SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix for Mimaki Engineering (Japan)
Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , Mimaki Engineering is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, increasing commodity prices,
central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Mimaki Engineering
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University, we believe that Mimaki Engineering can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Mimaki Engineering, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Mimaki Engineering 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 Mimaki Engineering can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning of Mimaki Engineering
2. Improving business portfolio management of Mimaki Engineering
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Japan
4. Making a Computer Peripherals sector specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Mimaki Engineering
Strengths of Mimaki Engineering | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Mimaki Engineering are -
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Mimaki Engineering in the Technology sector have low bargaining power. Mimaki Engineering has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Mimaki Engineering to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Digital Transformation in Computer Peripherals industry
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Mimaki Engineering digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Mimaki Engineering 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.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy of Mimaki Engineering comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the Computer Peripherals 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
– Mimaki Engineering is one of the most innovative firm in Computer Peripherals sector.
Strong track record of project management in the Computer Peripherals industry
– Mimaki Engineering is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Mimaki Engineering in Computer Peripherals 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 Mimaki Engineering 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.
Ability to lead change in Computer Peripherals
– Mimaki Engineering is one of the leading players in the Computer Peripherals industry in Japan. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in the Computer Peripherals industry in Japan but also across the existing markets. The ability to lead change has enabled Mimaki Engineering in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Learning organization
- Mimaki Engineering 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 Mimaki Engineering is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders at Mimaki Engineering emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Mimaki Engineering 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.
Analytics focus
– Mimaki Engineering 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 Computer Peripherals 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.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Mimaki Engineering is one of the leading players in the Computer Peripherals industry in Japan. It is in a position to attract the best talent available in Japan. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Weaknesses of Mimaki Engineering | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Mimaki Engineering are -
High bargaining power of channel partners in Computer Peripherals industry
– because of the regulatory requirements in Japan, Mimaki Engineering 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 Computer Peripherals industry.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Mimaki Engineering is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Computer Peripherals industry, but Mimaki Engineering needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Mimaki Engineering to focus more on services in the Computer Peripherals industry rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative at Mimaki Engineering, in the dynamic environment of Computer Peripherals industry it has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Mimaki Engineering has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Mimaki Engineering has a very deliberative decision making approach. This approach has resulted in prudent decisions, but it has also resulted in missing opportunities in the Computer Peripherals industry over the last five years. Mimaki Engineering 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 Mimaki Engineering is one of the leading players in the Computer Peripherals industry, it takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the Computer Peripherals industry in last five years.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, Mimaki Engineering has high operating costs in the Computer Peripherals industry. This can be harder to sustain given the new emerging competition from nimble players who are using technology to attract Mimaki Engineering lucrative customers.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee of Mimaki Engineering is just above the Computer Peripherals 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.
Skills based hiring in Computer Peripherals industry
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Mimaki Engineering 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.
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 Mimaki Engineering supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes, Mimaki Engineering is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Mimaki Engineering vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Mimaki Engineering has not been able to do capital spending to the tune of the competition. This has resulted into fewer innovations and company facing stiff competition from both existing competitors and new entrants who are disrupting the Computer Peripherals industry using digital technology.
Employees’ less understanding of Mimaki Engineering strategy
– From the outside it seems that the employees of Mimaki Engineering 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.
Mimaki Engineering Opportunities | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The opportunities of Mimaki Engineering are -
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Mimaki Engineering 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 Computer Peripherals industry.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Mimaki Engineering is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Mimaki Engineering can utilize new technology in the field of Computer Peripherals industry to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Mimaki Engineering 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 Mimaki Engineering to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Mimaki Engineering 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.
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 Mimaki Engineering 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.
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. Mimaki Engineering 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, Mimaki Engineering 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 Mimaki Engineering to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Use of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies for transactions in Computer Peripherals industry
– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for Mimaki Engineering in the Computer Peripherals industry. Now Mimaki Engineering 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 Mimaki Engineering to increase its market reach. Mimaki Engineering 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Mimaki Engineering can develop new processes and procedures in Computer Peripherals 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Mimaki Engineering can improve the customer journey of consumers in the Computer Peripherals 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Mimaki Engineering has spent a significant amount of money and effort to integrate analytics and machine learning into its operations in Computer Peripherals sector. This continuous investment in analytics has enabled Mimaki Engineering to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Mimaki Engineering to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Mimaki Engineering 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.
Threats Mimaki Engineering External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats of Mimaki Engineering are -
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Mimaki Engineering has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Computer Peripherals industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Mimaki Engineering needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Computer Peripherals 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.
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 Mimaki Engineering business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Mimaki Engineering is facing in Computer Peripherals sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Mimaki Engineering 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 Mimaki Engineering prominent markets.
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.
Regulatory challenges
– Mimaki Engineering 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 Computer Peripherals industry regulations.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, Mimaki Engineering may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Computer Peripherals sector.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Mimaki Engineering 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Mimaki Engineering 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 Computer Peripherals industry and other sectors.
New competition
– After the dotcom bust of 2001, financial crisis of 2008-09, the business formation in US economy had declined. But in 2020 alone, there are more than 1.5 million new business applications in United States. This can lead to greater competition for Mimaki Engineering in the Computer Peripherals sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Increasing wage structure of Mimaki Engineering
– 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 Mimaki Engineering.
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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry to Computer Peripherals industry are lowering. It can presents Mimaki Engineering with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the Computer Peripherals sector.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Mimaki Engineering Template, Example
Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers at Mimaki Engineering 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 Mimaki Engineering 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 Mimaki Engineering 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 Mimaki Engineering 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 Mimaki Engineering needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.