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Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution

Case Study Description of Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth


Hunley, Inc. manufactures rods for the niche sport of fly fishing. It specializes in freshwater rods that are perceived as "middle-market" products, targeted at "avid" fly fishers, In the face of declining revenue and a decreasing price per unit sold, the company's president is considering several growth options, including introducing a rod made from state-of-the-art materials (moving up-market) and expanding distribution into Walmart (down-market). Hunley's president must decide whether either option is feasible and if so, what kind of marketing plan is necessary for each to succeed. If neither option is chosen, he must determine what other ways Hunley might grow. This is a rich marketing mix case that requires students to develop a qualitative and quantitative plan for Hunley's product line under two very different growth options. The discussion can illuminate numerous marketing issues that an instructor might want to emphasize, including: brand extension, product and company market position, positioning statements, market segmentation, introductory marketing programs, new product launches, channel conflict, sales force management of a strategic shift, among others. This case is suitable for an introductory marketing course for undergraduate or MBA students. It can also be used in a section on positioning and increasing consumers' willingness-to-pay within a strategy course. Further, the challenges facing Hunley are relevant to many courses in executive education.

Authors :: John A. Quelch, James T. Kindley

Topics :: Sales & Marketing

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

Swot Analysis of "Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth" written by John A. Quelch, James T. Kindley includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Hunley Hunley's facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, and Sales & Marketing.


Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth casestudy better are - – wage bills are increasing, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, there is backlash against globalization, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing commodity prices, increasing energy prices, etc



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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth


SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Hunley Hunley's, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Hunley Hunley's 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 Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Hunley Hunley's
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 Hunley Hunley's




Strengths Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of Hunley Hunley's in Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth Harvard Business Review case study are -

Diverse revenue streams

– Hunley Hunley's is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth 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.

High brand equity

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

Analytics focus

– Hunley Hunley's 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 John A. Quelch, James T. Kindley 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.

Digital Transformation in Sales & Marketing segment

- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Hunley Hunley's digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Hunley Hunley's 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.

Ability to lead change in Sales & Marketing field

– Hunley Hunley's 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 Hunley Hunley's in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.

Ability to recruit top talent

– Hunley Hunley's is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.

Superior customer experience

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

Low bargaining power of suppliers

– Suppliers of Hunley Hunley's in the sector have low bargaining power. Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Hunley Hunley's to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.

Cross disciplinary teams

– Horizontal connected teams at the Hunley Hunley's 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.

Effective Research and Development (R&D)

– Hunley Hunley's 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 Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth - 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 Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth 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.

Successful track record of launching new products

– Hunley Hunley's has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Hunley Hunley's has effective processes in place that helps in exploring new product needs, doing quick pilot testing, and then launching the products quickly using its extensive distribution network.






Weaknesses Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth are -

No frontier risks strategy

– After analyzing the HBR case study Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Sales & Marketing 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.

Workers concerns about automation

– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Hunley Hunley's needs to come up with a strategy to reduce the workers concern regarding automation. Without a clear strategy, it could lead to disruption and uncertainty within the organization.

Need for greater diversity

– Hunley Hunley's 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.

Aligning sales with marketing

– It come across in the case study Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth 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 Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Hunley Hunley's 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 Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth 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 Hunley Hunley's has relatively successful track record of launching new products.

High operating costs

– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth 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 Hunley Hunley's 's lucrative customers.

Lack of clear differentiation of Hunley Hunley's products

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

Skills based hiring

– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Hunley Hunley's 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, John A. Quelch, James T. Kindley suggests that, Hunley Hunley's 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.

Slow to strategic competitive environment developments

– As Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth HBR case study mentions - Hunley Hunley's 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.

Compensation and incentives

– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth, is just above the industry average. Hunley Hunley's 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.




Opportunities Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth | 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 Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth are -

Increase in government spending

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

Lowering marketing communication costs

– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Hunley Hunley's 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.

Building a culture of innovation

– managers at Hunley Hunley's 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 Sales & Marketing segment.

Better consumer reach

– The expansion of the 5G network will help Hunley Hunley's to increase its market reach. Hunley Hunley's 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.

Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities

– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Hunley Hunley's 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 Hunley Hunley's to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.

Using analytics as competitive advantage

– Hunley Hunley's 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 Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Hunley Hunley's to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.

Low interest rates

– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Hunley Hunley's 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.

Redefining models of collaboration and team work

– As explained in the weaknesses section, Hunley Hunley's is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth 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.

Creating value in data economy

– The success of analytics program of Hunley Hunley's has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Hunley Hunley's to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth case study. Hunley Hunley's 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 Hunley Hunley's 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.

Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains

– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Hunley Hunley's 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, Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.

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 Hunley Hunley's in the consumer business. Now Hunley Hunley's can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.

Developing new processes and practices

– Hunley Hunley's can develop new processes and procedures in Sales & Marketing 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.




Threats Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis


The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth are -

Capital market disruption

– During the Covid-19, Dow Jones has touched record high. The valuations of a number of companies are way beyond their existing business model potential. This can lead to capital market correction which can put a number of suppliers, collaborators, value chain partners in great financial difficulty. It will directly impact the business of Hunley Hunley's.

Regulatory challenges

– Hunley Hunley's 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 Sales & Marketing industry regulations.

Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution

– Hunley Hunley's has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Sales & Marketing industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Hunley Hunley's 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.

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.

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. Hunley Hunley's can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.

Learning curve for new practices

– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth, Hunley Hunley's 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 .

Aging population

– As the populations of most advanced economies are aging, it will lead to high social security costs, higher savings among population, and lower demand for goods and services in the economy. The household savings in US, France, UK, Germany, and Japan are growing faster than predicted because of uncertainty caused by pandemic.

Barriers of entry lowering

– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Hunley Hunley's with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.

Trade war between China and United States

– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Hunley Hunley's 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.

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. Hunley Hunley's 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. Hunley Hunley's needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Sales & Marketing 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 Hunley Hunley's in the Sales & Marketing sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.

Shortening product life cycle

– it is one of the major threat that Hunley Hunley's is facing in Sales & Marketing sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.




Weighted SWOT Analysis of Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth 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 Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth 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 Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth 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 Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth 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 Hunley, Inc.: Casting for Growth 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 Hunley Hunley's needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.



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