Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Finance & Accounting
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring
A company nears the end of a long multiyear turnaround and now must consider how to "cash out" so its management can realize a financial return on investment. The privately held company has several options, including a leveraged ESOP and a leveraged recapitalization.
Authors :: Stuart C. Gilson, Joel T. Schwartz, Steven M. Silver, David I. Stemerman
Swot Analysis of "Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring" written by Stuart C. Gilson, Joel T. Schwartz, Steven M. Silver, David I. Stemerman includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Leveraged Preemptive facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Budgeting, Compensation, Costs, Crisis management, Marketing, Reorganization and Finance & Accounting.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring casestudy better are - – banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, there is backlash against globalization, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, increasing commodity prices, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, increasing household debt because of falling income levels,
geopolitical disruptions, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Leveraged Preemptive, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Leveraged Preemptive 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 Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Leveraged Preemptive
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 Leveraged Preemptive
Strengths Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Leveraged Preemptive in Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring Harvard Business Review case study are -
Strong track record of project management
– Leveraged Preemptive is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Leveraged Preemptive 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 Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Leveraged Preemptive has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Leveraged Preemptive 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.
Training and development
– Leveraged Preemptive has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring 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.
Learning organization
- Leveraged Preemptive 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 Leveraged Preemptive is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Leveraged Preemptive in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Leveraged Preemptive 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.
Ability to lead change in Finance & Accounting field
– Leveraged Preemptive 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 Leveraged Preemptive in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Innovation driven organization
– Leveraged Preemptive is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Leveraged Preemptive in the sector have low bargaining power. Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Leveraged Preemptive to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Leveraged Preemptive 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Leveraged Preemptive 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 Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Weaknesses Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring are -
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring, it seems that the employees of Leveraged Preemptive 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Leveraged Preemptive 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 - Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring, in the dynamic environment Leveraged Preemptive has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Leveraged Preemptive has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Leveraged Preemptive 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Leveraged Preemptive 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 Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring 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 Leveraged Preemptive 's lucrative customers.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring 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 Leveraged Preemptive has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Leveraged Preemptive is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Finance & Accounting segment. Leveraged Preemptive needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Leveraged Preemptive 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, Leveraged Preemptive is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring HBR case study mentions - Leveraged Preemptive 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.
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 Leveraged Preemptive supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Leveraged Preemptive vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Opportunities Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring | 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 Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring are -
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Leveraged Preemptive 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Leveraged Preemptive can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring 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.
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 Leveraged Preemptive in the consumer business. Now Leveraged Preemptive 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 Leveraged Preemptive to increase its market reach. Leveraged Preemptive 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 Leveraged Preemptive has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Leveraged Preemptive to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring case study. Leveraged Preemptive can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Finance & Accounting industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Leveraged Preemptive can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Leveraged Preemptive can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Leveraged Preemptive operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Finance & Accounting sector.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Leveraged Preemptive 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, Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Manufacturing automation
– Leveraged Preemptive 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Leveraged Preemptive 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Leveraged Preemptive 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 Finance & Accounting segment.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Leveraged Preemptive 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Leveraged Preemptive is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring 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.
Threats Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring are -
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Leveraged Preemptive 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 Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring .
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Leveraged Preemptive with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring, Leveraged Preemptive may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Finance & Accounting .
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. Leveraged Preemptive needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Finance & Accounting industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Leveraged Preemptive 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.
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 Leveraged Preemptive 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Leveraged Preemptive 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.
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.
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 Leveraged Preemptive in the Finance & Accounting sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Finance & Accounting field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Leveraged Preemptive can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Regulatory challenges
– Leveraged Preemptive 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.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Leveraged Preemptive 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring 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 Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring 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 Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring 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 Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring 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 Transportation Displays, Inc. (C): The Case for a Preemptive Restructuring 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 Leveraged Preemptive needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.