The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com
June 2005 was to bring online gambling out of the shadows and into the spotlight. PartyGaming, a start-up formed in 1997, launched a flotation (Initial Public Offering) on the London Stock Exchange that valued the firm at A?4.64 billion giving it a larger market capitalisation than British Airways. PartyGaming had become the dominant player in the booming online poker market with its PartyPoker brand having over 50% market share. However, this float - as with Internet gambling in general - was not without controversy. While PartyGaming had an online gambling license from the tax haven of Gibraltar, nearly 90% of its revenue came from the United States, where the authorities viewed Internet gambling as illegal and threatened legal action. The complex operations of this truly global firm with bases in London, India, Gibraltar and Canada, the background of its founder Ruth Parasol in Internet pornography and the handling of its flotation also raised concerns from an ethical perspective, with some commentators questioning whether the float should have been allowed at all. These concerns were then confirmed as US legislation to curb online gambling was passed in September 2006, leading to PartyGaming's exit from the US market and an immediate fall of 58% in the share price. This case study analyses the entrepreneurs behind PartyGaming, its growth, the challenges it has faced, the ethical issues it poses and its future prospects. The case draws on theory from e-commerce, strategy and ethics.
Swot Analysis of "The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com" written by Des Laffey includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Partygaming Gambling facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com casestudy better are - – geopolitical disruptions, increasing commodity prices, wage bills are increasing, increasing energy prices, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, there is backlash against globalization,
increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Partygaming Gambling, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Partygaming Gambling 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 The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Partygaming Gambling
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 Partygaming Gambling
Strengths The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Partygaming Gambling in The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com Harvard Business Review case study are -
Innovation driven organization
– Partygaming Gambling is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com 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
– Partygaming Gambling has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Partygaming Gambling 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
– Partygaming Gambling is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Partygaming Gambling in the sector have low bargaining power. The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Partygaming Gambling to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Digital Transformation in Leadership & Managing People segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Partygaming Gambling digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Partygaming Gambling 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Partygaming Gambling 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.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com 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.
Learning organization
- Partygaming Gambling 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 Partygaming Gambling is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Training and development
– Partygaming Gambling has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com 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.
Analytics focus
– Partygaming Gambling is putting a lot of focus on utilizing the power of analytics in business decision making. This has put it among the leading players in the industry. The technology infrastructure suggested by Des Laffey can also help it to harness the power of analytics for – marketing optimization, demand forecasting, customer relationship management, inventory management, information sharing across the value chain etc.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Partygaming Gambling 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 The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Diverse revenue streams
– Partygaming Gambling is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com 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 The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com are -
Lack of clear differentiation of Partygaming Gambling products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Partygaming Gambling needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com 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 Partygaming Gambling 's lucrative customers.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Partygaming Gambling is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Leadership & Managing People segment. Partygaming Gambling needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Partygaming Gambling to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Partygaming Gambling, firm in the HBR case study The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Need for greater diversity
– Partygaming Gambling has taken concrete steps on diversity, equity, and inclusion. But the efforts so far has resulted in limited success. It needs to expand the recruitment and selection process to hire more people from the minorities and underprivileged background.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com, in the dynamic environment Partygaming Gambling has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Partygaming Gambling has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com, it seems that the employees of Partygaming Gambling 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.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Partygaming Gambling 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.
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 Partygaming Gambling supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Partygaming Gambling vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Partygaming Gambling 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.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Partygaming Gambling 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.
Opportunities The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com | 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 The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com are -
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Partygaming Gambling 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. Partygaming Gambling can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Buying journey improvements
– Partygaming Gambling can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Partygaming Gambling to increase its market reach. Partygaming Gambling 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Partygaming Gambling 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.
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. Partygaming Gambling 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. Partygaming Gambling 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Partygaming Gambling 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.
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. Partygaming Gambling can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
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 Partygaming Gambling in the consumer business. Now Partygaming Gambling can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Partygaming Gambling 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Partygaming Gambling 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Partygaming Gambling can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Partygaming Gambling operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Partygaming Gambling 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, The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Threats The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com are -
Aging population
– As the populations of most advanced economies are aging, it will lead to high social security costs, higher savings among population, and lower demand for goods and services in the economy. The household savings in US, France, UK, Germany, and Japan are growing faster than predicted because of uncertainty caused by pandemic.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Partygaming Gambling with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Environmental challenges
– Partygaming Gambling 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. Partygaming Gambling can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Partygaming Gambling 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.
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. Partygaming Gambling 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.
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 Partygaming Gambling business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com, Partygaming Gambling 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 .
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Partygaming Gambling has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Partygaming Gambling 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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Partygaming Gambling 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.
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. Partygaming Gambling needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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 Partygaming Gambling.
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. Partygaming Gambling can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com 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 The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com 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 The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com 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 The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com 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 The Ultimate Bluff: A Case Study Of Partygaming.com 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 Partygaming Gambling needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
