Swot Analysis of "Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B)" written by Mary Gentile, Sarah B. Gant includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Landgraf Kurt facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Diversity, Downsizing, Leadership, Personnel policies and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) casestudy better are - – digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, increasing transportation and logistics costs, technology disruption, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation,
customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Landgraf Kurt, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Landgraf Kurt 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 Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Landgraf Kurt
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 Landgraf Kurt
Strengths Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Landgraf Kurt in Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) Harvard Business Review case study are -
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Landgraf Kurt in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Landgraf Kurt 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Landgraf Kurt has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Landgraf Kurt 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Landgraf Kurt is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Diverse revenue streams
– Landgraf Kurt is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Landgraf Kurt 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 Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Landgraf Kurt is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Landgraf Kurt in the sector have low bargaining power. Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Landgraf Kurt to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Learning organization
- Landgraf Kurt 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 Landgraf Kurt is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Leadership & Managing People industry
– Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Landgraf Kurt to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Landgraf Kurt to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
High brand equity
– Landgraf Kurt has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Landgraf Kurt to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Training and development
– Landgraf Kurt has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) 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.
Weaknesses Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) are -
Lack of clear differentiation of Landgraf Kurt products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Landgraf Kurt needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Landgraf Kurt 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Landgraf Kurt 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 - Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
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 Landgraf Kurt supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B), it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Landgraf Kurt vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Landgraf Kurt 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B), is just above the industry average. Landgraf Kurt 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, Landgraf Kurt 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B), in the dynamic environment Landgraf Kurt has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Landgraf Kurt 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 Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) HBR case study mentions - Landgraf Kurt 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B), 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Landgraf Kurt is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Leadership & Managing People segment. Landgraf Kurt needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Landgraf Kurt to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Opportunities Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) | 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 Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) are -
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Landgraf Kurt 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 Landgraf Kurt 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Landgraf Kurt can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) 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.
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 Landgraf Kurt 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Landgraf Kurt 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 Landgraf Kurt to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Landgraf Kurt has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Landgraf Kurt to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) case study. Landgraf Kurt can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Landgraf Kurt 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.
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. Landgraf Kurt can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Landgraf Kurt 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 Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Landgraf Kurt to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Landgraf Kurt 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 Landgraf Kurt 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.
Use of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies for transactions
– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for Landgraf Kurt in the consumer business. Now Landgraf Kurt can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Loyalty marketing
– Landgraf Kurt 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.
Threats Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) 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 Landgraf Kurt.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Landgraf Kurt has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Landgraf Kurt 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.
Environmental challenges
– Landgraf Kurt 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. Landgraf Kurt can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Landgraf Kurt 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Landgraf Kurt with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Landgraf Kurt 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 Landgraf Kurt in the Leadership & Managing People sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
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.
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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Landgraf Kurt 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.
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. Landgraf Kurt 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Landgraf Kurt is facing in Leadership & Managing People sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Landgraf Kurt 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 Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) .
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) 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 Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) 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 Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) 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 Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) 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 Kurt Landgraf and Du Pont Merck Pharmaceutical Co. (B) 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 Landgraf Kurt needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
