Hong Kong Disneyland SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Global Business
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Hong Kong Disneyland
Disney began internationalizing its theme park operations with the opening of Tokyo Disneyland in 1983, which is regarded as one of the most successful amusement parks in the world. Disney attempted to replicate this success in France, which is the largest consumer of Disney products outside of the United States. In 1992, they opened Disneyland Resort Paris, which is largely regarded to be much less successful than the park in Japan. This case explores Disney's efforts to open its third park outside the United States; Hong Kong Disneyland. It begins by discussing the experience of Tokyo and Paris Disneylands, and then discusses the opening of Hong Kong Disneyland, including the structure of the deal, and how the operations, human resources management and marketing were tailored to fit the Chinese cultural environment. The case also discusses the tourism industry in Hong Kong and the particular problems that were encountered during the first year of operations. The stage is set for students to discuss whether Disney's strategic assets have a good semantic fit with Chinese culture. Author Michael N. Young is affiliated with Hong Kong Baptist University. Author Dong Liu is affiliated with Georgia Institute of Technology.
Swot Analysis of "Hong Kong Disneyland" written by Michael N. Young, Donald Liu includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Disneyland Kong facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Hong Kong Disneyland case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Cross-cultural management, Globalization and Global Business.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Hong Kong Disneyland casestudy better are - – digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, geopolitical disruptions, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, there is backlash against globalization, wage bills are increasing, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies,
technology disruption, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Hong Kong Disneyland
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Hong Kong Disneyland case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Disneyland Kong, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Disneyland Kong 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 Hong Kong Disneyland can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Hong Kong Disneyland case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Disneyland Kong
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 Disneyland Kong
Strengths Hong Kong Disneyland | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Disneyland Kong in Hong Kong Disneyland Harvard Business Review case study are -
Strong track record of project management
– Disneyland Kong is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Training and development
– Disneyland Kong has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Hong Kong Disneyland 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Disneyland Kong is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Hong Kong Disneyland Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Analytics focus
– Disneyland Kong 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 Michael N. Young, Donald Liu 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Disneyland Kong has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Disneyland Kong 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 Global Business field
– Disneyland Kong 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 Disneyland Kong in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Disneyland Kong in the sector have low bargaining power. Hong Kong Disneyland has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Disneyland Kong to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Disneyland Kong in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Disneyland Kong is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Hong Kong Disneyland are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Organizational Resilience of Disneyland Kong
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Disneyland Kong does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Disneyland Kong 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Disneyland Kong 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 Hong Kong Disneyland HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Weaknesses Hong Kong Disneyland | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Hong Kong Disneyland are -
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Disneyland Kong 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.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Hong Kong Disneyland HBR case study mentions - Disneyland Kong 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 cash cycle compare to competitors
Disneyland Kong 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Disneyland Kong 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 - Hong Kong Disneyland 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, Disneyland Kong 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. Disneyland Kong 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Disneyland Kong is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Hong Kong Disneyland 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 dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Hong Kong Disneyland 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 Disneyland Kong has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Michael N. Young, Donald Liu suggests that, Disneyland Kong is facing high bargaining power of the channel partners. So far it has not able to streamline the operations to reduce the bargaining power of the value chain partners in the industry.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Hong Kong Disneyland, it seems that the employees of Disneyland Kong 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Hong Kong Disneyland 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 Hong Kong Disneyland can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Disneyland Kong is planning to shift buying processes online.
Lack of clear differentiation of Disneyland Kong products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Disneyland Kong needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Opportunities Hong Kong Disneyland | 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 Hong Kong Disneyland are -
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Disneyland Kong can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Disneyland Kong operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Global Business sector.
Buying journey improvements
– Disneyland Kong can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Hong Kong Disneyland 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Disneyland Kong 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, Hong Kong Disneyland, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Disneyland Kong 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 Hong Kong Disneyland - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Disneyland Kong to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Disneyland Kong 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Disneyland Kong 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Disneyland Kong to increase its market reach. Disneyland Kong 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Disneyland Kong 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Disneyland Kong can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Global Business 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Disneyland Kong has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Disneyland Kong to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Hong Kong Disneyland case study. Disneyland Kong can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Developing new processes and practices
– Disneyland Kong 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.
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 Disneyland Kong in the consumer business. Now Disneyland Kong can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Disneyland Kong 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.
Threats Hong Kong Disneyland External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Hong Kong Disneyland are -
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.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Disneyland Kong 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Disneyland Kong 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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Disneyland Kong has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Global Business industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Disneyland Kong needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Global Business 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Disneyland Kong 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Disneyland Kong 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 Hong Kong Disneyland .
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Disneyland Kong with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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 Disneyland Kong in the Global Business sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
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. Disneyland Kong will face different problems in different parts of Europe. For example it will face inflationary pressures in UK, France, and Germany, balance sheet expansion and demand challenges in Southern European countries, and geopolitical instability in the Eastern Europe.
Increasing wage structure of Disneyland Kong
– 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 Disneyland Kong.
Environmental challenges
– Disneyland Kong 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. Disneyland Kong can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Global Business industry.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Disneyland Kong 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 Hong Kong Disneyland 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 Hong Kong Disneyland 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 Hong Kong Disneyland 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 Hong Kong Disneyland 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 Hong Kong Disneyland 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 Disneyland Kong needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.