Case Study Description of Fleet Managed Assets Division (A)
Paul Kennedy, executive director of Fleet's Managed Asset Division, must decide whether to extend further credit to Polaroid Corp. in the fall of 2001. Polaroid's credit rating had been declining rapidly, but it was a major employer in the Boston area with many employees who were Fleet Bank customers.
Swot Analysis of "Fleet Managed Assets Division (A)" written by Paul W. Marshall, Todd Thedinga includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Fleet Fleet's facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, and Finance & Accounting.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) casestudy better are - – central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, increasing transportation and logistics costs, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs,
wage bills are increasing, geopolitical disruptions, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Fleet Managed Assets Division (A)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Fleet Fleet's, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Fleet Fleet's 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 Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Fleet Fleet's
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 Fleet Fleet's
Strengths Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Fleet Fleet's in Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) Harvard Business Review case study are -
Highly skilled collaborators
– Fleet Fleet's 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 Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
High brand equity
– Fleet Fleet's has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Fleet Fleet's to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Diverse revenue streams
– Fleet Fleet's is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) 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.
Organizational Resilience of Fleet Fleet's
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Fleet Fleet's does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Training and development
– Fleet Fleet's has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Fleet Fleet's 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 Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) Harvard Business Review case study comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the industry, building diversified operations across different geographies so that disruption in one part of the world doesn’t impact the overall performance of the firm, and integrating the various business operations and processes through its digital transformation drive.
Ability to lead change in Finance & Accounting field
– Fleet Fleet's 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 Fleet Fleet's in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Innovation driven organization
– Fleet Fleet's is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Learning organization
- Fleet Fleet's 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 Fleet Fleet's is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Fleet Fleet's in the sector have low bargaining power. Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Fleet Fleet's to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Fleet Fleet's 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 Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Weaknesses Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) are -
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 Fleet Fleet's supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Fleet Managed Assets Division (A), it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Fleet Fleet's vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Lack of clear differentiation of Fleet Fleet's products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Fleet Fleet's 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, Fleet Fleet's 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. Fleet Fleet's 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Fleet Fleet's 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.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) 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 Fleet Fleet's has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Fleet Fleet's 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 cash cycle compare to competitors
Fleet Fleet's 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.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Fleet Fleet's 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.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Fleet Managed Assets Division (A), it seems that the employees of Fleet Fleet's 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Fleet Fleet's is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Finance & Accounting segment. Fleet Fleet's needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Fleet Fleet's to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Fleet Fleet's 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 - Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Opportunities Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) | 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 Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) are -
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Fleet Fleet's 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, Fleet Managed Assets Division (A), to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Fleet Fleet's can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Fleet Fleet's operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Finance & Accounting sector.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Fleet Fleet's is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Fleet Fleet's 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Fleet Fleet's can develop new processes and procedures in Finance & Accounting industry using technology such as automation using artificial intelligence, real time transportation and products tracking, 3D modeling for concept development and new products pilot testing etc.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Fleet Fleet's in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Finance & Accounting segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Buying journey improvements
– Fleet Fleet's can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Fleet Fleet's can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Fleet Fleet's to increase its market reach. Fleet Fleet's 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Fleet Fleet's 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.
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. Fleet Fleet's can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Fleet Fleet's 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 Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Fleet Fleet's to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Fleet Fleet's 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.
Threats Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) are -
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 Fleet Fleet's in the Finance & Accounting sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
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 Fleet Fleet's.
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.
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. Fleet Fleet's 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Fleet Fleet's 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.
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 acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Fleet Fleet's has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Finance & Accounting industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Fleet Fleet's needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Finance & Accounting 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Fleet Fleet's with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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 Fleet Fleet's business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Increasing wage structure of Fleet Fleet's
– 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 Fleet Fleet's.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Fleet Fleet's 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 Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) .
Environmental challenges
– Fleet Fleet's 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. Fleet Fleet's can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Finance & Accounting industry.
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. Fleet Fleet's can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) 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 Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) 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 Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) 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 Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) 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 Fleet Managed Assets Division (A) 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 Fleet Fleet's needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
