Sapphire 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 Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand 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 Chase Sapphire 's lucrative customers.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand 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 Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Chase Sapphire is planning to shift buying processes online.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand 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 Chase Sapphire has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Chase Sapphire is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand HBR case study mentions - Chase Sapphire 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.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Chase Sapphire 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 Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand | 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 Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand are -
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Chase Sapphire 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 Chase Sapphire to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Manufacturing automation
– Chase Sapphire can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Sales & Marketing 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Chase Sapphire 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, Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Chase Sapphire has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Chase Sapphire to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand case study. Chase Sapphire 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 Chase Sapphire 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
– Chase Sapphire 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 Chase Sapphire in the consumer business. Now Chase Sapphire can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
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 Chase Sapphire 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Chase Sapphire can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Chase Sapphire operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Sales & Marketing sector.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Chase Sapphire is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Chase Sapphire in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Sales & Marketing segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Chase Sapphire to increase its market reach. Chase Sapphire 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.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Sales & Marketing industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Chase Sapphire can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Threats Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand are -
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.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Sales & Marketing field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Chase Sapphire can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Chase Sapphire is facing in Sales & Marketing sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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 Chase Sapphire in the Sales & Marketing sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand, Chase Sapphire may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Sales & Marketing .
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Chase Sapphire in the Sales & Marketing industry. The Sales & Marketing 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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Chase Sapphire 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 international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Chase Sapphire 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 Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand .
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Chase Sapphire has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Sales & Marketing industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Chase Sapphire needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Sales & Marketing 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.
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. Chase Sapphire 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.
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. Chase Sapphire needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Sales & Marketing industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Chase Sapphire 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
– Chase Sapphire 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand 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 Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand 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 Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand 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 Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand 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 Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand 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 Chase Sapphire needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.