PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER
The case is a true story with disguised names, and was developed with the help of the protagonist, "Philip Chase," who runs a "successful" executive placement agency, Retail Personnel Flow (RPF). However, the case reveals that it is perhaps not as "successful" as he seemed to think. Philip has just learned from an employee that his company's biggest client, Winterplain, is about to offer the important Kash-n-Karry contract to RPF's main competitor, NY-Lon. At first, Philip thinks it is just a rumor, but later that day discovers that a prospective candidate has already been through several rounds of interviews with NY-Lon. The HR director at Winterplain confirms that there are service quality issues. She agrees to meet Philip the next day and sends a memo listing Winterplain's concerns with RPF for him to go through before the meeting; some of the points are valid but Philip is furious about the others! It was a happy ending: RPF won back the Winterplain account, including Kash-n-Karry. NY-Lon's foray into retail placements was short-lived since it could not cope with the complexity of the retail labor market. Learning objectives: The case provides participants with an understanding of the political dynamics of the relationship between professional firms and their clients. Participants get to appreciate the role of networks in improving one's social power and influence ability. The case can also be used in role-playing how difficult political situations can be resolved.
Swot Analysis of "PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER" written by Anand Narasimhan, Brett Burgess includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Philip Rpf facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Talent management and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER casestudy better are - – there is increasing trade war between United States & China, 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, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing energy prices, geopolitical disruptions, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google,
there is backlash against globalization, wage bills are increasing, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Philip Rpf, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Philip Rpf 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 PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Philip Rpf
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 Philip Rpf
Strengths PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Philip Rpf in PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER Harvard Business Review case study are -
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Philip Rpf 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 PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Philip Rpf 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 PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Learning organization
- Philip Rpf 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 Philip Rpf is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER 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 brand equity
– Philip Rpf has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Philip Rpf to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Ability to lead change in Leadership & Managing People field
– Philip Rpf 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 Philip Rpf in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Philip Rpf in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Organizational Resilience of Philip Rpf
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Philip Rpf does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Philip Rpf is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Innovation driven organization
– Philip Rpf is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Philip Rpf has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Philip Rpf 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.
Diverse revenue streams
– Philip Rpf is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER 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.
Weaknesses PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER are -
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Philip Rpf has created an environment where the organization is dominated by functional specialists rather than management generalist. This has resulted into product oriented approach rather than marketing oriented approach or consumers oriented approach.
Lack of clear differentiation of Philip Rpf products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Philip Rpf needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER HBR case study mentions - Philip Rpf 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Philip Rpf 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 - PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Philip Rpf has borrowed money from the capital market at higher rates. It needs to restructure the interest payment and costs so that it can compete better and improve profitability.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Philip Rpf 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. Philip Rpf 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.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Anand Narasimhan, Brett Burgess suggests that, Philip Rpf 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Philip Rpf 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER, is just above the industry average. Philip Rpf 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.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Philip Rpf needs to come up with a strategy to reduce the workers concern regarding automation. Without a clear strategy, it could lead to disruption and uncertainty within the organization.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER 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 Philip Rpf 's lucrative customers.
Opportunities PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER | 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 PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER are -
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. Philip Rpf can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Buying journey improvements
– Philip Rpf can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER 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 Philip Rpf can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Philip Rpf 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, PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Developing new processes and practices
– Philip Rpf 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Philip Rpf 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.
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. Philip Rpf can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Manufacturing automation
– Philip Rpf 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Philip Rpf to increase its market reach. Philip Rpf 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Philip Rpf 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 PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Philip Rpf to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Philip Rpf 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Philip Rpf is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER 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.
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. Philip Rpf 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. Philip Rpf 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.
Threats PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER are -
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER, Philip Rpf may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Leadership & Managing People .
Consumer confidence and its impact on Philip Rpf 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Philip Rpf 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 PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER .
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.
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. Philip Rpf can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Philip Rpf 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.
Environmental challenges
– Philip Rpf 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. Philip Rpf can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry.
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. Philip Rpf needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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
– Philip Rpf 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 Philip Rpf in the Leadership & Managing People sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Backlash against dominant players
– US Congress and other legislative arms of the government are getting tough on big business especially technology companies. The digital arm of Philip Rpf business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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. Philip Rpf 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 PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER 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 PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER 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 PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER 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 PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER 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 PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER 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 Philip Rpf needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.