Case Study Description of ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged)
ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp., a development-stage biotechnology company, is considering making an initial offering of common stock. The rationales for and problems of high-technology start-ups are explored. The challenges posed by "windows" for public offerings are highlighted.
Swot Analysis of "ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged)" written by Josh Lerner includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Immulogic Pharmaceutical facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Entrepreneurial management, Financial analysis, Financial management, Financial markets, IPO and Finance & Accounting.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) casestudy better are - – there is increasing trade war between United States & China, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, there is backlash against globalization, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, increasing commodity prices,
cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Immulogic Pharmaceutical, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Immulogic Pharmaceutical 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 ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Immulogic Pharmaceutical
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Finance & Accounting field.
4. Making a Finance & Accounting topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Immulogic Pharmaceutical
Strengths ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Immulogic Pharmaceutical in ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) Harvard Business Review case study are -
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Immulogic Pharmaceutical 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 ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
High brand equity
– Immulogic Pharmaceutical has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Immulogic Pharmaceutical to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Immulogic Pharmaceutical 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 ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Immulogic Pharmaceutical has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Immulogic Pharmaceutical 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.
Learning organization
- Immulogic Pharmaceutical 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 Immulogic Pharmaceutical is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) 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.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Immulogic Pharmaceutical 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
– Immulogic Pharmaceutical is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) 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.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Immulogic Pharmaceutical is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Finance & Accounting industry
– ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Immulogic Pharmaceutical to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Finance & Accounting industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Immulogic Pharmaceutical to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Ability to lead change in Finance & Accounting field
– Immulogic Pharmaceutical 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 Immulogic Pharmaceutical in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Immulogic Pharmaceutical in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Weaknesses ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) are -
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged), in the dynamic environment Immulogic Pharmaceutical has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Immulogic Pharmaceutical has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Lack of clear differentiation of Immulogic Pharmaceutical products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Immulogic Pharmaceutical needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Immulogic Pharmaceutical 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. Immulogic Pharmaceutical 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged), it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Finance & Accounting 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.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged), it seems that the employees of Immulogic Pharmaceutical 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Immulogic Pharmaceutical 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.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) 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 Immulogic Pharmaceutical 's lucrative customers.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) HBR case study mentions - Immulogic Pharmaceutical 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) 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 ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Immulogic Pharmaceutical is planning to shift buying processes online.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Immulogic Pharmaceutical 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Immulogic Pharmaceutical, firm in the HBR case study ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Opportunities ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) | 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 ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) are -
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Immulogic Pharmaceutical to increase its market reach. Immulogic Pharmaceutical 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Immulogic Pharmaceutical can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Immulogic Pharmaceutical operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Finance & Accounting sector.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Immulogic Pharmaceutical can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Immulogic Pharmaceutical 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, ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged), to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Loyalty marketing
– Immulogic Pharmaceutical 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
– Immulogic Pharmaceutical can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Finance & Accounting 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Immulogic Pharmaceutical 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.
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 Immulogic Pharmaceutical in the consumer business. Now Immulogic Pharmaceutical can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
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. Immulogic Pharmaceutical can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Immulogic Pharmaceutical 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 ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Immulogic Pharmaceutical to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Finance & Accounting industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Immulogic Pharmaceutical can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Immulogic Pharmaceutical 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 Finance & Accounting segment.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Immulogic Pharmaceutical 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 Immulogic Pharmaceutical to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Threats ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) are -
Consumer confidence and its impact on Immulogic Pharmaceutical 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, Immulogic Pharmaceutical 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 ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) .
Regulatory challenges
– Immulogic Pharmaceutical 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 Finance & Accounting industry regulations.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Finance & Accounting field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Immulogic Pharmaceutical can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Immulogic Pharmaceutical high dependence on third party suppliers can disrupt its processes and delivery mechanism. For example -the current troubles of car makers because of chip shortage is because the chip companies started producing chips for electronic companies rather than car manufacturers.
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. Immulogic Pharmaceutical 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.
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 Immulogic Pharmaceutical in the Finance & Accounting sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Immulogic Pharmaceutical 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
– Immulogic Pharmaceutical 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. Immulogic Pharmaceutical can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Finance & Accounting industry.
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.
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 Immulogic Pharmaceutical business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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.
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. Immulogic Pharmaceutical needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Finance & Accounting industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) 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 ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) 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 ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) 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 ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) 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 ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp. (Abridged) 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 Immulogic Pharmaceutical needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
