Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Finance & Accounting
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc.
Anasazi, a hair-care products start-up based in the Midwest, is having growing pains as it tries to develop a new distribution model for the professional hair salon industry. The company has completed several rounds of venture financing but, to continue, needs to raise more capital earlier than expected. It goes through a process of refining and refocusing its strategy to raise the new funds.
Swot Analysis of "Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc." written by William A. Sahlman, Jason Green includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Anasazi Salon facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Gender, Growth strategy, Marketing, Strategic planning, Venture capital and Finance & Accounting.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. casestudy better are - – challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, increasing commodity prices, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, geopolitical disruptions,
talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, increasing energy prices, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc.
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Anasazi Salon, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Anasazi Salon 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 Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Anasazi Salon
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Finance & Accounting field.
4. Making a Finance & Accounting topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Anasazi Salon
Strengths Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Anasazi Salon in Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. Harvard Business Review case study are -
Ability to lead change in Finance & Accounting field
– Anasazi Salon 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 Anasazi Salon in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Anasazi Salon in the sector have low bargaining power. Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Anasazi Salon to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Finance & Accounting industry
– Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Anasazi Salon to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Finance & Accounting industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Anasazi Salon to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Training and development
– Anasazi Salon has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Anasazi Salon is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. 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 Anasazi Salon 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.
Organizational Resilience of Anasazi Salon
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Anasazi Salon does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Analytics focus
– Anasazi Salon 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 William A. Sahlman, Jason Green 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.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. 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.
Digital Transformation in Finance & Accounting segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Anasazi Salon digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Anasazi Salon 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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Anasazi Salon in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
High brand equity
– Anasazi Salon has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Anasazi Salon to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Weaknesses Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. are -
Products dominated business model
– Even though Anasazi Salon 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 - Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Anasazi Salon is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Finance & Accounting segment. Anasazi Salon needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Anasazi Salon to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc., it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Finance & Accounting 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc., in the dynamic environment Anasazi Salon has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Anasazi Salon has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Anasazi Salon 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.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Anasazi Salon 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Anasazi Salon is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc., is just above the industry average. Anasazi Salon 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.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. 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 Anasazi Salon 's lucrative customers.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. 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 Anasazi Salon has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, William A. Sahlman, Jason Green suggests that, Anasazi Salon 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.
Opportunities Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. | 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 Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. are -
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Anasazi Salon is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Anasazi Salon can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Finance & Accounting 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Anasazi Salon can develop new processes and procedures in Finance & Accounting 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Anasazi Salon can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Anasazi Salon 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.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Finance & Accounting industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Anasazi Salon 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. Anasazi Salon 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Anasazi Salon 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, Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc., to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Buying journey improvements
– Anasazi Salon can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Anasazi Salon 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Anasazi Salon can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Anasazi Salon operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Finance & Accounting sector.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Anasazi Salon 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 Anasazi Salon to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Anasazi Salon has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Anasazi Salon to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. case study. Anasazi Salon can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Anasazi Salon to increase its market reach. Anasazi Salon 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.
Threats Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. are -
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Anasazi Salon has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Finance & Accounting industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Anasazi Salon needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Finance & Accounting 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Anasazi Salon 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
– Anasazi Salon 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.
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. Anasazi Salon needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Finance & Accounting industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc., Anasazi Salon may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Finance & Accounting .
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Anasazi Salon 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 Anasazi Salon
– 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 Anasazi Salon.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Anasazi Salon 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 international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Anasazi Salon 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 Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. .
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Anasazi Salon in the Finance & Accounting industry. The Finance & Accounting 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.
Technology disruption because of hacks, piracy etc
– The colonial pipeline illustrated, how vulnerable modern organization are to international hackers, miscreants, and disruptors. The cyber security interruption, data leaks, etc can seriously jeopardize the future growth of the organization.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Anasazi Salon is facing in Finance & Accounting sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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 Anasazi Salon business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. 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 Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. 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 Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. 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 Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. 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 Anasazi: Exclusive Salon Products, Inc. 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 Anasazi Salon needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.