Case Study Description of Millegan Creek Apartments
This case is accompanied by a Video Short that can be shown in class or included in a digital coursepack. Instructors should consider the timing of making the video available to students, as it may reveal key case details.Fleet Bank is considering a construction loan for a 390-unit apartment project in Austin, Texas. The case describes the location, market, product, and other real estate factors the bank needs to consider in making this loan. Also discusses the financial and construction risks involved in structuring this kind of credit facility.
Swot Analysis of "Millegan Creek Apartments" written by William J. Poorvu, John H. Vogel Jr. includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that 390 Details.fleet facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Millegan Creek Apartments case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Risk management and Finance & Accounting.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Millegan Creek Apartments casestudy better are - – increasing household debt because of falling income levels, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings,
increasing commodity prices, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Millegan Creek Apartments
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Millegan Creek Apartments case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the 390 Details.fleet, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which 390 Details.fleet 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 Millegan Creek Apartments can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Millegan Creek Apartments case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of 390 Details.fleet
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 390 Details.fleet
Strengths Millegan Creek Apartments | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of 390 Details.fleet in Millegan Creek Apartments Harvard Business Review case study are -
Digital Transformation in Finance & Accounting segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For 390 Details.fleet digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. 390 Details.fleet 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Finance & Accounting industry
– Millegan Creek Apartments firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled 390 Details.fleet to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Finance & Accounting industry. The sustainable margins have also helped 390 Details.fleet to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Innovation driven organization
– 390 Details.fleet is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Millegan Creek Apartments Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of 390 Details.fleet in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Millegan Creek Apartments 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– 390 Details.fleet has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. 390 Details.fleet 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.
Learning organization
- 390 Details.fleet 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 390 Details.fleet is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Millegan Creek Apartments Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Diverse revenue streams
– 390 Details.fleet is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Millegan Creek Apartments case study a diverse revenue stream that has helped it to survive disruptions such as global pandemic in Covid-19, financial disruption of 2008, and supply chain disruption of 2021.
Ability to recruit top talent
– 390 Details.fleet is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Millegan Creek Apartments 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
– 390 Details.fleet has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled 390 Details.fleet to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Analytics focus
– 390 Details.fleet 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 J. Poorvu, John H. Vogel Jr. 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of 390 Details.fleet in the sector have low bargaining power. Millegan Creek Apartments has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps 390 Details.fleet to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Weaknesses Millegan Creek Apartments | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Millegan Creek Apartments are -
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of 390 Details.fleet, firm in the HBR case study Millegan Creek Apartments needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Millegan Creek Apartments, 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 cash cycle compare to competitors
390 Details.fleet 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Millegan Creek Apartments, is just above the industry average. 390 Details.fleet 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Millegan Creek Apartments that the firm needs to have more collaboration between its sales team and marketing team. Sales professionals in the industry have deep experience in developing customer relationships. Marketing department in the case Millegan Creek Apartments can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as 390 Details.fleet is planning to shift buying processes online.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of 390 Details.fleet is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Finance & Accounting segment. 390 Details.fleet needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help 390 Details.fleet to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Products dominated business model
– Even though 390 Details.fleet 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 - Millegan Creek Apartments should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, 390 Details.fleet 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. 390 Details.fleet 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 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 390 Details.fleet supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Millegan Creek Apartments, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left 390 Details.fleet vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Lack of clear differentiation of 390 Details.fleet products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, 390 Details.fleet needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Millegan Creek Apartments 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 390 Details.fleet has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Opportunities Millegan Creek Apartments | 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 Millegan Creek Apartments are -
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help 390 Details.fleet to increase its market reach. 390 Details.fleet 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, 390 Details.fleet 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.
Manufacturing automation
– 390 Details.fleet 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, 390 Details.fleet 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, Millegan Creek Apartments, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for 390 Details.fleet 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.
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. 390 Details.fleet can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
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 390 Details.fleet 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at 390 Details.fleet 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of 390 Details.fleet has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help 390 Details.fleet to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Millegan Creek Apartments case study. 390 Details.fleet can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Buying journey improvements
– 390 Details.fleet can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Millegan Creek Apartments 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.
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. 390 Details.fleet 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. 390 Details.fleet 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for 390 Details.fleet 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for 390 Details.fleet 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 390 Details.fleet to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Threats Millegan Creek Apartments External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Millegan Creek Apartments are -
Environmental challenges
– 390 Details.fleet 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. 390 Details.fleet can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Finance & Accounting industry.
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 390 Details.fleet 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. 390 Details.fleet can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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 390 Details.fleet business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– 390 Details.fleet has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Finance & Accounting industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, 390 Details.fleet 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.
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.
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 390 Details.fleet.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, 390 Details.fleet 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 Millegan Creek Apartments .
Consumer confidence and its impact on 390 Details.fleet 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.
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. 390 Details.fleet needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Finance & Accounting 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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Millegan Creek Apartments, 390 Details.fleet 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 .
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– 390 Details.fleet can face lack of demand in the market place because of Fed actions to reduce inflation. This can lead to sluggish growth in the economy, lower demands, lower investments, higher borrowing costs, and consolidation in the field.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Millegan Creek Apartments 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 Millegan Creek Apartments 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 Millegan Creek Apartments 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 Millegan Creek Apartments 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 Millegan Creek Apartments 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 390 Details.fleet needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.