Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged)
Abridged version of one of six cases that describe the roles and responsibilities of managers at each of the hierarchical levels of management within the U.S. Stores business unit of Staples, the world's largest office supply company. Together, the cases form a complete integrated package. Explores five distinct jobs--store manager, district manager, regional vice-president, division senior vice-president, and president of the U.S. Stories business units--and, for each level, describes the key management tasks, planning, decision-making, and leadership processes and critical choices that lead to superior execution and operational performance. Provides background information on Staples' organization and strategy.
Swot Analysis of "Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged)" written by David A. Garvin includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Staples Abridged facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Entrepreneurship, Marketing and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) casestudy better are - – central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, increasing commodity prices, increasing transportation and logistics costs, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, technology disruption,
wage bills are increasing, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Staples Abridged, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Staples Abridged 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 Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Staples Abridged
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 Staples Abridged
Strengths Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Staples Abridged in Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) Harvard Business Review case study are -
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Staples Abridged in the sector have low bargaining power. Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Staples Abridged to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Staples Abridged has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Staples Abridged 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Staples Abridged is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Staples Abridged 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Leadership & Managing People industry
– Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Staples Abridged to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Staples Abridged to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Innovation driven organization
– Staples Abridged is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) 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 Leadership & Managing People segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Staples Abridged digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Staples Abridged 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Staples Abridged 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 Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) 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.
Training and development
– Staples Abridged has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) 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.
Learning organization
- Staples Abridged 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 Staples Abridged is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
High brand equity
– Staples Abridged has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Staples Abridged to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Weaknesses Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) are -
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 Staples Abridged supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged), it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Staples Abridged vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) 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 Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Staples Abridged is planning to shift buying processes online.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged), is just above the industry average. Staples Abridged 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Staples Abridged, firm in the HBR case study Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Staples Abridged is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Leadership & Managing People segment. Staples Abridged needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Staples Abridged to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) HBR case study mentions - Staples Abridged takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the industry in last five years.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Staples Abridged 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Staples Abridged 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.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) 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 Staples Abridged has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Staples Abridged 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.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged), it seems that the employees of Staples Abridged 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.
Opportunities Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) | 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 Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) are -
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. Staples Abridged can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
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. Staples Abridged can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Staples Abridged 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Staples Abridged 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, Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged), to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Staples Abridged to increase its market reach. Staples Abridged 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Staples Abridged 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Staples Abridged can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Staples Abridged operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.
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 Staples Abridged 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Staples Abridged 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Staples Abridged 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Staples Abridged 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Staples Abridged has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Staples Abridged to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) case study. Staples Abridged can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Staples Abridged 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 Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Staples Abridged to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Threats Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) are -
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Staples Abridged high dependence on third party suppliers can disrupt its processes and delivery mechanism. For example -the current troubles of car makers because of chip shortage is because the chip companies started producing chips for electronic companies rather than car manufacturers.
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. Staples Abridged can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Staples Abridged has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Staples Abridged 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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged), Staples Abridged 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 .
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 Staples Abridged.
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
– Staples Abridged 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. Staples Abridged can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry.
Increasing wage structure of Staples Abridged
– 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 Staples Abridged.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Staples Abridged 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.
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 Staples Abridged in the Leadership & Managing People sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Staples Abridged 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 Staples Abridged 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.
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. Staples Abridged needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) 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 Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) 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 Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) 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 Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) 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 Management Levels at Staples (A): Company and Organization (Abridged) 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 Staples Abridged needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.