Case Study Description of Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits
The Microsoft Corporation is one of the most successful software developers in the world. The company has been involved in an anti-trust suit with the U.S. Justice Department since the early 1990s and is about to launch the latest version of their combined personal computer operating and Internet browser software. The company, when faced with government intervention, must determine how to effectively rally support to fight the challenge and continue with normal business at the same time.
Swot Analysis of "Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits" written by Christina A. Cavanagh, Ken Mark includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Microsoft Rally facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Human resource management, Managing people and Communication.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits casestudy better are - – banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, increasing transportation and logistics costs, wage bills are increasing, increasing commodity prices, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies,
there is backlash against globalization, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Microsoft Rally, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Microsoft Rally 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 Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Microsoft Rally
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Communication field.
4. Making a Communication topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Microsoft Rally
Strengths Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Microsoft Rally in Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits Harvard Business Review case study are -
Successful track record of launching new products
– Microsoft Rally has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Microsoft Rally 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.
Organizational Resilience of Microsoft Rally
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Microsoft Rally does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
High brand equity
– Microsoft Rally has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Microsoft Rally to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Diverse revenue streams
– Microsoft Rally is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits 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.
Analytics focus
– Microsoft Rally 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 Christina A. Cavanagh, Ken Mark 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Microsoft Rally is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Communication industry
– Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Microsoft Rally to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Communication industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Microsoft Rally to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Microsoft Rally is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Microsoft Rally 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 Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Microsoft Rally in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Learning organization
- Microsoft Rally 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 Microsoft Rally is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Microsoft Rally 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 Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Weaknesses Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits are -
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Microsoft Rally 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 operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits 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 Microsoft Rally 's lucrative customers.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits, is just above the industry average. Microsoft Rally 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Communication 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Microsoft Rally 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, Microsoft Rally 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Microsoft Rally, firm in the HBR case study Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Microsoft Rally 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 - Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Lack of clear differentiation of Microsoft Rally products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Microsoft Rally needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Microsoft Rally is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Communication segment. Microsoft Rally needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Microsoft Rally to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits, in the dynamic environment Microsoft Rally has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Microsoft Rally has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Opportunities Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits | 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 Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits are -
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 Microsoft Rally 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Microsoft Rally is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Microsoft Rally can develop new processes and procedures in Communication 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Microsoft Rally in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Communication segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Loyalty marketing
– Microsoft Rally 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Microsoft Rally can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Microsoft Rally operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Communication sector.
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. Microsoft Rally can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Microsoft Rally 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 Communication segment.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Microsoft Rally has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Microsoft Rally to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits case study. Microsoft Rally 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, Microsoft Rally 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.
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 Microsoft Rally in the consumer business. Now Microsoft Rally can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Communication industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Microsoft Rally 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. Microsoft Rally 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Microsoft Rally can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits 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 Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits are -
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Microsoft Rally is facing in Communication sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Microsoft Rally 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.
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.
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. Microsoft Rally 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.
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 Microsoft Rally in the Communication sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
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 Microsoft Rally.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Microsoft Rally 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 Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits .
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Microsoft Rally 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.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Microsoft Rally in the Communication industry. The Communication 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.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Communication field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Microsoft Rally can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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. Microsoft Rally needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Communication industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Environmental challenges
– Microsoft Rally 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. Microsoft Rally can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Communication industry.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits, Microsoft Rally may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Communication .
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits 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 Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits 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 Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits 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 Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits 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 Microsoft Corporation: Antitrust Suits 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 Microsoft Rally needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.