Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Innovation & Entrepreneurship
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line?
To maximize their effectiveness, color cases should be printed in color.Mary Gadams, founder and CEO of RacingThePlanet is facing one of the many logistical crises that her young Hong Kong-based venture faces as it stages its popular 4Deserts(tm) adventure marathon series in Atacama Chile, Gobi Desert Mongolia, Sahara Desert Egypt, and Antarctica. How can a small company in Hong Kong continue to effectively coordinate such a far-flung, complex, global operation?
Swot Analysis of "Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line?" written by Daniel J. Isenberg includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Racingtheplanet Desert facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Entrepreneurial management, Globalization and Innovation & Entrepreneurship.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? casestudy better are - – technology disruption, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, increasing transportation and logistics costs,
banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line?
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Racingtheplanet Desert, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Racingtheplanet Desert 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 Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Racingtheplanet Desert
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 Racingtheplanet Desert
Strengths Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Racingtheplanet Desert in Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? Harvard Business Review case study are -
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Racingtheplanet Desert 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 Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry
– Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Racingtheplanet Desert to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Racingtheplanet Desert to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Racingtheplanet Desert in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Racingtheplanet Desert is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Analytics focus
– Racingtheplanet Desert 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 Daniel J. Isenberg 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.
Diverse revenue streams
– Racingtheplanet Desert is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? 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.
Training and development
– Racingtheplanet Desert has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? Harvard Business Review case study by analyzing – employees retention, in-house promotion, loyalty, new venture initiation, lack of conflict, and high level of both employees and customer engagement.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Racingtheplanet Desert 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.
High brand equity
– Racingtheplanet Desert has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Racingtheplanet Desert to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Racingtheplanet Desert has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Racingtheplanet Desert 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
– Racingtheplanet Desert 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 Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Weaknesses Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? are -
Products dominated business model
– Even though Racingtheplanet Desert has some of the most successful products in the industry, this business model has made each new product launch extremely critical for continuous financial growth of the organization. firm in the HBR case study - Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? 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 Racingtheplanet Desert 's lucrative customers.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Racingtheplanet Desert 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line?, is just above the industry average. Racingtheplanet Desert 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Racingtheplanet Desert is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship segment. Racingtheplanet Desert needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Racingtheplanet Desert to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Racingtheplanet Desert 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. Racingtheplanet Desert 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 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 Racingtheplanet Desert supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line?, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Racingtheplanet Desert vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Racingtheplanet Desert is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Racingtheplanet Desert 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Racingtheplanet Desert 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.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Daniel J. Isenberg suggests that, Racingtheplanet Desert 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 Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? | 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 Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? are -
Buying journey improvements
– Racingtheplanet Desert can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Racingtheplanet Desert 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Racingtheplanet Desert to increase its market reach. Racingtheplanet Desert 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Racingtheplanet Desert 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.
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. Racingtheplanet Desert 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 Racingtheplanet Desert 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 Racingtheplanet Desert to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Manufacturing automation
– Racingtheplanet Desert 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
– Racingtheplanet Desert 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, Racingtheplanet Desert 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, Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line?, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Racingtheplanet Desert has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Racingtheplanet Desert to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? case study. Racingtheplanet Desert can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Loyalty marketing
– Racingtheplanet Desert 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Racingtheplanet Desert is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? 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. Racingtheplanet Desert can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Threats Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? are -
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Racingtheplanet Desert 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 Racingtheplanet Desert 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.
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 Racingtheplanet Desert in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Racingtheplanet Desert 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 Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? .
Regulatory challenges
– Racingtheplanet Desert 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.
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.
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 Racingtheplanet Desert.
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 Racingtheplanet Desert business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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. Racingtheplanet Desert needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Racingtheplanet Desert has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Racingtheplanet Desert needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship sector. According to Mckinsey study top managers believe that the adoption of technology in operations, communications is 20-25 times faster than what they planned in the beginning of 2019.
Increasing wage structure of Racingtheplanet Desert
– 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 Racingtheplanet Desert.
Environmental challenges
– Racingtheplanet Desert 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. Racingtheplanet Desert can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Racingtheplanet Desert with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? 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 Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? 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 Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? 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 Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? 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 Will RacingThePlanet Ltd. Reach the Finish Line? 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 Racingtheplanet Desert needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
