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On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution

Case Study Description of On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties


This case traces the thought process and decisions Knock out! Panties founder Angela Newnam must make in establishing her company.

Authors :: Gregory B Fairchild, , Natalie Race, Joyce Mallory

Topics :: Innovation & Entrepreneurship

Tags :: Innovation, Marketing, SWOT Analysis, SWOT Matrix, TOWS, Weighted SWOT Analysis

Swot Analysis of "On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties" written by Gregory B Fairchild, , Natalie Race, Joyce Mallory includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Panties Knock facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Innovation, Marketing and Innovation & Entrepreneurship.


Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties casestudy better are - – digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, wage bills are increasing, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing energy prices, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, etc



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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties


SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Panties Knock, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Panties Knock 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 On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Panties Knock
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 Panties Knock




Strengths On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of Panties Knock in On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties Harvard Business Review case study are -

High brand equity

– Panties Knock has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Panties Knock to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.

Organizational Resilience of Panties Knock

– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Panties Knock does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.

Analytics focus

– Panties Knock 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 Gregory B Fairchild, , Natalie Race, Joyce Mallory 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

– Panties Knock has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Panties Knock 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.

Highly skilled collaborators

– Panties Knock 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 On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.

Sustainable margins compare to other players in Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry

– On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Panties Knock to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Panties Knock to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.

Operational resilience

– The operational resilience strategy in the On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties 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.

Ability to recruit top talent

– Panties Knock is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.

Innovation driven organization

– Panties Knock is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.

Effective Research and Development (R&D)

– Panties Knock 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 On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.

Superior customer experience

– The customer experience strategy of Panties Knock in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.

High switching costs

– The high switching costs that Panties Knock 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.






Weaknesses On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties are -

Slow decision making process

– As mentioned earlier in the report, Panties Knock 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. Panties Knock 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 cash cycle compare to competitors

Panties Knock 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.

Low market penetration in new markets

– Outside its home market of Panties Knock, firm in the HBR case study On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.

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 Panties Knock supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Panties Knock vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.

Skills based hiring

– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Panties Knock 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.

Aligning sales with marketing

– It come across in the case study On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties 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 On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Panties Knock is planning to shift buying processes online.

High operating costs

– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties 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 Panties Knock 's lucrative customers.

Increasing silos among functional specialists

– The organizational structure of Panties Knock is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship segment. Panties Knock needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Panties Knock to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.

Need for greater diversity

– Panties Knock 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.

Interest costs

– Compare to the competition, Panties Knock 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.

Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy

– From the instances in the HBR case study On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties, it seems that the employees of Panties Knock 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.




Opportunities On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties | 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 On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties are -

Developing new processes and practices

– Panties Knock 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.

Lowering marketing communication costs

– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Panties Knock 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.

Creating value in data economy

– The success of analytics program of Panties Knock has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Panties Knock to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties case study. Panties Knock can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.

Redefining models of collaboration and team work

– As explained in the weaknesses section, Panties Knock is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties 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.

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. Panties Knock can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.

Loyalty marketing

– Panties Knock 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.

Manufacturing automation

– Panties Knock 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.

Using analytics as competitive advantage

– Panties Knock 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 On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Panties Knock to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.

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 Panties Knock in the consumer business. Now Panties Knock can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.

Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities

– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Panties Knock 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 Panties Knock to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.

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. Panties Knock can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.

Better consumer reach

– The expansion of the 5G network will help Panties Knock to increase its market reach. Panties Knock 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.

Buying journey improvements

– Panties Knock can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties 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.




Threats On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis


The threats mentioned in the HBR case study On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties are -

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 Panties Knock.

Barriers of entry lowering

– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Panties Knock with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.

Stagnating economy with rate increase

– Panties Knock 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.

Environmental challenges

– Panties Knock 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. Panties Knock can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry.

Trade war between China and United States

– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Panties Knock 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.

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. Panties Knock needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.

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 Panties Knock in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.

Increasing wage structure of Panties Knock

– 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 Panties Knock.

Consumer confidence and its impact on Panties Knock 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.

Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins

– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Panties Knock 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 On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties .

Regulatory challenges

– Panties Knock 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 Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry regulations.

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 Panties Knock business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.

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. Panties Knock 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.




Weighted SWOT Analysis of On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties 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 On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties 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 On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties 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 On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties 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 On the Ropes: Knock Out! Panties 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 Panties Knock needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.



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