Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa
Following the board's suspension of the chief executive officer (CEO) due to a corruption scandal, Cricket South Africa (CSA) appointed an acting CEO in March 2012. After successfully restoring the organization's damaged reputation, re-establishing the confidence of existing sponsors and attracting new corporate partners within his first four months, the acting CEO submitted his letter of resignation. In it, he cited hostility from some members of the board and a lack of confidence in his judgment. However, after his resignation he was encouraged to reconsider his decision. Should he withdraw his resignation and continue the important turnaround task? If so, could he manage the challenges facing him and CSA in a different way? If not, what would the implications be for him, the management of cricket in South Africa and the multiple stakeholders, including sponsors? Michael Goldman is affiliated with University of San Francisco. Karl Hofmeyr is affiliated with University of Pretoria.
Authors :: Michael Goldman, Karl Hofmeyr, Jennifer Lindsey-Renton
Swot Analysis of "Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa" written by Michael Goldman, Karl Hofmeyr, Jennifer Lindsey-Renton includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Cricket Csa facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Crisis management, Leadership and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa casestudy better are - – increasing transportation and logistics costs, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, technology disruption, geopolitical disruptions,
supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Cricket Csa, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Cricket Csa 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 Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Cricket Csa
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 Cricket Csa
Strengths Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Cricket Csa in Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa Harvard Business Review case study are -
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Cricket Csa in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Analytics focus
– Cricket Csa 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 Michael Goldman, Karl Hofmeyr, Jennifer Lindsey-Renton 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.
High brand equity
– Cricket Csa has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Cricket Csa to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Ability to lead change in Leadership & Managing People field
– Cricket Csa 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 Cricket Csa in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Cricket Csa in the sector have low bargaining power. Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Cricket Csa to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Cricket Csa is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Training and development
– Cricket Csa has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Cricket Csa is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Cricket Csa 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 Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Diverse revenue streams
– Cricket Csa is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa 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.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Cricket Csa 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Cricket Csa 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.
Weaknesses Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa are -
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Cricket Csa is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Leadership & Managing People segment. Cricket Csa needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Cricket Csa to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Cricket Csa 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa, in the dynamic environment Cricket Csa has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Cricket Csa has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Need for greater diversity
– Cricket Csa 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 dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa 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 Cricket Csa has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Cricket Csa is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Cricket Csa 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.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Michael Goldman, Karl Hofmeyr, Jennifer Lindsey-Renton suggests that, Cricket Csa 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa 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 Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Cricket Csa is planning to shift buying processes online.
High dependence on existing supply chain
– The disruption in the global supply chains because of the Covid-19 pandemic and blockage of the Suez Canal illustrated the fragile nature of Cricket Csa supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Cricket Csa vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Cricket Csa, firm in the HBR case study Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Opportunities Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa | 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 Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa are -
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Cricket Csa 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 Cricket Csa to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
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 Cricket Csa in the consumer business. Now Cricket Csa can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Cricket Csa 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Cricket Csa 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Cricket Csa 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, Cricket Csa can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Cricket Csa operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Cricket Csa has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Cricket Csa to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa case study. Cricket Csa can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Cricket Csa can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Cricket Csa 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Cricket Csa to increase its market reach. Cricket Csa 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.
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 Cricket Csa 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Cricket Csa 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Cricket Csa is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa 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.
Threats Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa are -
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa, Cricket Csa 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 .
Increasing wage structure of Cricket Csa
– 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 Cricket Csa.
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 Cricket Csa in the Leadership & Managing People sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Environmental challenges
– Cricket Csa 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. Cricket Csa can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry.
Regulatory challenges
– Cricket Csa needs to prepare for regulatory challenges as consumer protection groups and other pressure groups are vigorously advocating for more regulations on big business - to reduce inequality, to create a level playing field, to product data privacy and consumer privacy, to reduce the influence of big money on democratic institutions, etc. This can lead to significant changes in the Leadership & Managing People industry regulations.
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 Cricket Csa 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Cricket Csa 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 Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa .
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Cricket Csa has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Cricket Csa 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Cricket Csa is facing in Leadership & Managing People sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, 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. Cricket Csa 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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Cricket Csa 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.
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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa 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 Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa 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 Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa 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 Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa 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 Jacques Faul and Cricket South Africa 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 Cricket Csa needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
