Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management
Hong Kong Broadband Network (HKBN) charted a success story starting out as the smallest new entrant in Hong Kong's highly competitive telecom industry in 1999 and went on to become the second largest provider of residential broadband within 10 years. State-of-the-art fiber network infrastructure allowed HKBN to offer high-quality high-speed telecom services at competitive prices. However, the company soon realized that its technological edge could be easily replicated. Its competitive advantage was actually vested in its 2,500 employees - all referred to as Talents. HKBN instituted a unique co-ownership scheme whereby employees were invited to invest up to two years of salary in the company. It also made sustained investment in talent development through well-designed learning programs coupled with significant empowerment on the job. The case outlines the importance of leadership and talent management as key drivers of growth for the company. HKBN listed in early 2015 and embarked upon its next phase of growth with the aim of becoming the largest broadband service provider by 2019, overtaking its largest competitor and entrenched incumbent, PCCW. HKBN looked to its Talents to rise to the challenge once again. Learning objective: - To identify ways of linking the talent management strategy to the business strategy - To outline different ways of embedding the talent strategy at the core of an organization - To build a high-performance organizational culture through people practices - To discover management models that not only result in returns for shareholders but also take into account employees as key stakeholders.
Swot Analysis of "Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management" written by Shlomo Ben-Hur, Ivy Buche includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Hkbn Broadband facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Motivating people, Organizational culture, Performance measurement, Strategy, Talent management, Work-life balance and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management casestudy better are - – central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, increasing energy prices, there is backlash against globalization, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, technology disruption,
there is increasing trade war between United States & China, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Hkbn Broadband, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Hkbn Broadband 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 Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Hkbn Broadband
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 Hkbn Broadband
Strengths Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Hkbn Broadband in Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management Harvard Business Review case study are -
Analytics focus
– Hkbn Broadband 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 Shlomo Ben-Hur, Ivy Buche 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Hkbn Broadband in the sector have low bargaining power. Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Hkbn Broadband to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Learning organization
- Hkbn Broadband 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 Hkbn Broadband is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Ability to lead change in Leadership & Managing People field
– Hkbn Broadband 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 Hkbn Broadband in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Training and development
– Hkbn Broadband has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Hkbn Broadband has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Hkbn Broadband has effective processes in place that helps in exploring new product needs, doing quick pilot testing, and then launching the products quickly using its extensive distribution network.
Strong track record of project management
– Hkbn Broadband is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Hkbn Broadband in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Diverse revenue streams
– Hkbn Broadband is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Hkbn Broadband 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Hkbn Broadband 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 Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Leadership & Managing People industry
– Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Hkbn Broadband to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Hkbn Broadband to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Weaknesses Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management are -
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Shlomo Ben-Hur, Ivy Buche suggests that, Hkbn Broadband 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.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management 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 Hkbn Broadband 's lucrative customers.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Hkbn Broadband 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.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Hkbn Broadband 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.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Hkbn Broadband 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. Hkbn Broadband 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management 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 Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Hkbn Broadband is planning to shift buying processes online.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Hkbn Broadband 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Hkbn Broadband is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Hkbn Broadband 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management, is just above the industry average. Hkbn Broadband 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Hkbn Broadband 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 - Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Opportunities Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management | 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 Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management are -
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Hkbn Broadband is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Hkbn Broadband 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 Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Hkbn Broadband to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Manufacturing automation
– Hkbn Broadband 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Hkbn Broadband can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Hkbn Broadband 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Hkbn Broadband 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 Hkbn Broadband to increase its market reach. Hkbn Broadband 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Hkbn Broadband 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, Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
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. Hkbn Broadband 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. Hkbn Broadband 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.
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 Hkbn Broadband 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.
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. Hkbn Broadband can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
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. Hkbn Broadband can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Hkbn Broadband can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Hkbn Broadband operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.
Threats Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management are -
Environmental challenges
– Hkbn Broadband 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. Hkbn Broadband can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry.
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. Hkbn Broadband 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Hkbn Broadband 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Hkbn Broadband 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.
Increasing wage structure of Hkbn Broadband
– 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 Hkbn Broadband.
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 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. Hkbn Broadband needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Hkbn Broadband 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
– Hkbn Broadband 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.
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 Hkbn Broadband in the Leadership & Managing People sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Hkbn Broadband 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 Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management .
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 Hkbn Broadband.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management 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 Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management 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 Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management 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 Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management 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 Hong Kong Broadband Network: An Integrated Approach to Talent Management 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 Hkbn Broadband needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.