THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Innovation & Entrepreneurship
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET?
Andy Lewis was the fourth-generation publisher and editor of a small family- owned newspaper in rural Mississippi. Lewis faced the challenges of operating a weekly newspaper in a changing industry amid concerns that members of the next generation of the Lewis family did not want to take on operation of either the 133-year-old newspaper or the family-owned insurance agency. The family firm leader is conflicted because he sees himself as both a steward of a family business as well as a steward of an important community asset. Although Andy had successfully managed the paper and the insurance agency and earned a good living for himself and provided for the needs of his family, he believed that he had paid a high price in the sacrifice of his time to achieve these results. The case examines alternative successors to Andy Lewis as editor and publisher of the newspaper; the economic, organizational, and logistical challenges associated with operating a rural weekly newspaper; and the role that an ancillary business played in generating revenue.
Swot Analysis of "THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET?" written by Roland E. Kidwell, John Cater includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Newspaper Lewis facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, and Innovation & Entrepreneurship.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? casestudy better are - – banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, increasing transportation and logistics costs, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, geopolitical disruptions, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic ,
customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET?
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Newspaper Lewis, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Newspaper Lewis 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 THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Newspaper Lewis
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 Newspaper Lewis
Strengths THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Newspaper Lewis in THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? Harvard Business Review case study are -
Successful track record of launching new products
– Newspaper Lewis has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Newspaper Lewis 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 Innovation & Entrepreneurship field
– Newspaper Lewis 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 Newspaper Lewis in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Newspaper Lewis 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Newspaper Lewis is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Newspaper Lewis is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? 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
– Newspaper Lewis has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Newspaper Lewis to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry
– THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Newspaper Lewis to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Newspaper Lewis to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Digital Transformation in Innovation & Entrepreneurship segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Newspaper Lewis digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Newspaper Lewis 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Newspaper Lewis 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 THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Analytics focus
– Newspaper Lewis 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 Roland E. Kidwell, John Cater 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 Newspaper Lewis in the sector have low bargaining power. THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Newspaper Lewis to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Organizational Resilience of Newspaper Lewis
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Newspaper Lewis does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Weaknesses THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? are -
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Newspaper Lewis has borrowed money from the capital market at higher rates. It needs to restructure the interest payment and costs so that it can compete better and improve profitability.
Need for greater diversity
– Newspaper Lewis has taken concrete steps on diversity, equity, and inclusion. But the efforts so far has resulted in limited success. It needs to expand the recruitment and selection process to hire more people from the minorities and underprivileged background.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Newspaper Lewis has not been able to do capital spending to the tune of the competition. This has resulted into fewer innovations and company facing stiff competition from both existing competitors and new entrants who are disrupting the industry using digital technology.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Newspaper Lewis is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship segment. Newspaper Lewis needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Newspaper Lewis to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Newspaper Lewis 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. Newspaper Lewis 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? 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 THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Newspaper Lewis is planning to shift buying processes online.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Newspaper Lewis 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.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? has high operating costs in the. This can be harder to sustain given the new emerging competition from nimble players who are using technology to attract Newspaper Lewis 's lucrative customers.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET?, is just above the industry average. Newspaper Lewis 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Newspaper Lewis is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? 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 THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? 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 Newspaper Lewis has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Opportunities THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? | 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 THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? are -
Buying journey improvements
– Newspaper Lewis can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? 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 Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Newspaper Lewis 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. Newspaper Lewis 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Newspaper Lewis 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Newspaper Lewis 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, THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET?, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Newspaper Lewis 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Newspaper Lewis 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Newspaper Lewis can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Innovation & Entrepreneurship 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.
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 Newspaper Lewis 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Newspaper Lewis 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 THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Newspaper Lewis to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Developing new processes and practices
– Newspaper Lewis can develop new processes and procedures in Innovation & Entrepreneurship 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Newspaper Lewis 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Newspaper Lewis is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Newspaper Lewis 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.
Threats THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? are -
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. Newspaper Lewis needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Increasing wage structure of Newspaper Lewis
– 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 Newspaper Lewis.
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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Newspaper Lewis 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.
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
– Newspaper Lewis 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. Newspaper Lewis can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry.
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. Newspaper Lewis 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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Newspaper Lewis 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Newspaper Lewis is facing in Innovation & Entrepreneurship sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Newspaper Lewis in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. The Innovation & Entrepreneurship 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Newspaper Lewis 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 THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? .
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 Newspaper Lewis business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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 Newspaper Lewis in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? 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 THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? 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 THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? 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 THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? 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 THE WOODVILLE REPUBLICAN: FAMILY FIRM OR COMMUNITY ASSET? 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 Newspaper Lewis needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
