Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force
The SEALs are the elite special forces of the U.S. Navy. Their selection and training is exceptionally rigorous, with a heavy emphasis on physical condition, stamina, and mental toughness. However, the SEALs have a wide range of missions, many of which are highly sensitive. The case takes place in 2014, as the head of the command charged with SEAL selection and training considers whether some candidates who would make excellent SEALs are being excluded, and some that might be poor in the field are passing. The case examines the selection and training process, and suggests some changes that might be considered.
Authors :: Hayagreeva Rao, Carter Bowen, Gib Lopez
Swot Analysis of "Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force" written by Hayagreeva Rao, Carter Bowen, Gib Lopez includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Seals Training facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Government, Hiring, Talent management and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force casestudy better are - – there is backlash against globalization, wage bills are increasing, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, increasing commodity prices, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, increasing energy prices,
talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Seals Training, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Seals Training 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 Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Seals Training
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Leadership & Managing People field.
4. Making a Leadership & Managing People topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Seals Training
Strengths Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Seals Training in Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force Harvard Business Review case study are -
Ability to lead change in Leadership & Managing People field
– Seals Training 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 Seals Training in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Seals Training 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Seals Training is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Leadership & Managing People industry
– Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Seals Training to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Seals Training to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Organizational Resilience of Seals Training
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Seals Training does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Seals Training 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 Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Seals Training is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Seals Training 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
– Seals Training is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Seals Training is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Seals Training in the sector have low bargaining power. Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Seals Training to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Weaknesses Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force are -
Products dominated business model
– Even though Seals Training 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 - Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Seals Training is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force HBR case study mentions - Seals Training 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force, is just above the industry average. Seals Training 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Leadership & Managing People 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.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Seals Training 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Seals Training products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Seals Training needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force, in the dynamic environment Seals Training has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Seals Training has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Seals Training 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.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Seals Training 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Seals Training, firm in the HBR case study Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Opportunities Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force | 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 Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force are -
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Seals Training 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Seals Training can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
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. Seals Training can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Seals Training can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Seals Training operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.
Buying journey improvements
– Seals Training can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Seals Training to increase its market reach. Seals Training 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Seals Training can develop new processes and procedures in Leadership & Managing People 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Seals Training 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
– Seals Training can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Leadership & Managing People 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Seals Training has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Seals Training to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force case study. Seals Training can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Seals Training is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Seals Training 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 Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Seals Training to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Seals Training 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 Seals Training to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Threats Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force are -
Regulatory challenges
– Seals Training 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 Leadership & Managing People industry regulations.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Leadership & Managing People field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Seals Training can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Seals Training with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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. Seals Training needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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. Seals Training 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.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Seals Training 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.
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 Seals Training business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Seals Training in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The Leadership & Managing People 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.
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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force, Seals Training may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Leadership & Managing People .
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 Seals Training.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Seals Training 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 Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force .
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Seals Training has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Seals Training needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Leadership & Managing People 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force 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 Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force 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 Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force 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 Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force 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 Navy SEALs: Selecting and Training for an Elite Fighting Force 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 Seals Training needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.