Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase
Between 2012 and 2015, Viom Networks Limited (Viom), India's largest independent telecommunications tower company, transformed its business from a position of near financial ruin to one of sustainable profitability. Viom's journey demonstrated how suitable initiatives, supported by relevant leadership, can bring about remarkable improvement in a company. When American Tower Corporation (the world's largest independent tower company) acquired a 51 per cent stake in Viom, it brought unexpected change. Further, the dynamism of the telecom industry presented challenges and opportunities that could bring about significant changes for the company into fiscal year 2016/17 and onwards. In its upcoming phases, Viom wanted to focus on predicting the next technological breakthrough and enabling growth ahead of the industry curve. How would Viom deal with these challenges? Atri Sengupta is affiliated with Indian Institute of Management Raipur. Yogesh Misra is affiliated with Thomas Assessments Pvt Ltd.
Swot Analysis of "Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase" written by Atri Sengupta, Yogesh Misra, Maninder Singh includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Viom Tower facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Leadership, Organizational culture and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase casestudy better are - – increasing household debt because of falling income levels, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, wage bills are increasing, there is backlash against globalization, increasing commodity prices, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, technology disruption,
banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, geopolitical disruptions, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Viom Tower, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Viom Tower 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 Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Viom Tower
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 Viom Tower
Strengths Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Viom Tower in Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase Harvard Business Review case study are -
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Viom Tower in the sector have low bargaining power. Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Viom Tower to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Diverse revenue streams
– Viom Tower is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase 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.
Organizational Resilience of Viom Tower
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Viom Tower does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Strong track record of project management
– Viom Tower is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Innovation driven organization
– Viom Tower is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Ability to lead change in Leadership & Managing People field
– Viom Tower 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 Viom Tower in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Viom Tower in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
High brand equity
– Viom Tower has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Viom Tower to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Viom Tower 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 Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Viom Tower 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 Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase 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
– Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Viom Tower to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Viom Tower to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Training and development
– Viom Tower has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase 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.
Weaknesses Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase are -
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Viom Tower 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. Viom Tower 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.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Viom Tower 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase, in the dynamic environment Viom Tower has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Viom Tower has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Atri Sengupta, Yogesh Misra, Maninder Singh suggests that, Viom Tower 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 cash cycle compare to competitors
Viom Tower 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase 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 Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Viom Tower is planning to shift buying processes online.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase HBR case study mentions - Viom Tower 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.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase 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 Viom Tower 's lucrative customers.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Viom Tower 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, Viom Tower is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
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 Viom Tower supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Viom Tower vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Opportunities Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase | 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 Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase are -
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Viom Tower to increase its market reach. Viom Tower 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Viom Tower is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase 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
– Viom Tower 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 Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Viom Tower to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Viom Tower 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, Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Viom Tower 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Viom Tower 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Viom Tower 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Viom Tower 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 Viom Tower in the consumer business. Now Viom Tower can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Viom Tower 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.
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. Viom Tower 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. Viom Tower 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Viom Tower 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 Viom Tower to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Viom Tower 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.
Threats Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase are -
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 Viom Tower.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Viom Tower has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Viom Tower 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 Viom Tower
– 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 Viom Tower.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Viom Tower 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. Viom Tower 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.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Viom Tower 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Viom Tower 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 Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase .
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. Viom Tower needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Viom Tower 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.
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.
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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Viom Tower 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.
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 Viom Tower in the Leadership & Managing People sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase 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 Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase 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 Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase 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 Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase 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 Viom Networks: Transformation and the Next Phase 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 Viom Tower needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
