Case Study Description of Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B)
This brief (B) case documents the fate of Mitsubishi and the shipping company NYK after the death of Yataro Iwasaki in 1885. The case supplements case 808-158, "Yataro Iwaski: Founding Mitsubishi (A)."
Authors :: Geoffrey G. Jones, Masako Egawa, Mayuka Yamazaki
Swot Analysis of "Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B)" written by Geoffrey G. Jones, Masako Egawa, Mayuka Yamazaki includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Yataro Mitsubishi facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Entrepreneurship, Globalization, Leadership and Innovation & Entrepreneurship.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) casestudy better are - – technology disruption, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, wage bills are increasing,
banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, increasing energy prices, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Yataro Mitsubishi, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Yataro Mitsubishi 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 Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Yataro Mitsubishi
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 Yataro Mitsubishi
Strengths Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Yataro Mitsubishi in Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) Harvard Business Review case study are -
Analytics focus
– Yataro Mitsubishi 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 Geoffrey G. Jones, Masako Egawa, Mayuka Yamazaki 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.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Yataro Mitsubishi 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 Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Yataro Mitsubishi 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 Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Yataro Mitsubishi in the sector have low bargaining power. Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Yataro Mitsubishi to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Ability to lead change in Innovation & Entrepreneurship field
– Yataro Mitsubishi 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 Yataro Mitsubishi 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 Yataro Mitsubishi 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.
Diverse revenue streams
– Yataro Mitsubishi is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Yataro Mitsubishi 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.
Digital Transformation in Innovation & Entrepreneurship segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Yataro Mitsubishi digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Yataro Mitsubishi 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.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Yataro Mitsubishi is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Learning organization
- Yataro Mitsubishi 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 Yataro Mitsubishi is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Weaknesses Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) are -
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) HBR case study mentions - Yataro Mitsubishi 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Yataro Mitsubishi is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B), is just above the industry average. Yataro Mitsubishi 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) 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 Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Yataro Mitsubishi is planning to shift buying processes online.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) 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 Yataro Mitsubishi has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
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 Yataro Mitsubishi supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B), it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Yataro Mitsubishi vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B), 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Yataro Mitsubishi 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Yataro Mitsubishi 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.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Yataro Mitsubishi 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. Yataro Mitsubishi 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 bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Geoffrey G. Jones, Masako Egawa, Mayuka Yamazaki suggests that, Yataro Mitsubishi 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.
Opportunities Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) | 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 Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) are -
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Yataro Mitsubishi 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 Yataro Mitsubishi to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
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. Yataro Mitsubishi 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. Yataro Mitsubishi 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Yataro Mitsubishi can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Yataro Mitsubishi has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Yataro Mitsubishi to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) case study. Yataro Mitsubishi can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Yataro Mitsubishi 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.
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. Yataro Mitsubishi can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Yataro Mitsubishi 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, Yataro Mitsubishi 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.
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 Yataro Mitsubishi in the consumer business. Now Yataro Mitsubishi can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
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 Yataro Mitsubishi 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Yataro Mitsubishi to increase its market reach. Yataro Mitsubishi 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
– Yataro Mitsubishi can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) suggest that firm can provide automated chats to help consumers solve their own problems, provide online suggestions to get maximum out of the products and services, and help consumers to build a community where they can interact with each other to develop new features and uses.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Yataro Mitsubishi 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, Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B), to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Threats Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) are -
Regulatory challenges
– Yataro Mitsubishi 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.
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. Yataro Mitsubishi 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.
Environmental challenges
– Yataro Mitsubishi 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. Yataro Mitsubishi can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship 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 Yataro Mitsubishi business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, 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 Yataro Mitsubishi.
Increasing wage structure of Yataro Mitsubishi
– 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 Yataro Mitsubishi.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Yataro Mitsubishi 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
– Yataro Mitsubishi 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.
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. Yataro Mitsubishi needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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. Yataro Mitsubishi can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Yataro Mitsubishi 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 Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) .
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.
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 Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) 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 Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) 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 Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) 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 Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) 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 Yataro Iwasaki: Founding Mitsubishi (B) 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 Yataro Mitsubishi needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.