Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Innovation & Entrepreneurship
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box
Innovation was linked to Timberland's heritage. In 2005, CEO Jeff Swartz and COO Ken Pucker hoped the Invention Factory, an advanced concept lab, would develop new breakthrough products and reinvigorate the company's culture of innovation. Since the 1960s, Timberland had relied on innovation, developing the world's first waterproof boot and, in the 1980s, category-defining boat shoes and day hiking boots. Creating variations of these core products, along with expansion into apparel, had sustained Timberland's business for more than 30 years. Timberland's growth in the past six years was due to increased international sales and new customer segments. As Timberland's leaders looked to the future, they hoped Doug Clark, a biomechanist, and his Invention Factory team would bring a scientific approach toward building the next generation of Timberland products and ideas. The team had to convince those in the mainstream business to accept their new ideas and integrate them back into the product line.
Swot Analysis of "Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box" written by Rosabeth Moss Kanter, Ryan Raffaelli includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Timberland's Timberland facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Growth strategy, Leadership, Organizational culture, Product development and Innovation & Entrepreneurship.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box casestudy better are - – increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, wage bills are increasing, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, there is backlash against globalization, there is increasing trade war between United States & China,
technology disruption, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Timberland's Timberland, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Timberland's Timberland 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 Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Timberland's Timberland
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 Timberland's Timberland
Strengths Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Timberland's Timberland in Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box Harvard Business Review case study are -
Analytics focus
– Timberland's Timberland 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 Rosabeth Moss Kanter, Ryan Raffaelli 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Timberland's Timberland 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 Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Timberland's Timberland in the sector have low bargaining power. Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Timberland's Timberland to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Timberland's Timberland 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 Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Learning organization
- Timberland's Timberland 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 Timberland's Timberland is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box 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.
Digital Transformation in Innovation & Entrepreneurship segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Timberland's Timberland digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Timberland's Timberland 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.
High brand equity
– Timberland's Timberland has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Timberland's Timberland to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Timberland's Timberland in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Timberland's Timberland has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Timberland's Timberland 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.
Ability to lead change in Innovation & Entrepreneurship field
– Timberland's Timberland 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 Timberland's Timberland in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry
– Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Timberland's Timberland to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Timberland's Timberland to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Weaknesses Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box are -
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Timberland's Timberland 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. Timberland's Timberland 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Timberland's Timberland products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Timberland's Timberland needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box HBR case study mentions - Timberland's Timberland 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.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box, it seems that the employees of Timberland's Timberland 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 Timberland's Timberland is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship segment. Timberland's Timberland needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Timberland's Timberland to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
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 Timberland's Timberland supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Timberland's Timberland vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Timberland's Timberland 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box, in the dynamic environment Timberland's Timberland has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Timberland's Timberland has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Timberland's Timberland 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box 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 Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Timberland's Timberland is planning to shift buying processes online.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Timberland's Timberland has created an environment where the organization is dominated by functional specialists rather than management generalist. This has resulted into product oriented approach rather than marketing oriented approach or consumers oriented approach.
Opportunities Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box | 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 Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box are -
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. Timberland's Timberland 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
– Timberland's Timberland 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 Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Timberland's Timberland to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Timberland's Timberland is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Timberland's Timberland in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
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. Timberland's Timberland can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Manufacturing automation
– Timberland's Timberland 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Timberland's Timberland 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, Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Buying journey improvements
– Timberland's Timberland can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Timberland's Timberland 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Timberland's Timberland 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Timberland's Timberland 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Timberland's Timberland has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Timberland's Timberland to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box case study. Timberland's Timberland 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 Timberland's Timberland 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.
Threats Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box are -
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. Timberland's Timberland 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
– Timberland's Timberland 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Timberland's Timberland 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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box, Timberland's Timberland may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Innovation & Entrepreneurship .
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Timberland's Timberland 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 Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box .
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 Timberland's Timberland.
Regulatory challenges
– Timberland's Timberland 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.
Increasing wage structure of Timberland's Timberland
– 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 Timberland's Timberland.
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. Timberland's Timberland needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Timberland's Timberland with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Environmental challenges
– Timberland's Timberland 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. Timberland's Timberland can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry.
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 Timberland's Timberland in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Timberland's Timberland in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. The Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry is already at various protected from local competition in China, with the rise of trade war the protection levels may go up. This presents a clear threat of current business model in Chinese market.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box 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 Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box 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 Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box 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 Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box 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 Innovation at Timberland: Thinking Outside the Shoe Box 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 Timberland's Timberland needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
