Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014
In May 2014, the newly installed director of global operations for Montana Plastic's Shelby Division, a producer of plastic gasoline tanks for global automotive brands such as General Motors, Ford and Toyota, is trying to turn the division around as it is suffering waste rates of 30 per cent. At the same time, topline growth is slowing dramatically, profitability is dropping, competition from Asia-based companies is heating up and employee turnover, at 25 per cent of the workforce, is the highest it has ever been. The company, based in Helena, Montana, is underperforming after years of growth: it had seen tenfold revenue increases over the past decade. Aware that he does not have an engineering degree or any experience running manufacturing plants, the director needs to assess the situation carefully. He is plotting out what he has to do in the next few months to turn the company's fortunes around.
Swot Analysis of "Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014" written by Christopher Williams, Ken Mark includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Montana Shelby facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Crisis management, Human resource management, Leadership, Manufacturing, Organizational culture, Strategy and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 casestudy better are - – challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, wage bills are increasing, there is backlash against globalization, increasing energy prices,
increasing commodity prices, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Montana Shelby, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Montana Shelby 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 Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Montana Shelby
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 Montana Shelby
Strengths Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Montana Shelby in Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 Harvard Business Review case study are -
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Montana Shelby 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 Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Training and development
– Montana Shelby has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 Harvard Business Review case study by analyzing – employees retention, in-house promotion, loyalty, new venture initiation, lack of conflict, and high level of both employees and customer engagement.
Learning organization
- Montana Shelby 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 Montana Shelby is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Montana Shelby is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Analytics focus
– Montana Shelby 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 Christopher Williams, 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.
Diverse revenue streams
– Montana Shelby is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Montana Shelby 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 Montana Shelby in the sector have low bargaining power. Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Montana Shelby 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 Montana Shelby digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Montana Shelby has successfully integrated the four key components of digital transformation – digital integration in processes, digital integration in marketing and customer relationship management, digital integration into the value chain, and using technology to explore new products and market opportunities.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Montana Shelby 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 Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Organizational Resilience of Montana Shelby
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Montana Shelby does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Ability to lead change in Leadership & Managing People field
– Montana Shelby 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 Montana Shelby in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Weaknesses Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 are -
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Montana Shelby 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. Montana Shelby 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Montana Shelby 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 - Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Montana Shelby 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 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 Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Montana Shelby is planning to shift buying processes online.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Montana Shelby is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Need for greater diversity
– Montana Shelby 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.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 HBR case study mentions - Montana Shelby 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.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014, it seems that the employees of Montana Shelby 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014, in the dynamic environment Montana Shelby has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Montana Shelby has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Montana Shelby 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Montana Shelby, firm in the HBR case study Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Opportunities Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 | 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 Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 are -
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. Montana Shelby can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Montana Shelby can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Montana Shelby 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Montana Shelby is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Montana Shelby 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, Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
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 Montana Shelby 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Montana Shelby can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Montana Shelby has spent a significant amount of money and effort to integrate analytics and machine learning into its operations in the sector. This continuous investment in analytics has enabled, as illustrated in the Harvard case study Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Montana Shelby to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
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. Montana Shelby 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. Montana Shelby 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Montana Shelby has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Montana Shelby to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 case study. Montana Shelby can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Montana Shelby 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.
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 Montana Shelby in the consumer business. Now Montana Shelby can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Developing new processes and practices
– Montana Shelby can develop new processes and procedures in Leadership & Managing People 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.
Threats Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 are -
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Montana Shelby is facing in Leadership & Managing People sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Montana Shelby 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
– Montana Shelby 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. Montana Shelby can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Montana Shelby has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Montana Shelby 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.
Increasing wage structure of Montana Shelby
– 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 Montana Shelby.
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.
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 Montana Shelby business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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 Montana Shelby.
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. Montana Shelby 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
– Montana Shelby 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Montana Shelby 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.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Montana Shelby in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The Leadership & Managing People industry is already at various protected from local competition in China, with the rise of trade war the protection levels may go up. This presents a clear threat of current business model in Chinese market.
New competition
– After the dotcom bust of 2001, financial crisis of 2008-09, the business formation in US economy had declined. But in 2020 alone, there are more than 1.5 million new business applications in United States. This can lead to greater competition for Montana Shelby in the Leadership & Managing People sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 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 Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 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 Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 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 Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 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 Montana Plastic Inc.: The Shelby Division in 2014 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 Montana Shelby needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
