Case Study Description of NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc.
NASDAQ's mission "to facilitate capital formation" is threatened by the emergence of Electronic Communication Networks, which are not as heavily regulated by the SEC. This case reviews the development of NASDAQ and its evolution from a loose network of broker-dealers through to its proposed SuperMontage. SuperMontage is a centralized order book, where multiple parties can place orders (both buy and sell) for the stocks they wish to trade and where entire supply and demand curves can be displayed. To understand the context, students will learn about the structure of the capital markets and why it concerns regulators and investors.
Swot Analysis of "NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc." written by Andre F. Perold, Austin Scee includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Supermontage Nasdaq facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Financial markets, Negotiations and Finance & Accounting.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. casestudy better are - – competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , technology disruption, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, 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 NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc.
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Supermontage Nasdaq, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Supermontage Nasdaq 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 NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Supermontage Nasdaq
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Finance & Accounting field.
4. Making a Finance & Accounting topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Supermontage Nasdaq
Strengths NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Supermontage Nasdaq in NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. Harvard Business Review case study are -
High brand equity
– Supermontage Nasdaq has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Supermontage Nasdaq to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Organizational Resilience of Supermontage Nasdaq
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Supermontage Nasdaq does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Supermontage Nasdaq in the sector have low bargaining power. NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Supermontage Nasdaq to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. 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.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Supermontage Nasdaq 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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Supermontage Nasdaq in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Training and development
– Supermontage Nasdaq has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. Harvard Business Review case study by analyzing – employees retention, in-house promotion, loyalty, new venture initiation, lack of conflict, and high level of both employees and customer engagement.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Supermontage Nasdaq 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
– Supermontage Nasdaq is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Innovation driven organization
– Supermontage Nasdaq is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Digital Transformation in Finance & Accounting segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Supermontage Nasdaq digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Supermontage Nasdaq 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
– Supermontage Nasdaq is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Weaknesses NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. are -
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Supermontage Nasdaq, firm in the HBR case study NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. 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 Supermontage Nasdaq 's lucrative customers.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. 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 Supermontage Nasdaq has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
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 Supermontage Nasdaq supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc., it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Supermontage Nasdaq vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Supermontage Nasdaq 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 - NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Supermontage Nasdaq 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 bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Andre F. Perold, Austin Scee suggests that, Supermontage Nasdaq 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Supermontage Nasdaq is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Finance & Accounting segment. Supermontage Nasdaq needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Supermontage Nasdaq to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Supermontage Nasdaq 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. Supermontage Nasdaq 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.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. HBR case study mentions - Supermontage Nasdaq 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.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Supermontage Nasdaq 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 NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. | 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 NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. are -
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Supermontage Nasdaq can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Supermontage Nasdaq has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Supermontage Nasdaq to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. case study. Supermontage Nasdaq can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Supermontage Nasdaq 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Supermontage Nasdaq is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Supermontage Nasdaq can make experimentation a productive activity and build a culture of innovation using approaches such as – mining transaction data, A/B testing of websites and selling platforms, engaging potential customers over various needs, and building on small ideas in the Finance & Accounting segment.
Buying journey improvements
– Supermontage Nasdaq can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. 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.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Finance & Accounting industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Supermontage Nasdaq can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Finance & Accounting industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Supermontage Nasdaq 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. Supermontage Nasdaq 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Supermontage Nasdaq in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Finance & Accounting segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Supermontage Nasdaq 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Supermontage Nasdaq to increase its market reach. Supermontage Nasdaq 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
– Supermontage Nasdaq can develop new processes and procedures in Finance & Accounting industry using technology such as automation using artificial intelligence, real time transportation and products tracking, 3D modeling for concept development and new products pilot testing etc.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Supermontage Nasdaq can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Supermontage Nasdaq operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Finance & Accounting sector.
Threats NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. are -
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Supermontage Nasdaq is facing in Finance & Accounting sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Supermontage Nasdaq with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Finance & Accounting field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Supermontage Nasdaq can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc., Supermontage Nasdaq may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Finance & Accounting .
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Supermontage Nasdaq 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 NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. .
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Supermontage Nasdaq in the Finance & Accounting industry. The Finance & Accounting 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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Supermontage Nasdaq 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.
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 Supermontage Nasdaq in the Finance & Accounting sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Increasing wage structure of Supermontage Nasdaq
– 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 Supermontage Nasdaq.
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.
Environmental challenges
– Supermontage Nasdaq 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. Supermontage Nasdaq can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Finance & Accounting industry.
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 Supermontage Nasdaq.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. 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 NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. 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 NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. 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 NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. 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 NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. 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 Supermontage Nasdaq needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.