Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium
Manufacturing is now a national strategy for many countries to combat slow economic growth, and positively viewed with the current trend of onshoring foreign manufacturing operations. We develop a cross-country regression model that predicts manufacturing employment as a function of population growth, foreign direct investment, and purchasing power parity. Results through the year 2100 suggest that manufacturing is trending toward a global equilibrium with higher levels of manufacturing outputs but much lower levels of manufacturing employment. The reason is that countries tend to evolve from having little manufacturing to commodity manufacturing at large scale and low wages. As infrastructure and human capital develop, there is the tendency to pursue advanced manufacturing in support of higher valued goods. The manufacture of commodity products is then outsourced to those countries with lower costs justified by their less-developed infrastructure and human capital, and so the virtuous cycle continues. While this model suggests that current efforts in revitalization of domestic manufacturing would lead to an increase in wealth in the United States, the bad news is that these gains are unlikely to be sustainable in the long term. However, the good news is that manufacturing acts as a rising tide that raises all nations and our global quality of life.
Swot Analysis of "Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium" written by David Owen Kazmer includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Manufacturing Onshoring facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Operations management and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium casestudy better are - – geopolitical disruptions, there is backlash against globalization, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, increasing transportation and logistics costs, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, technology disruption, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy,
increasing commodity prices, increasing energy prices, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Manufacturing Onshoring, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Manufacturing Onshoring 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 Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Manufacturing Onshoring
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 Manufacturing Onshoring
Strengths Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Manufacturing Onshoring in Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium Harvard Business Review case study are -
Highly skilled collaborators
– Manufacturing Onshoring 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 Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Diverse revenue streams
– Manufacturing Onshoring is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Leadership & Managing People industry
– Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Manufacturing Onshoring to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Manufacturing Onshoring to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Manufacturing Onshoring is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Ability to lead change in Leadership & Managing People field
– Manufacturing Onshoring 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 Manufacturing Onshoring in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Innovation driven organization
– Manufacturing Onshoring is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Learning organization
- Manufacturing Onshoring 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 Manufacturing Onshoring is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Manufacturing Onshoring in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Organizational Resilience of Manufacturing Onshoring
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Manufacturing Onshoring does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Manufacturing Onshoring 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 Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium - 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
– Manufacturing Onshoring has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium 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.
High brand equity
– Manufacturing Onshoring has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Manufacturing Onshoring to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Weaknesses Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium are -
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium, is just above the industry average. Manufacturing Onshoring 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Manufacturing Onshoring 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.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium 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 Manufacturing Onshoring 's lucrative customers.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Manufacturing Onshoring 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Manufacturing Onshoring, firm in the HBR case study Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Manufacturing Onshoring 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 - Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium, it seems that the employees of Manufacturing Onshoring don’t have comprehensive understanding of the firm’s strategy. This is reflected in number of promotional campaigns over the last few years that had mixed messaging and competing priorities. Some of the strategic activities and services promoted in the promotional campaigns were not consistent with the organization’s strategy.
High 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 Manufacturing Onshoring supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Manufacturing Onshoring vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Manufacturing Onshoring 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. Manufacturing Onshoring even though has strong showing on digital transformation primary two stages, it has struggled to capitalize the power of digital transformation in marketing efforts and new venture efforts.
Need for greater diversity
– Manufacturing Onshoring 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 cash cycle compare to competitors
Manufacturing Onshoring 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.
Opportunities Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium | 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 Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium are -
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Manufacturing Onshoring can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Manufacturing Onshoring operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.
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. Manufacturing Onshoring can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Buying journey improvements
– Manufacturing Onshoring can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Manufacturing Onshoring has focused on building a highly responsive customer relationship management platform. This platform is built on in-house data and driven by analytics and artificial intelligence. The customer analytics can help the organization to fine tune its loyalty marketing efforts, increase the wallet share of the organization, reduce wastage on mainstream advertising spending, build better pricing strategies using personalization, etc.
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 Manufacturing Onshoring in the consumer business. Now Manufacturing Onshoring can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Manufacturing Onshoring 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 Manufacturing Onshoring 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Manufacturing Onshoring can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Developing new processes and practices
– Manufacturing Onshoring 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.
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. Manufacturing Onshoring can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Manufacturing Onshoring to increase its market reach. Manufacturing Onshoring 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Manufacturing Onshoring 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Manufacturing Onshoring 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.
Threats Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium are -
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 Manufacturing Onshoring in the Leadership & Managing People sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Manufacturing Onshoring with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Environmental challenges
– Manufacturing Onshoring 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. Manufacturing Onshoring can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium, Manufacturing Onshoring 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 .
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Manufacturing Onshoring 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.
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. Manufacturing Onshoring 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.
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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Manufacturing Onshoring is facing in Leadership & Managing People sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Increasing wage structure of Manufacturing Onshoring
– 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 Manufacturing Onshoring.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Manufacturing Onshoring has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Manufacturing Onshoring 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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Manufacturing Onshoring 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Manufacturing Onshoring 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium 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 Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium 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 Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium 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 Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium 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 Manufacturing Outsourcing, Onshoring, and Global Equilibrium 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 Manufacturing Onshoring needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.