Case Study Description of Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values
It was 2014, and the chief executive officer (CEO) of Knightsbridge Custom Homes Limited (Knightsbridge) had just purchased a site for his next project in the rapidly gentrifying East Village neighbourhood of Calgary, Alberta. He had built Knightsbridge on a commitment to three core values: finding great locations, catering to underserved markets, and providing niche products. Since it's founding in 1990, these values had remained the same, but the type of projects undertaken by Knightsbridge had changed dramatically. The company started by building infill homes in inner-city Calgary and estate homes on the city's outskirts. Then it built multi-family homes in the suburbs and tackled a transit-oriented development in an established area. Now, the CEO was considering developing a no parking, high-rise condominium tower close to the downtown core. High-rise living without parking would be an entirely new concept in car-centric Calgary. Was developing a residential site without parking a viable plan in this growing city? Knightsbridge's CEO needed to find an effective way to answer this question. Pernille Goodbrand is affiliated with University of Calgary. Jyoti Gondek is affiliated with Haskayne School of Business.
Swot Analysis of "Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values" written by Pernille Goodbrand, Jyoti Gondek, Cheryl Brazell includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Knightsbridge Calgary facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values casestudy better are - – wage bills are increasing, increasing commodity prices, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, geopolitical disruptions, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy,
challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Knightsbridge Calgary, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Knightsbridge Calgary 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 Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Knightsbridge Calgary
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Leadership & Managing People field.
4. Making a Leadership & Managing People topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Knightsbridge Calgary
Strengths Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Knightsbridge Calgary in Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values Harvard Business Review case study are -
Innovation driven organization
– Knightsbridge Calgary is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values 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 Knightsbridge Calgary 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Knightsbridge Calgary is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Knightsbridge Calgary in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Training and development
– Knightsbridge Calgary has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values 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.
High brand equity
– Knightsbridge Calgary has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Knightsbridge Calgary to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Knightsbridge Calgary has built up over years in its products and services combo offer has resulted in high retention of customers, lower marketing costs, and greater ability of the firm to focus on its customers.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Knightsbridge Calgary is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Organizational Resilience of Knightsbridge Calgary
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Knightsbridge Calgary does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Knightsbridge Calgary in the sector have low bargaining power. Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Knightsbridge Calgary to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Leadership & Managing People industry
– Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Knightsbridge Calgary to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Knightsbridge Calgary to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Ability to lead change in Leadership & Managing People field
– Knightsbridge Calgary 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 Knightsbridge Calgary in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Weaknesses Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values are -
Lack of clear differentiation of Knightsbridge Calgary products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Knightsbridge Calgary 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 Knightsbridge Calgary 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, Pernille Goodbrand, Jyoti Gondek, Cheryl Brazell suggests that, Knightsbridge Calgary 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 dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values 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 Knightsbridge Calgary has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Leadership & Managing People 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Knightsbridge Calgary 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 - Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Knightsbridge Calgary is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Leadership & Managing People segment. Knightsbridge Calgary needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Knightsbridge Calgary to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Knightsbridge Calgary is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Knightsbridge Calgary 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.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values, it seems that the employees of Knightsbridge Calgary 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.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Knightsbridge Calgary has a very deliberative decision making approach. This approach has resulted in prudent decisions, but it has also resulted in missing opportunities in the industry over the last five years. Knightsbridge Calgary even though has strong showing on digital transformation primary two stages, it has struggled to capitalize the power of digital transformation in marketing efforts and new venture efforts.
Opportunities Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values | 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 Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values are -
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Knightsbridge Calgary 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 Leadership & Managing People segment.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Knightsbridge Calgary can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Manufacturing automation
– Knightsbridge Calgary can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Leadership & Managing People 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Knightsbridge Calgary is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Knightsbridge Calgary 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Knightsbridge Calgary 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Knightsbridge Calgary 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 Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Knightsbridge Calgary to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Buying journey improvements
– Knightsbridge Calgary can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Knightsbridge Calgary 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 Knightsbridge Calgary to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Knightsbridge Calgary to increase its market reach. Knightsbridge Calgary will be able to reach out to new customers. Secondly 5G will also provide technology framework to build new tools and products that can help more immersive consumer experience and faster consumer journey.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Knightsbridge Calgary has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Knightsbridge Calgary to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values case study. Knightsbridge Calgary can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, 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 Knightsbridge Calgary in the consumer business. Now Knightsbridge Calgary can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
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. Knightsbridge Calgary can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Threats Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values are -
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 Knightsbridge Calgary business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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 Knightsbridge Calgary with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Knightsbridge Calgary is facing in Leadership & Managing People sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values, Knightsbridge Calgary may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Leadership & Managing People .
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. Knightsbridge Calgary needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People 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 Knightsbridge Calgary in the Leadership & Managing People sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Environmental challenges
– Knightsbridge Calgary 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. Knightsbridge Calgary can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Knightsbridge Calgary 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 Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values .
Consumer confidence and its impact on Knightsbridge Calgary 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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Knightsbridge Calgary 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.
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. Knightsbridge Calgary will face different problems in different parts of Europe. For example it will face inflationary pressures in UK, France, and Germany, balance sheet expansion and demand challenges in Southern European countries, and geopolitical instability in the Eastern Europe.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values 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 Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values 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 Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values 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 Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values 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 Knightsbridge Custom Homebuilders Ltd.: Commitment to Core Values 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 Knightsbridge Calgary needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.