SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix for Pioneer Distilleries Ltd (India)
Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , Pioneer Distilleries Ltd is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, increasing energy prices, there is backlash against globalization, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, geopolitical disruptions,
wage bills are increasing, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Pioneer Distilleries Ltd
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University, we believe that Pioneer Distilleries Ltd can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Pioneer Distilleries Ltd, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Pioneer Distilleries Ltd 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 Pioneer Distilleries Ltd can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning of Pioneer Distilleries Ltd
2. Improving business portfolio management of Pioneer Distilleries Ltd
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in India
4. Making a Beverages (Alcoholic) sector specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Pioneer Distilleries Ltd
Strengths of Pioneer Distilleries Ltd | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Pioneer Distilleries Ltd are -
Successful track record of launching new products
– Pioneer Distilleries Ltd has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Pioneer Distilleries Ltd 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.
Training and development
– Pioneer Distilleries Ltd has one of the best training and development program in Consumer/Non-Cyclical industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in – 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 Pioneer Distilleries Ltd 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 Beverages (Alcoholic) industry
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Pioneer Distilleries Ltd digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Pioneer Distilleries Ltd 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 Beverages (Alcoholic)
– Pioneer Distilleries Ltd is one of the leading players in the Beverages (Alcoholic) industry in India. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in the Beverages (Alcoholic) industry in India but also across the existing markets. The ability to lead change has enabled Pioneer Distilleries Ltd in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Beverages (Alcoholic) industry
– Pioneer Distilleries Ltd has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Pioneer Distilleries Ltd to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Beverages (Alcoholic) industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Pioneer Distilleries Ltd to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Innovation driven organization
– Pioneer Distilleries Ltd is one of the most innovative firm in Beverages (Alcoholic) sector.
High brand equity
– Pioneer Distilleries Ltd has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Pioneer Distilleries Ltd to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Pioneer Distilleries Ltd in Beverages (Alcoholic) industry is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Pioneer Distilleries Ltd in the Consumer/Non-Cyclical sector have low bargaining power. Pioneer Distilleries Ltd has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Pioneer Distilleries Ltd to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Pioneer Distilleries Ltd 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.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Pioneer Distilleries Ltd is one of the leading players in the Beverages (Alcoholic) 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.
Weaknesses of Pioneer Distilleries Ltd | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Pioneer Distilleries Ltd are -
No frontier risks strategy
– From the 10K / annual statement of Pioneer Distilleries Ltd, it seems that company is thinking out the frontier risks that can impact Beverages (Alcoholic) industry. 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Pioneer Distilleries Ltd products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Pioneer Distilleries Ltd needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Pioneer Distilleries Ltd is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Beverages (Alcoholic) industry, but Pioneer Distilleries Ltd needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Pioneer Distilleries Ltd to focus more on services in the Beverages (Alcoholic) industry rather than just following the product oriented approach.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, Pioneer Distilleries Ltd has high operating costs in the Beverages (Alcoholic) industry. This can be harder to sustain given the new emerging competition from nimble players who are using technology to attract Pioneer Distilleries Ltd lucrative customers.
Need for greater diversity
– Pioneer Distilleries Ltd 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Pioneer Distilleries Ltd is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication can help Pioneer Distilleries Ltd to provide better information regarding Beverages (Alcoholic) products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
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 Pioneer Distilleries Ltd supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes, Pioneer Distilleries Ltd is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Pioneer Distilleries Ltd vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Pioneer Distilleries Ltd has a high cash cycle compare to other players in the Beverages (Alcoholic) industry. It needs to shorten the cash cycle by 12% to be more competitive in the marketplace, reduce inventory costs, and be more profitable.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Pioneer Distilleries Ltd has some of the most successful models in the Beverages (Alcoholic) industry, this business model has made each new product launch extremely critical for continuous financial growth of the organization. Pioneer Distilleries Ltd should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Pioneer Distilleries Ltd has a very deliberative decision making approach. This approach has resulted in prudent decisions, but it has also resulted in missing opportunities in the Beverages (Alcoholic) industry over the last five years. Pioneer Distilleries Ltd 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.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Pioneer Distilleries Ltd is one of the leading players in the Beverages (Alcoholic) industry, it takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the Beverages (Alcoholic) industry in last five years.
Pioneer Distilleries Ltd Opportunities | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The opportunities of Pioneer Distilleries Ltd are -
Use of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies for transactions in Beverages (Alcoholic) industry
– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for Pioneer Distilleries Ltd in the Beverages (Alcoholic) industry. Now Pioneer Distilleries Ltd can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Pioneer Distilleries Ltd to increase its market reach. Pioneer Distilleries Ltd 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 Pioneer Distilleries Ltd 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 Pioneer Distilleries Ltd to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Pioneer Distilleries Ltd has spent a significant amount of money and effort to integrate analytics and machine learning into its operations in Beverages (Alcoholic) sector. This continuous investment in analytics has enabled Pioneer Distilleries Ltd to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Pioneer Distilleries Ltd to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Pioneer Distilleries Ltd can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Pioneer Distilleries Ltd operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Beverages (Alcoholic) sector.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Pioneer Distilleries Ltd in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Beverages (Alcoholic) industry, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Pioneer Distilleries Ltd 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 Pioneer Distilleries Ltd has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in Beverages (Alcoholic) industry. This can help Pioneer Distilleries Ltd to build a more holistic ecosystem for Pioneer Distilleries Ltd products in the Beverages (Alcoholic) industry by providing – data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, 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. Pioneer Distilleries Ltd can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Pioneer Distilleries Ltd can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Pioneer Distilleries Ltd 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Pioneer Distilleries Ltd is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Pioneer Distilleries Ltd can utilize new technology in the field of Beverages (Alcoholic) industry to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.
Buying journey improvements
– Pioneer Distilleries Ltd can improve the customer journey of consumers in the Beverages (Alcoholic) industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. It 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.
Threats Pioneer Distilleries Ltd External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats of Pioneer Distilleries Ltd are -
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Pioneer Distilleries Ltd 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 Pioneer Distilleries Ltd prominent markets.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Pioneer Distilleries Ltd in Beverages (Alcoholic) industry. The Beverages (Alcoholic) 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.
Increasing wage structure of Pioneer Distilleries Ltd
– 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 Pioneer Distilleries Ltd.
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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Pioneer Distilleries Ltd 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 Beverages (Alcoholic) industry and other sectors.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Pioneer Distilleries Ltd 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 Beverages (Alcoholic) industry.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Pioneer Distilleries Ltd is facing in Beverages (Alcoholic) sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry to Beverages (Alcoholic) industry are lowering. It can presents Pioneer Distilleries Ltd with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the Beverages (Alcoholic) sector.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Pioneer Distilleries Ltd has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Beverages (Alcoholic) industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Pioneer Distilleries Ltd needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Beverages (Alcoholic) 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.
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 Pioneer Distilleries Ltd in the Beverages (Alcoholic) sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, Pioneer Distilleries Ltd may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Beverages (Alcoholic) sector.
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 Pioneer Distilleries Ltd business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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. Pioneer Distilleries Ltd needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Beverages (Alcoholic) industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Pioneer Distilleries Ltd Template, Example
Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers at Pioneer Distilleries Ltd 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 Pioneer Distilleries Ltd 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 Pioneer Distilleries Ltd 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 Pioneer Distilleries Ltd 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 Pioneer Distilleries Ltd needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
