AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Strategy & Execution
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century
By the 1930s, AT&T dominated the American phone industry, serving 10 million telephones and employing over 100,000 switchboard operators. But beginning in the mid-1910s, the company began changing from manually-operated switchboards to mechanical switching systems that were faster and more cost-effective and did not require human operators. By the 1930s, the changeover has been completed or is underway in most American cities with over 50,000 people. The rollout of the new technology is garnering a good deal of public attention, not just for the unfamiliar new "dialing" process that customers are required to learn, but also because of the mass layoffs of the women who served as operators. The job cuts have even resulted in reports from the Department of Labor and Congressional hearings. As the rollouts continue across the country, AT&T questions how to handle the layoffs and the reaction to the new system.
Swot Analysis of "AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century" written by Daniel P. Gross, William R. Kerr includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Operators 1930s facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Change management, Communication, Disruptive innovation, Strategy, Technology and Strategy & Execution.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century casestudy better are - – banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, increasing commodity prices, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, technology disruption, increasing transportation and logistics costs,
increasing household debt because of falling income levels, geopolitical disruptions, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Operators 1930s, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Operators 1930s 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 AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Operators 1930s
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Strategy & Execution field.
4. Making a Strategy & Execution topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Operators 1930s
Strengths AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Operators 1930s in AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century Harvard Business Review case study are -
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Operators 1930s 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 AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Analytics focus
– Operators 1930s 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 Daniel P. Gross, William R. Kerr 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.
Learning organization
- Operators 1930s 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 Operators 1930s is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Operators 1930s in the sector have low bargaining power. AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Operators 1930s to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Innovation driven organization
– Operators 1930s is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century 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.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Operators 1930s is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Digital Transformation in Strategy & Execution segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Operators 1930s digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Operators 1930s 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.
Training and development
– Operators 1930s has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Operators 1930s is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Ability to lead change in Strategy & Execution field
– Operators 1930s 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 Operators 1930s in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Operators 1930s 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 AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Weaknesses AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century are -
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century 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 Operators 1930s has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Operators 1930s has a high cash cycle compare to other players in the industry. It needs to shorten the cash cycle by 12% to be more competitive in the marketplace, reduce inventory costs, and be more profitable.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Operators 1930s 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century, in the dynamic environment Operators 1930s has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Operators 1930s has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century HBR case study mentions - Operators 1930s 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Operators 1930s is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Operators 1930s 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Strategy & Execution 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.
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 Operators 1930s supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Operators 1930s vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Operators 1930s 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 operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century 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 Operators 1930s 's lucrative customers.
Opportunities AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century | 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 AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century are -
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. Operators 1930s can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Reconfiguring business model
– The expansion of digital payment system, the bringing down of international transactions costs using Bitcoin and other blockchain based currencies, etc can help Operators 1930s to reconfigure its entire business model. For example it can used blockchain based technologies to reduce piracy of its products in the big markets such as China. Secondly it can use the popularity of e-commerce in various developing markets to build a Direct to Customer business model rather than the current Channel Heavy distribution network.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Strategy & Execution industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Operators 1930s can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Buying journey improvements
– Operators 1930s can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Operators 1930s 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 Strategy & Execution segment.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Operators 1930s 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Operators 1930s 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 Operators 1930s to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
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 Operators 1930s in the consumer business. Now Operators 1930s can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Developing new processes and practices
– Operators 1930s can develop new processes and procedures in Strategy & Execution 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Operators 1930s 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, AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century, 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
– Operators 1930s 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Operators 1930s can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Operators 1930s operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Strategy & Execution sector.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Operators 1930s 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 AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century are -
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. Operators 1930s needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Strategy & Execution industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Operators 1930s high dependence on third party suppliers can disrupt its processes and delivery mechanism. For example -the current troubles of car makers because of chip shortage is because the chip companies started producing chips for electronic companies rather than car manufacturers.
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.
Environmental challenges
– Operators 1930s 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. Operators 1930s can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry.
Regulatory challenges
– Operators 1930s 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 Strategy & Execution industry regulations.
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. Operators 1930s 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.
Increasing wage structure of Operators 1930s
– 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 Operators 1930s.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Operators 1930s 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 Operators 1930s in the Strategy & Execution industry. The Strategy & Execution 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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century, Operators 1930s may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Strategy & Execution .
Consumer confidence and its impact on Operators 1930s 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.
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 Operators 1930s 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century 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 AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century 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 AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century 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 AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century 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 AT&T: Managing Technological Change and the Future of Telephone Operators in the 20th Century 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 Operators 1930s needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
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