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 - – technology disruption, wage bills are increasing, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, geopolitical disruptions,
increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Philip Rpf in the sector have low bargaining power. PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Philip Rpf to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Philip Rpf 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.
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.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Philip Rpf 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.
Digital Transformation in Leadership & Managing People segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Philip Rpf digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Philip Rpf 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.
Training and development
– Philip Rpf has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Philip Rpf is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Leadership & Managing People industry
– PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Philip Rpf to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Philip Rpf to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
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.
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.
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.
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 -
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.
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.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER, it seems that the employees of Philip Rpf don’t have comprehensive understanding of the firm’s strategy. This is reflected in number of promotional campaigns over the last few years that had mixed messaging and competing priorities. Some of the strategic activities and services promoted in the promotional campaigns were not consistent with the organization’s strategy.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER, 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.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER 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 Philip Rpf has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER 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 PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Philip Rpf is planning to shift buying processes online.
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 Philip Rpf supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Philip Rpf vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
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.
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.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Philip Rpf 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Philip Rpf is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Leadership & Managing People segment. Philip Rpf needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Philip Rpf to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
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 -
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Philip Rpf can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Philip Rpf operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Philip Rpf in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Leadership & Managing People segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, 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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Philip Rpf has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Philip Rpf to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the PHILIP CHASE: AN ORGANIZATIONAL POWER case study. Philip Rpf 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, Philip Rpf 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.
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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Philip Rpf 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 Philip Rpf to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
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.
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 -
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.
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.
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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Philip Rpf is facing in Leadership & Managing People sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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 Philip Rpf.
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 .
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Philip Rpf has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Philip Rpf 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Philip Rpf with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Technology disruption because of hacks, piracy etc
– The colonial pipeline illustrated, how vulnerable modern organization are to international hackers, miscreants, and disruptors. The cyber security interruption, data leaks, etc can seriously jeopardize the future growth of the organization.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of 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.
