Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory
The case narrates how A.P.V.N. Sarma, chairman and managing director (CMD) appointed in 1997, realized the pressing need for change to rescue Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL) from impending bankruptcy. SCCL was declared "sick" (bankrupt) by the Board for Industrial and Financial Reconstruction (BIFR) twice, in 1992 and 1996. It had accumulated losses of 12.19 billion rupees. As it provided direct and indirect employment to people residing in the region around SCCL, the well-being of the organization was critical not only for the mammoth workforce, but also for the state of Andhra Pradesh (AP). The power generation units of the state relied significantly on the coal supplied by SCCL. The case captures various initiatives undertaken by Sarma to bridge the trust deficit between management and blue-collared workers with low literacy and income levels. It discusses the novel communication strategies to connect with workers. The case describes how numerous strikes plaguing SCCL were curbed, and order was restored to allow productivity to rise. Under Sarma's leadership, SCCL achieved a net profit of 894.1 million rupees for the fourth consecutive year in 2001. Sarma had a fixed tenure of five years which ended in 2001. The task for the new leader was to build on the foundations laid by Sarma and take the performance of SCCL to new heights.
Swot Analysis of "Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory" written by S. Ramnarayan, Neha Gupta includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Sccl Sarma facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Communication, International business, Labor, Leadership, Organizational culture and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory casestudy better are - – geopolitical disruptions, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies,
there is backlash against globalization, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Sccl Sarma, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Sccl Sarma 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 Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Sccl Sarma
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 Sccl Sarma
Strengths Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Sccl Sarma in Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory Harvard Business Review case study are -
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory 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.
Learning organization
- Sccl Sarma 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 Sccl Sarma is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Innovation driven organization
– Sccl Sarma is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Training and development
– Sccl Sarma has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Leadership & Managing People industry
– Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Sccl Sarma to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Sccl Sarma to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Digital Transformation in Leadership & Managing People segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Sccl Sarma digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Sccl Sarma 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.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Sccl Sarma is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Sccl Sarma in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Sccl Sarma in the sector have low bargaining power. Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Sccl Sarma to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Sccl Sarma has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Sccl Sarma 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Sccl Sarma is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Sccl Sarma 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.
Weaknesses Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory are -
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory, 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Sccl Sarma 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 - Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Sccl Sarma 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory 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 Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Sccl Sarma is planning to shift buying processes online.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory, it seems that the employees of Sccl Sarma 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 Sccl Sarma is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Leadership & Managing People segment. Sccl Sarma needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Sccl Sarma to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Sccl Sarma 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. Sccl Sarma 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 Sccl Sarma products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Sccl Sarma needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory, is just above the industry average. Sccl Sarma 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Sccl Sarma 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 Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory 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 Sccl Sarma has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Opportunities Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory | 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 Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory are -
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Sccl Sarma 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 Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Sccl Sarma to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Loyalty marketing
– Sccl Sarma 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Sccl Sarma can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Sccl Sarma operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Sccl Sarma 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 Sccl Sarma to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Sccl Sarma 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 Leadership & Managing People segment.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Sccl Sarma 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, Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory, 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
– Sccl Sarma can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory 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 Sccl Sarma can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Sccl Sarma in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Leadership & Managing People segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Sccl Sarma is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory 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, Sccl Sarma 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.
Reconfiguring business model
– The expansion of digital payment system, the bringing down of international transactions costs using Bitcoin and other blockchain based currencies, etc can help Sccl Sarma to reconfigure its entire business model. For example it can used blockchain based technologies to reduce piracy of its products in the big markets such as China. Secondly it can use the popularity of e-commerce in various developing markets to build a Direct to Customer business model rather than the current Channel Heavy distribution network.
Manufacturing automation
– Sccl Sarma 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.
Threats Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory are -
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Sccl Sarma is facing in Leadership & Managing People sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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. Sccl Sarma can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Environmental challenges
– Sccl Sarma 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. Sccl Sarma can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Sccl Sarma has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Sccl Sarma 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.
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 Sccl Sarma.
Regulatory challenges
– Sccl Sarma 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Sccl Sarma 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. Sccl Sarma needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Sccl Sarma 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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Sccl Sarma 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.
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.
Increasing wage structure of Sccl Sarma
– 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 Sccl Sarma.
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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory 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 Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory 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 Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory 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 Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory 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 Singareni Collieries: From Gloom to Glory 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 Sccl Sarma needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.