Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Innovation & Entrepreneurship
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start"
Supplement to case B5661. The SpeedSim case study focuses on how mergers and acquisitions work in startup and entrepreneurial environments. It describes how an intelligent East Coast engineer built an extremely frugal company with a goal for acquisition and how the SpeedSim team masterfully executed and maximized their return by starting, growing, and selling a company. The case analyzes the process of how small companies position themselves to be acquired and how an acquirer assesses a company. The case can be used for mergers and acquisition and exit discussions, as well as for culture and organizational behavior discussions for entrepreneurship curriculums. Please note: This case also has an (A) supplement available. The A case discusses how SpeedSim was built and what process they went through to get acquired. The B case addresses what happened after the acquisition and deals with the perspectives of the players and the challenges of the integration. Students are asked to evaluate how a company should go about establishing itself to be acquired and what decisions should be made in the earlier days of the startup. Students will also discuss how to create a successful acquisition and what factors contribute to the success of such an acquisition.
Swot Analysis of "Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start"" written by Naeem Zafar includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Speedsim Acquisition facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Venture capital and Innovation & Entrepreneurship.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" casestudy better are - – banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, wage bills are increasing, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, technology disruption, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies,
there is backlash against globalization, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start"
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Speedsim Acquisition, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Speedsim Acquisition 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 Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Speedsim Acquisition
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Innovation & Entrepreneurship field.
4. Making a Innovation & Entrepreneurship topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Speedsim Acquisition
Strengths Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Speedsim Acquisition in Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" Harvard Business Review case study are -
Highly skilled collaborators
– Speedsim Acquisition 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 Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Analytics focus
– Speedsim Acquisition 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 Naeem Zafar 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.
Training and development
– Speedsim Acquisition has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry
– Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Speedsim Acquisition to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Speedsim Acquisition to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Speedsim Acquisition is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" 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
– Speedsim Acquisition has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Speedsim Acquisition to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Speedsim Acquisition 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.
Learning organization
- Speedsim Acquisition 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 Speedsim Acquisition is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Speedsim Acquisition has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Speedsim Acquisition 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Speedsim Acquisition is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Speedsim Acquisition 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.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" 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.
Weaknesses Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" are -
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Speedsim Acquisition 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.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" 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 Speedsim Acquisition has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Speedsim Acquisition 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Speedsim Acquisition is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship segment. Speedsim Acquisition needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Speedsim Acquisition to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Naeem Zafar suggests that, Speedsim Acquisition 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.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Speedsim Acquisition 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. Speedsim Acquisition 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.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Speedsim Acquisition 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start", it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Innovation & Entrepreneurship 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Speedsim Acquisition products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Speedsim Acquisition needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start", in the dynamic environment Speedsim Acquisition has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Speedsim Acquisition has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" HBR case study mentions - Speedsim Acquisition 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.
Opportunities Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" | 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 Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" are -
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Speedsim Acquisition has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Speedsim Acquisition to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" case study. Speedsim Acquisition can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Speedsim Acquisition can leverage digital technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning to automate the production process, customer analytics to get better insights into consumer behavior, realtime digital dashboards to get better sales tracking, logistics and transportation, product tracking, etc.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Speedsim Acquisition can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Speedsim Acquisition operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Innovation & Entrepreneurship sector.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Speedsim Acquisition 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 Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Speedsim Acquisition to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Speedsim Acquisition 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 Innovation & Entrepreneurship segment.
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 Speedsim Acquisition 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Speedsim Acquisition 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 Speedsim Acquisition to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Speedsim Acquisition in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Speedsim Acquisition 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, Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start", to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Speedsim Acquisition can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Speedsim Acquisition is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Speedsim Acquisition can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" 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.
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. Speedsim Acquisition can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Threats Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" are -
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start", Speedsim Acquisition may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Innovation & Entrepreneurship .
Increasing wage structure of Speedsim Acquisition
– 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 Speedsim Acquisition.
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 Speedsim Acquisition business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Speedsim Acquisition 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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Speedsim Acquisition 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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Speedsim Acquisition has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Speedsim Acquisition needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Speedsim Acquisition is facing in Innovation & Entrepreneurship sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Capital market disruption
– During the Covid-19, Dow Jones has touched record high. The valuations of a number of companies are way beyond their existing business model potential. This can lead to capital market correction which can put a number of suppliers, collaborators, value chain partners in great financial difficulty. It will directly impact the business of Speedsim Acquisition.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Innovation & Entrepreneurship field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Speedsim Acquisition can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Speedsim Acquisition 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 Speedsim Acquisition in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
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.
Environmental challenges
– Speedsim Acquisition 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. Speedsim Acquisition can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" 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 Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" 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 Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" 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 Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" 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 Quickturn's Acquisition of SpeedSim (B): "Doomed from the Start" 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 Speedsim Acquisition needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
