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Distillers Delight in the U.K. SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution

Case Study Description of Distillers Delight in the U.K.


Tony Hamilton, brand manager for Distillers Delight in the United Kingdom, is preparing for his upcoming meeting with his boss, Charlotte Handy, managing director for the United Kingdom for Global Distillers, Inc., one of the leading companies in the alcoholic beverages industry. The purpose of the meeting is to review how well his brand performed during the company's 2003 fiscal year. To say the least, it had been a very difficult year. No one had predicted any increase in the country's excise tax, let alone the 60% increase that took effect shortly after the company's 2003 fiscal year began. From that point on, almost nothing had gone according to plan. Thus, Tony is looking for a way to reconcile actual results with planned results in a way that is accurate, informative and understandable. This case is based on an actual situation, and it was written with the cooperation of one of the leading global companies in the spirits industry. The company name, the product name, individuals' names and the numerical data have all been disguised, yet the issues presented are real.

Authors :: E. Richard Brownlee II

Topics :: Finance & Accounting

Tags :: Budgeting, Corporate governance, Costs, Financial analysis, Manufacturing, SWOT Analysis, SWOT Matrix, TOWS, Weighted SWOT Analysis

Swot Analysis of "Distillers Delight in the U.K." written by E. Richard Brownlee II includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Distillers Delight facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Distillers Delight in the U.K. case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Budgeting, Corporate governance, Costs, Financial analysis, Manufacturing and Finance & Accounting.


Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Distillers Delight in the U.K. casestudy better are - – digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, wage bills are increasing, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, there is backlash against globalization, increasing transportation and logistics costs, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, geopolitical disruptions, etc



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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Distillers Delight in the U.K.


SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Distillers Delight in the U.K. case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Distillers Delight, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Distillers Delight 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 Distillers Delight in the U.K. can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Distillers Delight in the U.K. case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Distillers Delight
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Finance & Accounting field.
4. Making a Finance & Accounting topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Distillers Delight




Strengths Distillers Delight in the U.K. | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of Distillers Delight in Distillers Delight in the U.K. Harvard Business Review case study are -

Ability to recruit top talent

– Distillers Delight is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Distillers Delight in the U.K. are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.

Superior customer experience

– The customer experience strategy of Distillers Delight in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.

Effective Research and Development (R&D)

– Distillers Delight 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 Distillers Delight in the U.K. - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.

Organizational Resilience of Distillers Delight

– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Distillers Delight does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.

Digital Transformation in Finance & Accounting segment

- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Distillers Delight digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Distillers Delight 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.

Sustainable margins compare to other players in Finance & Accounting industry

– Distillers Delight in the U.K. firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Distillers Delight to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Finance & Accounting industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Distillers Delight to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.

Highly skilled collaborators

– Distillers Delight 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 Distillers Delight in the U.K. HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.

Successful track record of launching new products

– Distillers Delight has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Distillers Delight 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.

Analytics focus

– Distillers Delight 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 E. Richard Brownlee II 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.

Strong track record of project management

– Distillers Delight is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.

Ability to lead change in Finance & Accounting field

– Distillers Delight is one of the leading players in its industry. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in its segment but also across the whole industry. The ability to lead change has enabled Distillers Delight in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.

High switching costs

– The high switching costs that Distillers Delight 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.






Weaknesses Distillers Delight in the U.K. | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of Distillers Delight in the U.K. are -

Skills based hiring

– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Distillers Delight 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.

Slow to strategic competitive environment developments

– As Distillers Delight in the U.K. HBR case study mentions - Distillers Delight 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.

Slow decision making process

– As mentioned earlier in the report, Distillers Delight has a very deliberative decision making approach. This approach has resulted in prudent decisions, but it has also resulted in missing opportunities in the industry over the last five years. Distillers Delight even though has strong showing on digital transformation primary two stages, it has struggled to capitalize the power of digital transformation in marketing efforts and new venture efforts.

Need for greater diversity

– Distillers Delight 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.

High operating costs

– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Distillers Delight in the U.K. 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 Distillers Delight 's lucrative customers.

Slow to harness new channels of communication

– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Distillers Delight is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Distillers Delight in the U.K. can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.

Increasing silos among functional specialists

– The organizational structure of Distillers Delight is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Finance & Accounting segment. Distillers Delight needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Distillers Delight to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.

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 Distillers Delight supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Distillers Delight in the U.K., it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Distillers Delight vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.

Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy

– From the instances in the HBR case study Distillers Delight in the U.K., it seems that the employees of Distillers Delight 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 bargaining power of channel partners

– Because of the regulatory requirements, E. Richard Brownlee II suggests that, Distillers Delight is facing high bargaining power of the channel partners. So far it has not able to streamline the operations to reduce the bargaining power of the value chain partners in the industry.

Low market penetration in new markets

– Outside its home market of Distillers Delight, firm in the HBR case study Distillers Delight in the U.K. needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.




Opportunities Distillers Delight in the U.K. | 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 Distillers Delight in the U.K. are -

Leveraging digital technologies

– Distillers Delight 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.

Finding new ways to collaborate

– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Finance & Accounting industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Distillers Delight can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.

Buying journey improvements

– Distillers Delight can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Distillers Delight in the U.K. 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.

Increase in government spending

– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Distillers Delight can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Distillers Delight operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Finance & Accounting sector.

Low interest rates

– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Distillers Delight 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.

Loyalty marketing

– Distillers Delight 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 Distillers Delight 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 Finance & Accounting segment.

Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities

– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Distillers Delight 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 Distillers Delight to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.

Better consumer reach

– The expansion of the 5G network will help Distillers Delight to increase its market reach. Distillers Delight 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.

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. Distillers Delight can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.

Learning at scale

– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Distillers Delight 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, Distillers Delight 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, Distillers Delight in the U.K., to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.

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 Distillers Delight in the consumer business. Now Distillers Delight can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.




Threats Distillers Delight in the U.K. External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis


The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Distillers Delight in the U.K. are -

Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution

– Distillers Delight has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Finance & Accounting industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Distillers Delight needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Finance & Accounting 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.

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 dependence on third party suppliers

– Distillers Delight 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.

Environmental challenges

– Distillers Delight 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. Distillers Delight can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Finance & Accounting industry.

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 Distillers Delight.

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 Distillers Delight business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.

Instability in the European markets

– European Union markets are facing three big challenges post Covid – expanded balance sheets, Brexit related business disruption, and aggressive Russia looking to distract the existing security mechanism. Distillers Delight 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.

Learning curve for new practices

– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Distillers Delight in the U.K., Distillers Delight may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Finance & Accounting .

Easy access to finance

– Easy access to finance in Finance & Accounting field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Distillers Delight can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.

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 Distillers Delight in the Finance & Accounting sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.

Shortening product life cycle

– it is one of the major threat that Distillers Delight is facing in Finance & Accounting sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.

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. Distillers Delight needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Finance & Accounting industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.

Technology disruption because of hacks, piracy etc

– The colonial pipeline illustrated, how vulnerable modern organization are to international hackers, miscreants, and disruptors. The cyber security interruption, data leaks, etc can seriously jeopardize the future growth of the organization.




Weighted SWOT Analysis of Distillers Delight in the U.K. 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 Distillers Delight in the U.K. 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 Distillers Delight in the U.K. 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 Distillers Delight in the U.K. 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 Distillers Delight in the U.K. 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 Distillers Delight needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.



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