Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Innovation & Entrepreneurship
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry
This FocusCase is about a young VC-backed technology company in the UK, trying to turn around from a near-death crisis after their market did not pick up. The company Argo Interactive focused, with their innovative software product, on the newly emerging WAP-market. However, after burning through 14 million pound sterling of venture capital, the market had still not shown any signs of life, and the senior management team needed to make an urgent decision on how to continue. On September 11, 2001 - while they were having their crisis meeting - they found out that the regular newspapers were already distributing printed copies with color photos of the terror attacks on the World Trade Center, while even CNN did not mention it on their WAP-site until many hours later. After their main investors had heard about this news and about management's plans to make significant changes, they invoked a material adverse change clause, preventing the firm from drowning down any further cash from the previous round. Would the best option be to shut down the firm immediately or should the management team try to turn the firm around? If deciding for the latter, which decisions should they take with regard to financing, market focus, product (re-)development, HR issues, positioning and the overall survival strategy of the firm?
Authors :: Julia Prats Moreno, Marc Sosna, Dave Darsch
Swot Analysis of "Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry" written by Julia Prats Moreno, Marc Sosna, Dave Darsch includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Wap Argo facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Crisis management, Financial management, Growth strategy, Reorganization and Innovation & Entrepreneurship.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry casestudy better are - – talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, increasing energy prices, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, technology disruption,
wage bills are increasing, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Wap Argo, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Wap Argo 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 Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Wap Argo
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 Wap Argo
Strengths Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Wap Argo in Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry Harvard Business Review case study are -
Diverse revenue streams
– Wap Argo is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry case study a diverse revenue stream that has helped it to survive disruptions such as global pandemic in Covid-19, financial disruption of 2008, and supply chain disruption of 2021.
Innovation driven organization
– Wap Argo is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Wap Argo in the sector have low bargaining power. Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Wap Argo to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Wap Argo has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Wap Argo 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.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Wap Argo has built up over years in its products and services combo offer has resulted in high retention of customers, lower marketing costs, and greater ability of the firm to focus on its customers.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Wap Argo 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 Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Wap Argo is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Wap Argo in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Learning organization
- Wap Argo 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 Wap Argo is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Digital Transformation in Innovation & Entrepreneurship segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Wap Argo digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Wap Argo 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Wap Argo 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 Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry 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 Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry are -
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Wap Argo, firm in the HBR case study Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Wap Argo 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.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Wap Argo 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Wap Argo 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, Wap Argo 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry 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 Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Wap Argo is planning to shift buying processes online.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry HBR case study mentions - Wap Argo 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
Wap Argo 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 dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry 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 Wap Argo has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Julia Prats Moreno, Marc Sosna, Dave Darsch suggests that, Wap Argo 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, Wap Argo 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. Wap Argo 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.
Opportunities Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry | 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 Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry are -
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 Wap Argo 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Wap Argo can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Wap Argo operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Innovation & Entrepreneurship sector.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Wap Argo 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 Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Wap Argo to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
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. Wap Argo can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
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. Wap Argo can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Wap Argo 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 Wap Argo to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Manufacturing automation
– Wap Argo 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Wap Argo 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Wap Argo 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 Wap Argo 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Wap Argo can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Wap Argo is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry 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
– Wap Argo can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry 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 Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry 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. Wap Argo needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Wap Argo 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 Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry .
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 Wap Argo 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. Wap Argo 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.
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. Wap Argo can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Capital market disruption
– During the Covid-19, Dow Jones has touched record high. The valuations of a number of companies are way beyond their existing business model potential. This can lead to capital market correction which can put a number of suppliers, collaborators, value chain partners in great financial difficulty. It will directly impact the business of Wap Argo.
Regulatory challenges
– Wap Argo 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.
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 Wap Argo in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Wap Argo 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
– Wap Argo 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Wap Argo 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.
Environmental challenges
– Wap Argo 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. Wap Argo can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry.
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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry 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 Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry 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 Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry 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 Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry 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 Argo Interactive (A): Surviving in the Roller-Coasting Mobile Industry 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 Wap Argo needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
