SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix for Hiday Hidaka Corp (Japan)
Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , Hiday Hidaka Corp is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – geopolitical disruptions, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, wage bills are increasing, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, there is increasing trade war between United States & China,
supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Hiday Hidaka Corp
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University, we believe that Hiday Hidaka Corp can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Hiday Hidaka Corp, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Hiday Hidaka Corp 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 Hiday Hidaka Corp can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning of Hiday Hidaka Corp
2. Improving business portfolio management of Hiday Hidaka Corp
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Japan
4. Making a Restaurants sector specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Hiday Hidaka Corp
Strengths of Hiday Hidaka Corp | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Hiday Hidaka Corp are -
Organizational Resilience of Hiday Hidaka Corp
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing Hiday Hidaka Corp does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Hiday Hidaka Corp in the Services sector have low bargaining power. Hiday Hidaka Corp has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Hiday Hidaka Corp to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Hiday Hidaka Corp has highly efficient outsourcing and offshoring strategy. It has resulted in greater operational flexibility and bringing down the costs in highly price sensitive Restaurants industry. Secondly the value chain collaborators of Hiday Hidaka Corp have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy of Hiday Hidaka Corp comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the Restaurants industry, building diversified operations across different geographies so that disruption in one part of the world doesn’t impact the overall performance of the firm, and integrating the various business operations and processes through its digital transformation drive.
Innovation driven organization
– Hiday Hidaka Corp is one of the most innovative firm in Restaurants sector.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Hiday Hidaka Corp in Restaurants industry is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Hiday Hidaka Corp 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.
Training and development
– Hiday Hidaka Corp has one of the best training and development program in Services 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.
Analytics focus
– Hiday Hidaka Corp 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 Restaurants industry. The technology infrastructure of Japan is also helping it to harness the power of analytics for – marketing optimization, demand forecasting, customer relationship management, inventory management, information sharing across the value chain etc.
Strong track record of project management in the Restaurants industry
– Hiday Hidaka Corp 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 switching costs
– The high switching costs that Hiday Hidaka Corp 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Hiday Hidaka Corp has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Hiday Hidaka Corp 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.
Weaknesses of Hiday Hidaka Corp | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Hiday Hidaka Corp are -
Employees’ less understanding of Hiday Hidaka Corp strategy
– From the outside it seems that the employees of Hiday Hidaka Corp 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.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Hiday Hidaka Corp has a high cash cycle compare to other players in the Restaurants 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 Hiday Hidaka Corp ‘s star products
– The top 2 products and services of Hiday Hidaka Corp still accounts for major business revenue. This dependence on star products in Restaurants industry has resulted into insufficient focus on developing new products, even though Hiday Hidaka Corp has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
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 Hiday Hidaka Corp supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes, Hiday Hidaka Corp is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Hiday Hidaka Corp vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Japan, Hiday Hidaka Corp needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Need for greater diversity
– Hiday Hidaka Corp 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Hiday Hidaka Corp has some of the most successful models in the Restaurants industry, this business model has made each new product launch extremely critical for continuous financial growth of the organization. Hiday Hidaka Corp should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
High bargaining power of channel partners in Restaurants industry
– because of the regulatory requirements in Japan, Hiday Hidaka Corp 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 Restaurants industry.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative at Hiday Hidaka Corp, in the dynamic environment of Restaurants industry it has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Hiday Hidaka Corp has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Hiday Hidaka Corp is one of the leading players in the Restaurants industry, it takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the Restaurants industry in last five years.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Hiday Hidaka Corp is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Restaurants industry, but Hiday Hidaka Corp needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Hiday Hidaka Corp to focus more on services in the Restaurants industry rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Hiday Hidaka Corp Opportunities | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The opportunities of Hiday Hidaka Corp are -
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Hiday Hidaka Corp to increase its market reach. Hiday Hidaka Corp 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.
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 Hiday Hidaka Corp 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 Hiday Hidaka Corp can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Hiday Hidaka Corp is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Hiday Hidaka Corp can utilize new technology in the field of Restaurants industry to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Hiday Hidaka Corp 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 Restaurants industry.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Hiday Hidaka Corp 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 Hiday Hidaka Corp to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– consumer behavior has changed in the Restaurants industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Hiday Hidaka Corp 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. Hiday Hidaka Corp 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Hiday Hidaka Corp in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Restaurants industry, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Use of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies for transactions in Restaurants industry
– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for Hiday Hidaka Corp in the Restaurants industry. Now Hiday Hidaka Corp can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Manufacturing automation
– Hiday Hidaka Corp can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Restaurants sector. It can use CAD and 3D printing to build a quick prototype and pilot testing products. It can leverage automation using machine learning and artificial intelligence to do faster production at lowers costs, and it can leverage the growth in satellite and tracking technologies to improve inventory management, transportation, and shipping.
Buying journey improvements
– Hiday Hidaka Corp can improve the customer journey of consumers in the Restaurants 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Hiday Hidaka Corp 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 Hiday Hidaka Corp to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Hiday Hidaka Corp can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Hiday Hidaka Corp operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Restaurants sector.
Threats Hiday Hidaka Corp External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats of Hiday Hidaka Corp are -
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 Hiday Hidaka Corp in the Restaurants sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Increasing wage structure of Hiday Hidaka Corp
– 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 Hiday Hidaka Corp.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Hiday Hidaka Corp has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Restaurants industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Hiday Hidaka Corp needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Restaurants 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.
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. Hiday Hidaka Corp needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Restaurants industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Restaurants industry will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Hiday Hidaka Corp can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Hiday Hidaka Corp 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 Hiday Hidaka Corp prominent markets.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Hiday Hidaka Corp is facing in Restaurants sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, Hiday Hidaka Corp may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Restaurants sector.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Hiday Hidaka Corp 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 Restaurants industry and other sectors.
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 Hiday Hidaka Corp business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Environmental challenges
– Hiday Hidaka Corp 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. Hiday Hidaka Corp can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Restaurants industry.
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 Hiday Hidaka Corp.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Hiday Hidaka Corp Template, Example
Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers at Hiday Hidaka Corp 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 Hiday Hidaka Corp 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 Hiday Hidaka Corp 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 Hiday Hidaka Corp 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 Hiday Hidaka Corp needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.