Case Study Description of Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change
Describes the actions and behavior of a new CEO in his first days and weeks as he sets expectations for his top management team and introduces processes and disciplines to begin the turnaround of a global consumer products company.
Swot Analysis of "Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change" written by Rosabeth Moss Kanter, James Weber includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Disciplines Gillette facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Change management, Competition, Leadership and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change casestudy better are - – increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, increasing energy prices, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, increasing commodity prices, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings,
challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Disciplines Gillette, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Disciplines Gillette 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 Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Disciplines Gillette
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 Disciplines Gillette
Strengths Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Disciplines Gillette in Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change Harvard Business Review case study are -
Highly skilled collaborators
– Disciplines Gillette 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 Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Training and development
– Disciplines Gillette has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Disciplines Gillette has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Disciplines Gillette 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.
Learning organization
- Disciplines Gillette 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 Disciplines Gillette is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Leadership & Managing People industry
– Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Disciplines Gillette to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Disciplines Gillette to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Disciplines Gillette in the sector have low bargaining power. Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Disciplines Gillette to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Disciplines Gillette in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Digital Transformation in Leadership & Managing People segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Disciplines Gillette digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Disciplines Gillette 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.
Ability to lead change in Leadership & Managing People field
– Disciplines Gillette 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 Disciplines Gillette in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Analytics focus
– Disciplines Gillette 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 Rosabeth Moss Kanter, James Weber 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.
High brand equity
– Disciplines Gillette has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Disciplines Gillette to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Disciplines Gillette is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Weaknesses Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change are -
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change HBR case study mentions - Disciplines Gillette takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the industry in last five years.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change 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 Disciplines Gillette 's lucrative customers.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Disciplines Gillette 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 - Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
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 Disciplines Gillette supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Disciplines Gillette vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Disciplines Gillette, firm in the HBR case study Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change, 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Disciplines Gillette is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Leadership & Managing People segment. Disciplines Gillette needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Disciplines Gillette to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Disciplines Gillette 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.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Rosabeth Moss Kanter, James Weber suggests that, Disciplines Gillette is facing high bargaining power of the channel partners. So far it has not able to streamline the operations to reduce the bargaining power of the value chain partners in the industry.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change 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 Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Disciplines Gillette 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 Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change 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 Disciplines Gillette has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Opportunities Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change | 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 Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change 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 Disciplines Gillette 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Disciplines Gillette 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Disciplines Gillette can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Disciplines Gillette 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Disciplines Gillette can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Disciplines Gillette 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 Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Disciplines Gillette to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Developing new processes and practices
– Disciplines Gillette 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Disciplines Gillette 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Disciplines Gillette 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 Disciplines Gillette to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Disciplines Gillette can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Disciplines Gillette operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Disciplines Gillette is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change case study suggests that firm can utilize new technology to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Disciplines Gillette has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Disciplines Gillette to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change case study. Disciplines Gillette can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, 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 Disciplines Gillette in the consumer business. Now Disciplines Gillette can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Threats Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change are -
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Disciplines Gillette 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 Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change .
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.
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. Disciplines Gillette can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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 Disciplines Gillette business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change, Disciplines Gillette 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 Disciplines Gillette 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.
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.
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. Disciplines Gillette needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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. Disciplines Gillette 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.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Disciplines Gillette 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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Disciplines Gillette has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Disciplines Gillette 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Disciplines Gillette is facing in Leadership & Managing People sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Disciplines Gillette 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change 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 Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change 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 Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change 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 Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change 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 Gillette Co. (B): Leadership for Change 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 Disciplines Gillette needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
