WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Technology & Operations
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace
In April 2016, the Chinese tech giant Tencent made an ambitious foray into the enterprise market by launching WeChat Work, an enterprise social network app adopted from its immensely popular consumer app WeChat. To increase WeChat Work adoption, Tencent leveraged on the 1-billion user base of WeChat and its strong consumer IT capabilities. Despite the initial success, WeChat Work faced intense competition from many other firms, including Alibaba's DingTalk. The socialisation needs of enterprise workplace vary significantly from those of consumers. How can Tencents address these challenges? Can Tencent's strong consumer IT capabilities be as effective in driving the adoption of WeChat Work in the enterprise market?
Swot Analysis of "WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace" written by Xu Mou, Siew-Kien Sia includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Wechat Enterprise facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Strategy and Technology & Operations.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace casestudy better are - – technology disruption, geopolitical disruptions, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%,
digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Wechat Enterprise, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Wechat Enterprise 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 WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Wechat Enterprise
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Technology & Operations field.
4. Making a Technology & Operations topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Wechat Enterprise
Strengths WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Wechat Enterprise in WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace Harvard Business Review case study are -
Highly skilled collaborators
– Wechat Enterprise has highly efficient outsourcing and offshoring strategy. It has resulted in greater operational flexibility and bringing down the costs in highly price sensitive segment. Secondly the value chain collaborators of the firm in WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Learning organization
- Wechat Enterprise 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 Wechat Enterprise is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Training and development
– Wechat Enterprise has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Technology & Operations industry
– WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Wechat Enterprise to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Technology & Operations industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Wechat Enterprise to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Wechat Enterprise in the sector have low bargaining power. WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Wechat Enterprise to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Wechat Enterprise 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.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace 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.
Organizational Resilience of Wechat Enterprise
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Wechat Enterprise does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Strong track record of project management
– Wechat Enterprise is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Innovation driven organization
– Wechat Enterprise is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
High brand equity
– Wechat Enterprise has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Wechat Enterprise to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Wechat Enterprise 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 WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Weaknesses WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace are -
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Wechat Enterprise, firm in the HBR case study WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Wechat Enterprise 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.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace 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 Wechat Enterprise has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Technology & Operations 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Wechat Enterprise products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Wechat Enterprise needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Wechat Enterprise is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Technology & Operations segment. Wechat Enterprise needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Wechat Enterprise to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Wechat Enterprise 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. Wechat Enterprise 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.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace 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 Wechat Enterprise 's lucrative customers.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Wechat Enterprise 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.
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 Wechat Enterprise supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Wechat Enterprise vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace HBR case study mentions - Wechat Enterprise 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.
Opportunities WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace | 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 WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace are -
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Wechat Enterprise is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Wechat Enterprise 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.
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 Wechat Enterprise in the consumer business. Now Wechat Enterprise can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Wechat Enterprise to increase its market reach. Wechat Enterprise 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. Wechat Enterprise can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Wechat Enterprise can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Wechat Enterprise 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, WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Wechat Enterprise 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 Wechat Enterprise to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Loyalty marketing
– Wechat Enterprise 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Wechat Enterprise in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Technology & Operations segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Wechat Enterprise 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 Technology & Operations segment.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Technology & Operations industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Wechat Enterprise 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. Wechat Enterprise 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.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Technology & Operations industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Wechat Enterprise can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Threats WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace are -
Increasing wage structure of Wechat Enterprise
– 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 Wechat Enterprise.
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 Wechat Enterprise business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace, Wechat Enterprise may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Technology & Operations .
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Technology & Operations field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Wechat Enterprise can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Wechat Enterprise 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 WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise 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 Wechat Enterprise in the Technology & Operations sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Wechat Enterprise with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Wechat Enterprise has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Technology & Operations industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Wechat Enterprise needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Technology & Operations 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Wechat Enterprise is facing in Technology & Operations sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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. Wechat Enterprise needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Technology & Operations industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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.
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 Wechat Enterprise.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Wechat Enterprise in the Technology & Operations industry. The Technology & Operations 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace 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 WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace 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 WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace 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 WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace 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 WeChat Work: Bringing Social Networking into Enterprise Workplace 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 Wechat Enterprise needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.