Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Finance & Accounting
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions
Explores the importance of private equity firms in merger and acquisitions activity around the globe. In many countries, these firms now account for one quarter of the total merger and acquisition activity of all firms. The larger private equity firms generate fees for investment banking firms that exceed $350 million per year. Shows how the general partners of the fund financing the acquisition; the limited partners of the fund financing the acquisition; and the management team running the acquired firm for the private equity sponsor share the shareholder value creation in a successful leveraged buyout sponsored by a private equity firm.
Swot Analysis of "Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions" written by William E. Fruhan includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Firms Equity facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Growth strategy, Mergers & acquisitions and Finance & Accounting.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions casestudy better are - – digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, technology disruption, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, increasing commodity prices, increasing transportation and logistics costs, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models,
increasing energy prices, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Firms Equity, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Firms Equity 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 Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Firms Equity
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Finance & Accounting field.
4. Making a Finance & Accounting topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Firms Equity
Strengths Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Firms Equity in Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions Harvard Business Review case study are -
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Firms Equity in the sector have low bargaining power. Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Firms Equity to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Firms Equity 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 Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Firms Equity in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Firms Equity is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
High brand equity
– Firms Equity has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Firms Equity to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Strong track record of project management
– Firms Equity is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Firms Equity is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Firms Equity has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Firms Equity 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.
Ability to lead change in Finance & Accounting field
– Firms Equity 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 Firms Equity in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Organizational Resilience of Firms Equity
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Firms Equity does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Analytics focus
– Firms Equity 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 William E. Fruhan 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.
Weaknesses Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions are -
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions 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 Firms Equity has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Finance & Accounting 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 Firms Equity supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Firms Equity vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions HBR case study mentions - Firms Equity 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Firms Equity products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Firms Equity needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Firms Equity 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. Firms Equity 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Firms Equity 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 - Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions, is just above the industry average. Firms Equity 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Firms Equity is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions 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 Firms Equity 's lucrative customers.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Firms Equity, firm in the HBR case study Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Opportunities Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions | 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 Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions are -
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 Firms Equity in the consumer business. Now Firms Equity can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Firms Equity 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 Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Firms Equity to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Finance & Accounting industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Firms Equity 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. Firms Equity 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.
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 Firms Equity 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Firms Equity 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, Firms Equity is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Firms Equity in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Finance & Accounting segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
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. Firms Equity can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Manufacturing automation
– Firms Equity can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Finance & Accounting 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Firms Equity can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Firms Equity operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Finance & Accounting sector.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Firms Equity can leverage digital technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning to automate the production process, customer analytics to get better insights into consumer behavior, realtime digital dashboards to get better sales tracking, logistics and transportation, product tracking, etc.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Firms Equity 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Firms Equity can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions 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.
Threats Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions are -
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. Firms Equity 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 dependence on third party suppliers
– Firms Equity 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.
Environmental challenges
– Firms Equity 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. Firms Equity can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Finance & Accounting industry.
Regulatory challenges
– Firms Equity 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 Finance & Accounting industry regulations.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Firms Equity 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 Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions .
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Firms Equity in the Finance & Accounting industry. The Finance & Accounting 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.
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.
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. Firms Equity needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Finance & Accounting industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Firms Equity has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Finance & Accounting industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Firms Equity needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Finance & Accounting 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.
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 Firms Equity business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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 Firms Equity.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Firms Equity is facing in Finance & Accounting sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Firms Equity with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions 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 Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions 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 Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions 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 Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions 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 Role of Private Equity Firms in Merger and Acquisition Transactions 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 Firms Equity needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.