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Caroline Regis at Excel Systems SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution

Case Study Description of Caroline Regis at Excel Systems


The case describes the effects of a proposed change in Excel's manufacturing strategy as seen through the eyes of the company's VP of Manufacturing, Caroline Regis. Following a merger with Gemini, Excel's new CEO advocates a new manufacturing strategy: outsourcing. Regis is threatened by the diminution in the role of in-house manufacturing and by the VP for Supply Chain Management at Gemini. The case traces Regis's reactions to the proposal. She seems ready to accede to the organizational politics and support the new strategy, only to change her mind and anger her superiors, who thought she would support the plan. She tries to seize control of the situation and threatens to resign if she is not allowed to determine the appropriate strategy. The case facilitates analysis and discussion of career and personal development issues regularly faced by high-potential employees by showing that particular career and behavior strategies that are successful at one point can become dysfunctional as professionals advance through an organization.

Authors :: Anthony J. Mayo, Michael J. Roberts

Topics :: Leadership & Managing People

Tags :: Change management, Conflict, Developing employees, Influence, Leadership, Managing up, Manufacturing, Organizational culture, Technology, SWOT Analysis, SWOT Matrix, TOWS, Weighted SWOT Analysis

Swot Analysis of "Caroline Regis at Excel Systems" written by Anthony J. Mayo, Michael J. Roberts includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Regis Excel's facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Caroline Regis at Excel Systems case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Change management, Conflict, Developing employees, Influence, Leadership, Managing up, Manufacturing, Organizational culture, Technology and Leadership & Managing People.


Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Caroline Regis at Excel Systems casestudy better are - – talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, increasing energy prices, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, increasing commodity prices, there is backlash against globalization, increasing transportation and logistics costs, technology disruption, etc



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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Caroline Regis at Excel Systems


SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Caroline Regis at Excel Systems case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Regis Excel's, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Regis Excel'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 Caroline Regis at Excel Systems can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Caroline Regis at Excel Systems case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Regis Excel's
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 Regis Excel's




Strengths Caroline Regis at Excel Systems | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of Regis Excel's in Caroline Regis at Excel Systems Harvard Business Review case study are -

Ability to lead change in Leadership & Managing People field

– Regis Excel'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 Regis Excel's in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.

Analytics focus

– Regis Excel's 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 Anthony J. Mayo, Michael J. Roberts 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.

Sustainable margins compare to other players in Leadership & Managing People industry

– Caroline Regis at Excel Systems firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Regis Excel's to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Regis Excel's to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.

Strong track record of project management

– Regis Excel's is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.

Organizational Resilience of Regis Excel's

– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Regis Excel's does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.

Training and development

– Regis Excel's has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Caroline Regis at Excel Systems 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.

Highly skilled collaborators

– Regis Excel'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 Caroline Regis at Excel Systems HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.

Low bargaining power of suppliers

– Suppliers of Regis Excel's in the sector have low bargaining power. Caroline Regis at Excel Systems has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Regis Excel's to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.

Digital Transformation in Leadership & Managing People segment

- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Regis Excel's digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Regis Excel's 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.

Effective Research and Development (R&D)

– Regis Excel'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 Caroline Regis at Excel Systems - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.

Learning organization

- Regis Excel'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 Regis Excel's is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Caroline Regis at Excel Systems Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.

Cross disciplinary teams

– Horizontal connected teams at the Regis Excel'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.






Weaknesses Caroline Regis at Excel Systems | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of Caroline Regis at Excel Systems are -

Slow decision making process

– As mentioned earlier in the report, Regis Excel'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. Regis Excel'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.

Ability to respond to the competition

– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Caroline Regis at Excel Systems, in the dynamic environment Regis Excel's has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Regis Excel's has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.

Slow to strategic competitive environment developments

– As Caroline Regis at Excel Systems HBR case study mentions - Regis Excel's 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.

Workers concerns about automation

– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Regis Excel'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.

Aligning sales with marketing

– It come across in the case study Caroline Regis at Excel Systems 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 Caroline Regis at Excel Systems can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Regis Excel's is planning to shift buying processes online.

High operating costs

– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Caroline Regis at Excel Systems has high operating costs in the. This can be harder to sustain given the new emerging competition from nimble players who are using technology to attract Regis Excel's 's lucrative customers.

High bargaining power of channel partners

– Because of the regulatory requirements, Anthony J. Mayo, Michael J. Roberts suggests that, Regis Excel's is facing high bargaining power of the channel partners. So far it has not able to streamline the operations to reduce the bargaining power of the value chain partners in the industry.

Compensation and incentives

– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Caroline Regis at Excel Systems, is just above the industry average. Regis Excel's 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.

Lack of clear differentiation of Regis Excel's products

– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Regis Excel's needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.

Need for greater diversity

– Regis Excel's has taken concrete steps on diversity, equity, and inclusion. But the efforts so far has resulted in limited success. It needs to expand the recruitment and selection process to hire more people from the minorities and underprivileged background.

Low market penetration in new markets

– Outside its home market of Regis Excel's, firm in the HBR case study Caroline Regis at Excel Systems needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.




Opportunities Caroline Regis at Excel Systems | 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 Caroline Regis at Excel Systems are -

Developing new processes and practices

– Regis Excel's 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.

Finding new ways to collaborate

– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Leadership & Managing People industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Regis Excel's can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.

Reforming the budgeting process

- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Regis Excel's can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.

Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19

– Consumer behavior has changed in the Leadership & Managing People industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Regis Excel's can take advantage of these changes in consumer behavior to build a far more efficient business model. For example consumer regular ordering of products can reduce both last mile delivery costs and market penetration costs. Regis Excel's can further use this consumer data to build better customer loyalty, provide better products and service collection, and improve the value proposition in inflationary times.

Learning at scale

– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Regis Excel's 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.

Building a culture of innovation

– managers at Regis Excel'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 Leadership & Managing People segment.

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 Regis Excel's 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.

Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains

– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Regis Excel'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, Caroline Regis at Excel Systems, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.

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. Regis Excel's can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.

Redefining models of collaboration and team work

– As explained in the weaknesses section, Regis Excel's is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Caroline Regis at Excel Systems 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.

Increase in government spending

– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Regis Excel's can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Regis Excel's operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.

Buying journey improvements

– Regis Excel's can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Caroline Regis at Excel Systems 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.

Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities

– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Regis Excel's 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 Regis Excel's to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.




Threats Caroline Regis at Excel Systems External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis


The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Caroline Regis at Excel Systems are -

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 Regis Excel's.

Increasing wage structure of Regis Excel'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 Regis Excel's.

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. Regis Excel's 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

– Regis Excel's 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.

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.

Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins

– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Regis Excel'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 Caroline Regis at Excel Systems .

Shortening product life cycle

– it is one of the major threat that Regis Excel's is facing in Leadership & Managing People sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.

Environmental challenges

– Regis Excel'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. Regis Excel's can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry.

Regulatory challenges

– Regis Excel'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 Leadership & Managing People industry regulations.

Trade war between China and United States

– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Regis Excel's 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.

Consumer confidence and its impact on Regis Excel's 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.

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 Regis Excel's in the Leadership & Managing People sector and impact the bottomline 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. Regis Excel'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.




Weighted SWOT Analysis of Caroline Regis at Excel Systems 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 Caroline Regis at Excel Systems 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 Caroline Regis at Excel Systems 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 Caroline Regis at Excel Systems 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 Caroline Regis at Excel Systems 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 Regis Excel's needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.



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