Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
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Case Study Description of Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II
This case is available in only hard copy format (HBP does not have digital distribution rights to the content). As a result, a digital Educator Copy of the case is not available through this web site.A vehicle for the discussion of a very important set of institutional arrangements that helped enable America to mobilize its economy for World War II.
Swot Analysis of "Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II" written by Richard S. Tedlow, Robert D. Cuff includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that War Ii facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Change management, Economy, Government, Manufacturing, Strategic planning and Global Business.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II casestudy better are - – increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, geopolitical disruptions, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, wage bills are increasing, there is backlash against globalization,
cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, increasing energy prices, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the War Ii, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which War Ii 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 Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of War Ii
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Global Business field.
4. Making a Global Business topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of War Ii
Strengths Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of War Ii in Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II Harvard Business Review case study are -
Innovation driven organization
– War Ii is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Analytics focus
– War Ii 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 Richard S. Tedlow, Robert D. Cuff 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.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that War Ii 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– War Ii 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 Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
High brand equity
– War Ii has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled War Ii to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Training and development
– War Ii has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of War Ii in the sector have low bargaining power. Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps War Ii to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Strong track record of project management
– War Ii is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Digital Transformation in Global Business segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For War Ii digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. War Ii 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– War Ii has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. War Ii 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.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Global Business industry
– Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled War Ii to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Global Business industry. The sustainable margins have also helped War Ii to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Weaknesses Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II are -
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at War Ii has created an environment where the organization is dominated by functional specialists rather than management generalist. This has resulted into product oriented approach rather than marketing oriented approach or consumers oriented approach.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of War Ii, firm in the HBR case study Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, War Ii 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.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II HBR case study mentions - War Ii 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of War Ii is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Global Business segment. War Ii needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help War Ii to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
War Ii 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Global Business 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II 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 Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as War Ii is planning to shift buying processes online.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, War Ii 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. War Ii 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 War Ii supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left War Ii vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II, in the dynamic environment War Ii has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. War Ii has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Opportunities Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II | 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 Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II are -
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, War Ii 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– War Ii can develop new processes and procedures in Global Business 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, War Ii 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, Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of War Ii has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help War Ii to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II case study. War Ii can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
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 War Ii 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 War Ii 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 Global Business segment.
Loyalty marketing
– War Ii has focused on building a highly responsive customer relationship management platform. This platform is built on in-house data and driven by analytics and artificial intelligence. The customer analytics can help the organization to fine tune its loyalty marketing efforts, increase the wallet share of the organization, reduce wastage on mainstream advertising spending, build better pricing strategies using personalization, etc.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for War Ii in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Global Business segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Global Business industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. War Ii 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. War Ii 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.
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. War Ii can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects War Ii can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Buying journey improvements
– War Ii can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help War Ii to increase its market reach. War Ii 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.
Threats Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II are -
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that War Ii is facing in Global Business sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Increasing wage structure of War Ii
– 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 War Ii.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for War Ii in the Global Business industry. The Global Business 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 War Ii business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Environmental challenges
– War Ii 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. War Ii can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Global Business industry.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– War Ii 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.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– War Ii 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.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Global Business field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. War Ii can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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 War Ii.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, War Ii 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 Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II .
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. War Ii needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Global Business industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Regulatory challenges
– War Ii 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 Global Business industry regulations.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents War Ii 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 Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II 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 Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II 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 Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II 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 Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II 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 Organizational Capabilities and U.S. War Production: The Controlled Materials Plan of World War II 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 War Ii needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
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