Jon Feinman founded InnerCity Weightlifting (ICW) in 2010 to improve the lives of young, active, urban gang members in the Boston area. He conceived of this venture after college when he began to apply his skills as a college soccer player and certified weight trainer to work with disadvantaged elementary school students in the AmeriCorps program, Athletes in Service in America.He was drawn to a subgroup in the AmeriCorps program which most of his fellow counselors avoided and warned him away from, young MS-13 gang members who were considered too dangerous and unwilling to change. After earning their trust by teaching them soccer skills, Jon developed a relationship with this group, shattering his preconceptions of their motivations and needs. Jon began to develop a plan to devote his life's work to bringing hope and opportunity to the group of young inner-city men identified as most likely to kill or be killed. He began his prototype operation in Boston. The vehicle was a free gym in the inner city where "student trainees" could begin to develop formal weightlifting training skills as a means to a new livelihood, experience a more positive community of mentors and peers, and through paid weight-training sessions for clients (typically white and wealthy), form a bridge between two very different socioeconomic groups. Publicity, notably through an ESPN video feature in 2012, created national and international awareness and demand for ICW gyms in different cities. Jon wanted to satisfy this demand, but he understood that his high-touch, locally focused, carefully managed program could not be exported quickly or formulaically without significant risk of failure and reputation damage. At the time of the case, Jon had carefully added a second, successful gym whose location straddled prosperous and dangerous neighborhoods in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He had also launched a corporate training program and begun to build out his organization and fundraising to support growth. Seven years after founding ICW, Jon is now ready to contemplate expansion to his first new city, Philadelphia.
Swot Analysis of "InnerCity Weightlifting" written by Andrew Zacharakis, Mary Gale includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Jon Icw facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in InnerCity Weightlifting case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Entrepreneurship, Growth strategy, Marketing and Innovation & Entrepreneurship.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the InnerCity Weightlifting casestudy better are - – competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings,
wage bills are increasing, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of InnerCity Weightlifting
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in InnerCity Weightlifting case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Jon Icw, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Jon Icw 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 InnerCity Weightlifting can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in InnerCity Weightlifting case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Jon Icw
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 Jon Icw
Strengths InnerCity Weightlifting | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Jon Icw in InnerCity Weightlifting Harvard Business Review case study are -
Learning organization
- Jon Icw is a learning organization. It has inculcated three key characters of learning organization in its processes and operations – exploration, creativity, and expansiveness. The work place at Jon Icw is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in InnerCity Weightlifting Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Jon Icw 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 InnerCity Weightlifting - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Ability to lead change in Innovation & Entrepreneurship field
– Jon Icw 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 Jon Icw 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 Jon Icw in the sector have low bargaining power. InnerCity Weightlifting has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Jon Icw to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry
– InnerCity Weightlifting firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Jon Icw to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Jon Icw to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Jon Icw 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 Jon Icw
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Jon Icw does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Jon Icw is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the InnerCity Weightlifting 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
– Jon Icw has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Jon Icw 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.
Digital Transformation in Innovation & Entrepreneurship segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Jon Icw digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Jon Icw 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.
Analytics focus
– Jon Icw 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 Andrew Zacharakis, Mary Gale 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Jon Icw 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 InnerCity Weightlifting | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of InnerCity Weightlifting are -
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study InnerCity Weightlifting 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 Jon Icw 's lucrative customers.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Jon Icw, firm in the HBR case study InnerCity Weightlifting needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
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 Jon Icw supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - InnerCity Weightlifting, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Jon Icw vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study InnerCity Weightlifting, in the dynamic environment Jon Icw has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Jon Icw has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Jon Icw 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 - InnerCity Weightlifting should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Jon Icw is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship segment. Jon Icw needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Jon Icw to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Need for greater diversity
– Jon Icw 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.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Jon Icw 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 bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Andrew Zacharakis, Mary Gale suggests that, Jon Icw 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Jon Icw 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.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study InnerCity Weightlifting, it seems that the employees of Jon Icw 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.
Opportunities InnerCity Weightlifting | 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 InnerCity Weightlifting are -
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Jon Icw 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Jon Icw can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. InnerCity Weightlifting 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Jon Icw to increase its market reach. Jon Icw 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.
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. Jon Icw can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Jon Icw 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.
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 Jon Icw in the consumer business. Now Jon Icw can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Manufacturing automation
– Jon Icw can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Innovation & Entrepreneurship 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.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Jon Icw can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Jon Icw has spent a significant amount of money and effort to integrate analytics and machine learning into its operations in the sector. This continuous investment in analytics has enabled, as illustrated in the Harvard case study InnerCity Weightlifting - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Jon Icw to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Jon Icw 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, InnerCity Weightlifting, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Loyalty marketing
– Jon Icw 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Jon Icw 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Jon Icw 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.
Threats InnerCity Weightlifting External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study InnerCity Weightlifting are -
Regulatory challenges
– Jon Icw 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Jon Icw with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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 Jon Icw business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Jon Icw 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.
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. Jon Icw needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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 Jon Icw in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Jon Icw is facing in Innovation & Entrepreneurship sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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. Jon Icw can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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.
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.
Environmental challenges
– Jon Icw needs to have a robust strategy against the disruptions arising from climate change and energy requirements. EU has identified it as key priority area and spending 30% of its 880 billion Euros European post Covid-19 recovery funds on green technology. Jon Icw can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Jon Icw 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, Jon Icw 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 InnerCity Weightlifting .
Weighted SWOT Analysis of InnerCity Weightlifting 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 InnerCity Weightlifting 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 InnerCity Weightlifting 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 InnerCity Weightlifting 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 InnerCity Weightlifting 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 Jon Icw needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.