Swot Analysis of "Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B)" written by Michael Y. Yoshino, Yukihiko Endo includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Matsushita Electric facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Competitive strategy, Leadership, Organizational culture and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) casestudy better are - – talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, technology disruption, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation,
geopolitical disruptions, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Matsushita Electric, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Matsushita Electric 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 Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Matsushita Electric
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 Matsushita Electric
Strengths Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Matsushita Electric in Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) Harvard Business Review case study are -
Highly skilled collaborators
– Matsushita Electric 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 Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Digital Transformation in Leadership & Managing People segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Matsushita Electric digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Matsushita Electric 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.
Diverse revenue streams
– Matsushita Electric is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) 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
– Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Matsushita Electric to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Matsushita Electric to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Learning organization
- Matsushita Electric 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 Matsushita Electric is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Strong track record of project management
– Matsushita Electric is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Matsushita Electric 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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Matsushita Electric in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Organizational Resilience of Matsushita Electric
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Matsushita Electric does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Training and development
– Matsushita Electric has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Matsushita Electric 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 Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) 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.
Weaknesses Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) are -
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Matsushita Electric 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Matsushita Electric is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Matsushita Electric 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 cash cycle compare to competitors
Matsushita Electric 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 Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B), 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.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Matsushita Electric 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.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) HBR case study mentions - Matsushita Electric 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) 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 Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Matsushita Electric is planning to shift buying processes online.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) 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 Matsushita Electric has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B), it seems that the employees of Matsushita Electric 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Matsushita Electric is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Leadership & Managing People segment. Matsushita Electric needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Matsushita Electric to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Opportunities Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) | 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 Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) are -
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. Matsushita Electric 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. Matsushita Electric 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 Matsushita Electric 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 Matsushita Electric to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Matsushita Electric to increase its market reach. Matsushita Electric will be able to reach out to new customers. Secondly 5G will also provide technology framework to build new tools and products that can help more immersive consumer experience and faster consumer journey.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Matsushita Electric 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, Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B), to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Loyalty marketing
– Matsushita Electric 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Matsushita Electric 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Matsushita Electric has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Matsushita Electric to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) case study. Matsushita Electric can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Buying journey improvements
– Matsushita Electric can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) 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.
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 Matsushita Electric in the consumer business. Now Matsushita Electric can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Matsushita Electric 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Matsushita Electric 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 Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Matsushita Electric to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
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. Matsushita Electric can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Developing new processes and practices
– Matsushita Electric 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.
Threats Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) are -
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Matsushita Electric 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 Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) .
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Matsushita Electric with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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. Matsushita Electric needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Matsushita Electric 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Matsushita Electric 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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Matsushita Electric has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Matsushita Electric 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.
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 Matsushita Electric 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.
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. Matsushita Electric can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Matsushita Electric 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.
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 Matsushita Electric in the Leadership & Managing People sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
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 Matsushita Electric.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) 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 Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) 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 Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) 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 Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) 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 Transformation of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. 2005 (B) 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 Matsushita Electric needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.