Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance
In 2005, Marilyn Carlson Nelson, CEO and chairman of the Carlson Companies, must decide whether to outsource jobs at the risk of destroying the culture centered on the values of integrity, trustworthiness, and caring that she had painstakingly created since becoming CEO of the family-owned company. Profiles the leadership development of the protagonist, tracing her career in business and civic associations, her youth and education, her leadership education, and her values and aspirations. Provides information on the business and history of Carlson Companies, including its company culture and management. Raises questions about the consequences of leadership decisions and the durability of company cultures.
Swot Analysis of "Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance" written by William W. George, Andrew N. McLean includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Carlson Marilyn facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Informal leadership, Leadership, Motivating people, Operations management, Organizational culture, Social responsibility and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance casestudy better are - – increasing commodity prices, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, geopolitical disruptions, there is backlash against globalization, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, increasing transportation and logistics costs, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google,
banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, increasing energy prices, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Carlson Marilyn, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Carlson Marilyn 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 Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Carlson Marilyn
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 Carlson Marilyn
Strengths Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Carlson Marilyn in Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance Harvard Business Review case study are -
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Carlson Marilyn has built up over years in its products and services combo offer has resulted in high retention of customers, lower marketing costs, and greater ability of the firm to focus on its customers.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance Harvard Business Review case study comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the industry, building diversified operations across different geographies so that disruption in one part of the world doesn’t impact the overall performance of the firm, and integrating the various business operations and processes through its digital transformation drive.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Carlson Marilyn 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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Carlson Marilyn in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Training and development
– Carlson Marilyn has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance 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.
Ability to lead change in Leadership & Managing People field
– Carlson Marilyn 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 Carlson Marilyn in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Carlson Marilyn in the sector have low bargaining power. Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Carlson Marilyn to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Carlson Marilyn 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 Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Strong track record of project management
– Carlson Marilyn 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
– Carlson Marilyn 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 William W. George, Andrew N. McLean 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.
Digital Transformation in Leadership & Managing People segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Carlson Marilyn digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Carlson Marilyn has successfully integrated the four key components of digital transformation – digital integration in processes, digital integration in marketing and customer relationship management, digital integration into the value chain, and using technology to explore new products and market opportunities.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Carlson Marilyn 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 Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Weaknesses Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance are -
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Carlson Marilyn 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.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Carlson Marilyn 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Carlson Marilyn 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Carlson Marilyn is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Leadership & Managing People segment. Carlson Marilyn needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Carlson Marilyn to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance 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 Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Carlson Marilyn is planning to shift buying processes online.
Lack of clear differentiation of Carlson Marilyn products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Carlson Marilyn needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance, is just above the industry average. Carlson Marilyn 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.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Carlson Marilyn 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance, 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Carlson Marilyn, firm in the HBR case study Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance 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 Carlson Marilyn 's lucrative customers.
Opportunities Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance | 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 Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance are -
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 Carlson Marilyn 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.
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. Carlson Marilyn 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. Carlson Marilyn 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Carlson Marilyn can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Carlson Marilyn 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Carlson Marilyn 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Carlson Marilyn 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 Carlson Marilyn to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Manufacturing automation
– Carlson Marilyn 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
– Carlson Marilyn 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 Carlson Marilyn 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Carlson Marilyn has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Carlson Marilyn to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance case study. Carlson Marilyn can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Carlson Marilyn can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Carlson Marilyn operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Carlson Marilyn can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Carlson Marilyn 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, Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance, 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 Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance are -
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 Carlson Marilyn in the Leadership & Managing People sector and impact the bottomline 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. Carlson Marilyn can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Carlson Marilyn 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 Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance .
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. Carlson Marilyn needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Increasing wage structure of Carlson Marilyn
– 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 Carlson Marilyn.
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 Carlson Marilyn business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Carlson Marilyn with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Regulatory challenges
– Carlson Marilyn 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.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Carlson Marilyn 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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance, Carlson Marilyn 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 .
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Carlson Marilyn 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Carlson Marilyn is facing in Leadership & Managing People sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Carlson Marilyn 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance 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 Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance 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 Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance 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 Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance 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 Marilyn Carlson Nelson and the Carlson Companies' Renaissance 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 Carlson Marilyn needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
