How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB
This case study invites students to discuss strategic value creation through the use of information technology (IT). It raises issues of business model innovation, IT strategy, digital platforms, ecosystems, business-IT alignment, and leadership. The key character in the case is the Chief Information Officer, Paul Danneels, who is ready to drive the strategic transformation of the VDAB, the Flemish Employment Agency, from a service provider to a labor market conductor. Starting from a firm understanding of the VDAB's strategic choices, students should be able to discuss the positioning and role of the IT department as well as its views on value delivery.
Swot Analysis of "How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB" written by Stijn Viaene, Saskia Broeckx includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Vdab Flemish facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, IT and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB casestudy better are - – customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, technology disruption, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, there is backlash against globalization, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings,
challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Vdab Flemish, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Vdab Flemish 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 How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Vdab Flemish
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 Vdab Flemish
Strengths How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Vdab Flemish in How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB Harvard Business Review case study are -
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Vdab Flemish 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 How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB - 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
– Vdab Flemish has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Leadership & Managing People industry
– How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Vdab Flemish to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Vdab Flemish to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Vdab Flemish is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Learning organization
- Vdab Flemish 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 Vdab Flemish is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Organizational Resilience of Vdab Flemish
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Vdab Flemish does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Innovation driven organization
– Vdab Flemish is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Vdab Flemish has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Vdab Flemish 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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Vdab Flemish in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Strong track record of project management
– Vdab Flemish is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Analytics focus
– Vdab Flemish 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 Stijn Viaene, Saskia Broeckx 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Vdab Flemish are driving operational speed, building greater agility, and keeping the organization nimble to compete with new competitors. It helps are organization to ideate new ideas, and execute them swiftly in the marketplace.
Weaknesses How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB are -
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Vdab Flemish has not been able to do capital spending to the tune of the competition. This has resulted into fewer innovations and company facing stiff competition from both existing competitors and new entrants who are disrupting the industry using digital technology.
High 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 Vdab Flemish supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Vdab Flemish vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Vdab Flemish, firm in the HBR case study How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB, in the dynamic environment Vdab Flemish has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Vdab Flemish has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Vdab Flemish 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. Vdab Flemish 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Leadership & Managing People strategy. But it has very little resources allocation to manage the risks emerging from events such as natural disasters, climate change, melting of permafrost, tacking the rise of artificial intelligence, opportunities and threats emerging from commercialization of space etc.
Lack of clear differentiation of Vdab Flemish products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Vdab Flemish needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Vdab Flemish 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Vdab Flemish 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 - How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB 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 Vdab Flemish 's lucrative customers.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB HBR case study still accounts for major business revenue. This dependence on star products in has resulted into insufficient focus on developing new products, even though Vdab Flemish has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Opportunities How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB | 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 How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB are -
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Vdab Flemish 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 How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Vdab Flemish to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Loyalty marketing
– Vdab Flemish 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Vdab Flemish 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.
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 Vdab Flemish 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Vdab Flemish 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Vdab Flemish 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Vdab Flemish 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Vdab Flemish can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB 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.
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. Vdab Flemish can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Vdab Flemish to increase its market reach. Vdab Flemish 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Vdab Flemish can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Vdab Flemish operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.
Developing new processes and practices
– Vdab Flemish 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Vdab Flemish 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, How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Threats How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB are -
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Vdab Flemish with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Leadership & Managing People field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Vdab Flemish can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Vdab Flemish 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.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Vdab Flemish 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.
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. Vdab Flemish needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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 Vdab Flemish business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Vdab Flemish has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Vdab Flemish 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.
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 Vdab Flemish.
Regulatory challenges
– Vdab Flemish 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Vdab Flemish 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 How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB .
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB, Vdab Flemish 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 .
Weighted SWOT Analysis of How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB 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 How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB 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 How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB 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 How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB 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 How IT Enables Business Model Innovation at the VDAB 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 Vdab Flemish needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
