Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version
When students have the English-language PDF of this Brief Case in a coursepack, they will also have the option to purchase an audio version.Clayton Industries, a sixty-year-old U.S.-based firm in the HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) industry, with nearly $1 billion in revenues, has gradually built a presence in a number of countries, including several in Europe. Peter Arnell, previously Clayton's successful country manager for the U.K., has been asked to take over the Italian subsidiary, which has recently been struggling on several fronts. Arnell must juggle the strategic objectives of his manager (the head of Clayton Europe) and of the firm's Wisconsin-based CEO while overseeing the day-to-day activities of the business in this new setting. Many of Arnell's challenges derive from his dual responsibilities of handling manufacturing as well as sales of Clayton products in his new home country.
Authors :: Christopher A. Bartlett, Benjamin H. Barlow
Swot Analysis of "Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version" written by Christopher A. Bartlett, Benjamin H. Barlow includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Arnell Clayton facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Cross-cultural management, Labor, Leadership, Organizational culture, Organizational structure, Project management, Sales, Strategy execution and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version casestudy better are - – challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, there is backlash against globalization, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic ,
wage bills are increasing, increasing energy prices, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Arnell Clayton, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Arnell Clayton 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 Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Arnell Clayton
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 Arnell Clayton
Strengths Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Arnell Clayton in Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version Harvard Business Review case study are -
Diverse revenue streams
– Arnell Clayton is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version 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.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Arnell Clayton 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Arnell Clayton in the sector have low bargaining power. Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Arnell Clayton to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Arnell Clayton 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 Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Ability to lead change in Leadership & Managing People field
– Arnell Clayton 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 Arnell Clayton in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Arnell Clayton in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Training and development
– Arnell Clayton has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Arnell Clayton 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Arnell Clayton 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 brand equity
– Arnell Clayton has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Arnell Clayton to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Leadership & Managing People industry
– Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Arnell Clayton to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Arnell Clayton to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Analytics focus
– Arnell Clayton 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 Christopher A. Bartlett, Benjamin H. Barlow 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.
Weaknesses Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version are -
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Arnell Clayton 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version, in the dynamic environment Arnell Clayton has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Arnell Clayton has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Christopher A. Bartlett, Benjamin H. Barlow suggests that, Arnell Clayton 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Arnell Clayton, firm in the HBR case study Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version 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 Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Arnell Clayton is planning to shift buying processes online.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Arnell Clayton is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Lack of clear differentiation of Arnell Clayton products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Arnell Clayton needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version, 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.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Arnell Clayton 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.
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 Arnell Clayton supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Arnell Clayton vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version 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 Arnell Clayton has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Opportunities Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version | 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 Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version are -
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Arnell Clayton 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.
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 Arnell Clayton 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Arnell Clayton 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 Arnell Clayton to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Developing new processes and practices
– Arnell Clayton 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Arnell Clayton 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Arnell Clayton has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Arnell Clayton to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version case study. Arnell Clayton 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, Arnell Clayton can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Arnell Clayton operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Leadership & Managing People industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Arnell Clayton can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Arnell Clayton 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 Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Arnell Clayton to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Arnell Clayton can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
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. Arnell Clayton can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Buying journey improvements
– Arnell Clayton can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version 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.
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. Arnell Clayton 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. Arnell Clayton 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.
Threats Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version are -
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Arnell Clayton with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Environmental challenges
– Arnell Clayton needs to have a robust strategy against the disruptions arising from climate change and energy requirements. EU has identified it as key priority area and spending 30% of its 880 billion Euros European post Covid-19 recovery funds on green technology. Arnell Clayton can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry.
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. Arnell Clayton can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Increasing wage structure of Arnell Clayton
– 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 Arnell Clayton.
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 Arnell Clayton.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Arnell Clayton 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.
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 Arnell Clayton in the Leadership & Managing People sector and impact the bottomline 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. Arnell Clayton 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. Arnell Clayton 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Arnell Clayton 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Arnell Clayton 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
– Arnell Clayton 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.
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 Arnell Clayton business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version 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 Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version 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 Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version 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 Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version 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 Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version 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 Arnell Clayton needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
Feel free to connect with us if you need business research.
You can download Excel Template of Case Study Solution & Analysis of Clayton Industries, Inc.: Peter Arnell, Country Manager for Italy (Brief Case), Chinese Version