SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix for Gayatri Projects (India)
Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , Gayatri Projects is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – increasing energy prices, there is backlash against globalization, increasing transportation and logistics costs, technology disruption, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google,
supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, etc
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University, we believe that Gayatri Projects can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Gayatri Projects, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Gayatri Projects 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 Gayatri Projects can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning of Gayatri Projects
2. Improving business portfolio management of Gayatri Projects
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in India
4. Making a Construction Services sector specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Gayatri Projects
Strengths of Gayatri Projects | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Gayatri Projects are -
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Gayatri Projects in the Capital Goods sector have low bargaining power. Gayatri Projects has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Gayatri Projects to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Construction Services industry
– Gayatri Projects has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Gayatri Projects to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Construction Services industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Gayatri Projects to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Gayatri Projects is one of the leading players in the Construction Services industry in India. It is in a position to attract the best talent available in India. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Organizational Resilience of Gayatri Projects
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing Gayatri Projects does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
High brand equity
– Gayatri Projects has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Gayatri Projects to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Learning organization
- Gayatri Projects 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 Gayatri Projects is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders at Gayatri Projects emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Ability to lead change in Construction Services
– Gayatri Projects is one of the leading players in the Construction Services industry in India. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in the Construction Services industry in India but also across the existing markets. The ability to lead change has enabled Gayatri Projects in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Strong track record of project management in the Construction Services industry
– Gayatri Projects is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Gayatri Projects has innovation driven culture where significant part of the revenues are spent on the research and development activities. This has resulted in – Gayatri Projects staying ahead in the Construction Services industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Innovation driven organization
– Gayatri Projects is one of the most innovative firm in Construction Services sector.
Diverse revenue streams
– Gayatri Projects is present in almost all the verticals within the Construction Services industry. This has provided Gayatri Projects 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.
Digital Transformation in Construction Services industry
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Gayatri Projects digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Gayatri Projects 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.
Weaknesses of Gayatri Projects | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Gayatri Projects are -
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative at Gayatri Projects, in the dynamic environment of Construction Services industry it has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Gayatri Projects has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Gayatri Projects has a high cash cycle compare to other players in the Construction Services industry. It needs to shorten the cash cycle by 12% to be more competitive in the marketplace, reduce inventory costs, and be more profitable.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Gayatri Projects is one of the leading players in the Construction Services industry, it takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the Construction Services industry in last five years.
High dependence on Gayatri Projects ‘s star products
– The top 2 products and services of Gayatri Projects still accounts for major business revenue. This dependence on star products in Construction Services industry has resulted into insufficient focus on developing new products, even though Gayatri Projects has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Gayatri Projects has a very deliberative decision making approach. This approach has resulted in prudent decisions, but it has also resulted in missing opportunities in the Construction Services industry over the last five years. Gayatri Projects 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, Gayatri Projects 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee of Gayatri Projects is just above the Construction Services industry average. It needs to redesign the compensation structure and incentives to increase the revenue per employees. Some of the steps that it can take are – hiring more specialists on project basis, etc.
Lack of clear differentiation of Gayatri Projects products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Gayatri Projects needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Gayatri Projects is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication can help Gayatri Projects to provide better information regarding Construction Services products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Need for greater diversity
– Gayatri Projects 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Gayatri Projects is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Construction Services industry, but Gayatri Projects needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Gayatri Projects to focus more on services in the Construction Services industry rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Gayatri Projects Opportunities | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The opportunities of Gayatri Projects are -
Use of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies for transactions in Construction Services industry
– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for Gayatri Projects in the Construction Services industry. Now Gayatri Projects can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Gayatri Projects 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 Gayatri Projects to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Gayatri Projects in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Construction Services industry, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Gayatri Projects can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Gayatri Projects operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Construction Services sector.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Gayatri Projects 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Gayatri Projects to increase its market reach. Gayatri Projects 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Gayatri Projects 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 Construction Services industry.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Construction Services industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Gayatri Projects can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– consumer behavior has changed in the Construction Services industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Gayatri Projects 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. Gayatri Projects 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Gayatri Projects has spent a significant amount of money and effort to integrate analytics and machine learning into its operations in Construction Services sector. This continuous investment in analytics has enabled Gayatri Projects to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Gayatri Projects 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
– Gayatri Projects can develop new processes and procedures in Construction Services 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.
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 Gayatri Projects 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Gayatri Projects can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Threats Gayatri Projects External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats of Gayatri Projects 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 Gayatri Projects business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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 Gayatri Projects.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Gayatri Projects in Construction Services industry. The Construction Services 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry to Construction Services industry are lowering. It can presents Gayatri Projects with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the Construction Services sector.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Gayatri Projects has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Construction Services industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Gayatri Projects needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Construction Services 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.
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. Gayatri Projects 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.
Environmental challenges
– Gayatri Projects 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. Gayatri Projects can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Construction Services industry.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Gayatri Projects high dependence on third party suppliers can disrupt its processes and delivery mechanism. For example -the current troubles of car makers because of chip shortage is because the chip companies started producing chips for electronic companies rather than car manufacturers.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, Gayatri Projects may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Construction Services sector.
Regulatory challenges
– Gayatri Projects 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 Construction Services industry regulations.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Gayatri Projects 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 Construction Services industry.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Gayatri Projects 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 Construction Services industry and other sectors.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Gayatri Projects Template, Example
Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers at Gayatri Projects 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 Gayatri Projects 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 Gayatri Projects 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 Gayatri Projects 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 Gayatri Projects needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.