LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT
In 2005 Logitech launched a new and improved cordless presenter which was the next generation product of its presentation device line. The entire process to launch was unusual for Logitech as the following factors took place: a Director of Engineering played a key marketing role, a new method of customer feedback and research was used to decide on product features and the entire project was outsourced to a firm in Taiwan - which was a first for this product unit. The case goes over the issues and challenges that were faced along the way and how marketing and engineering had to work together in an unusual pairing in order to get to a successful product launch.
Swot Analysis of "LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT" written by Jean-Philippe Deschamps, Michele Barnett Berg includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Logitech Product facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Design, Marketing, Product development, Technology and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT casestudy better are - – increasing transportation and logistics costs, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing commodity prices, increasing energy prices, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings,
there is backlash against globalization, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Logitech Product, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Logitech Product 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 LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Logitech Product
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 Logitech Product
Strengths LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Logitech Product in LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT Harvard Business Review case study are -
Learning organization
- Logitech Product 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 Logitech Product is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Training and development
– Logitech Product has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT 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
– Logitech Product 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 Logitech Product in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Diverse revenue streams
– Logitech Product is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Logitech Product 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 LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
High brand equity
– Logitech Product has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Logitech Product to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Logitech Product 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.
Digital Transformation in Leadership & Managing People segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Logitech Product digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Logitech Product 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 recruit top talent
– Logitech Product is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Logitech Product 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 LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Innovation driven organization
– Logitech Product is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Leadership & Managing People industry
– LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Logitech Product to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Logitech Product to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Weaknesses LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT are -
Lack of clear differentiation of Logitech Product products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Logitech Product needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Logitech Product 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 - LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Logitech Product 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Logitech Product has taken concrete steps on diversity, equity, and inclusion. But the efforts so far has resulted in limited success. It needs to expand the recruitment and selection process to hire more people from the minorities and underprivileged background.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT 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 Logitech Product has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Logitech Product 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.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Logitech Product 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Logitech Product is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Leadership & Managing People segment. Logitech Product needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Logitech Product to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Logitech Product has a very deliberative decision making approach. This approach has resulted in prudent decisions, but it has also resulted in missing opportunities in the industry over the last five years. Logitech Product even though has strong showing on digital transformation primary two stages, it has struggled to capitalize the power of digital transformation in marketing efforts and new venture efforts.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Logitech Product 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.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT, it seems that the employees of Logitech Product 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.
Opportunities LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT | 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 LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT are -
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Logitech Product 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Logitech Product 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Logitech Product 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Logitech Product can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Logitech Product 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. Logitech Product can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Logitech Product 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Logitech Product to increase its market reach. Logitech Product 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Logitech Product 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 Logitech Product to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Logitech Product 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.
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. Logitech Product 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. Logitech Product 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Logitech Product 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.
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. Logitech Product can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Logitech Product 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, LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT, 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 LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT are -
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 Logitech Product business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Logitech Product 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Logitech Product with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Logitech Product 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.
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. Logitech Product 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.
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. Logitech Product can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Environmental challenges
– Logitech Product 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. Logitech Product can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Logitech Product 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 LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT .
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Logitech Product 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.
Increasing wage structure of Logitech Product
– 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 Logitech Product.
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 Logitech Product.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT, Logitech Product 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 Logitech Product 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT 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 LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT 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 LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT 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 LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT 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 LOGITECH: LEARNING FROM CUSTOMERS TO DESIGN A NEW PRODUCT 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 Logitech Product needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.