SuRaLa Net (3998) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / MBA Resources
Schools
Strategy / MBA Resources
Introduction to SWOT Analysis
SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix for SuRaLa Net (Japan)
Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , SuRaLa Net is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – 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 commodity prices, technology disruption, increasing energy prices, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings,
challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, etc
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University, we believe that SuRaLa Net can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the SuRaLa Net, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which SuRaLa Net 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 SuRaLa Net can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning of SuRaLa Net
2. Improving business portfolio management of SuRaLa Net
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Japan
4. Making a Schools sector specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of SuRaLa Net
Strengths of SuRaLa Net | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of SuRaLa Net are -
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy of SuRaLa Net comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the Schools 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
– SuRaLa Net is one of the most innovative firm in Schools sector.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of SuRaLa Net in the Services sector have low bargaining power. SuRaLa Net has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps SuRaLa Net to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
High brand equity
– SuRaLa Net has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled SuRaLa Net to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Training and development
– SuRaLa Net 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.
Strong track record of project management in the Schools industry
– SuRaLa Net is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Schools industry
– SuRaLa Net has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled SuRaLa Net to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Schools industry. The sustainable margins have also helped SuRaLa Net to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Ability to recruit top talent
– SuRaLa Net is one of the leading players in the Schools 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.
Organizational Resilience of SuRaLa Net
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing SuRaLa Net does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the SuRaLa Net 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.
Analytics focus
– SuRaLa Net 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 Schools 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.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that SuRaLa Net 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.
Weaknesses of SuRaLa Net | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of SuRaLa Net are -
Products dominated business model
– Even though SuRaLa Net has some of the most successful models in the Schools industry, this business model has made each new product launch extremely critical for continuous financial growth of the organization. SuRaLa Net should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, SuRaLa Net 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 Schools industry using digital technology.
Aligning sales with marketing
– From the outside it seems that SuRaLa Net needs to have more collaboration between its sales team and marketing team. Sales professionals in the Schools industry have deep experience in developing customer relationships. Marketing department at SuRaLa Net can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as SuRaLa Net is planning to shift buying processes online.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, SuRaLa Net has high operating costs in the Schools industry. This can be harder to sustain given the new emerging competition from nimble players who are using technology to attract SuRaLa Net lucrative customers.
Lack of clear differentiation of SuRaLa Net products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, SuRaLa Net needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, SuRaLa Net has a very deliberative decision making approach. This approach has resulted in prudent decisions, but it has also resulted in missing opportunities in the Schools industry over the last five years. SuRaLa Net 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Japan, SuRaLa Net needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Need for greater diversity
– SuRaLa Net 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, SuRaLa Net is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication can help SuRaLa Net to provide better information regarding Schools products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
SuRaLa Net has a high cash cycle compare to other players in the Schools 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 bargaining power of channel partners in Schools industry
– because of the regulatory requirements in Japan, SuRaLa Net 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 Schools industry.
SuRaLa Net Opportunities | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The opportunities of SuRaLa Net are -
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for SuRaLa Net 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 SuRaLa Net to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Use of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies for transactions in Schools industry
– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for SuRaLa Net in the Schools industry. Now SuRaLa Net can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Manufacturing automation
– SuRaLa Net can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Schools 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
– SuRaLa Net can improve the customer journey of consumers in the Schools 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.
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 SuRaLa Net 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for SuRaLa Net in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Schools industry, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Leveraging digital technologies
– SuRaLa Net 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects SuRaLa Net can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of SuRaLa Net has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in Schools industry. This can help SuRaLa Net to build a more holistic ecosystem for SuRaLa Net products in the Schools industry by providing – data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Developing new processes and practices
– SuRaLa Net can develop new processes and procedures in Schools 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. SuRaLa Net can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, SuRaLa Net can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that SuRaLa Net operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Schools sector.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for SuRaLa Net 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 SuRaLa Net External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats of SuRaLa Net are -
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. SuRaLa Net needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Schools industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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 SuRaLa Net in the Schools sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Regulatory challenges
– SuRaLa Net 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 Schools industry regulations.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– SuRaLa Net has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Schools industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, SuRaLa Net needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Schools 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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, SuRaLa Net may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Schools sector.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– SuRaLa Net 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that SuRaLa Net is facing in Schools sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– SuRaLa Net 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 Schools industry.
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.
Environmental challenges
– SuRaLa Net 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. SuRaLa Net can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Schools 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 SuRaLa Net.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry to Schools industry are lowering. It can presents SuRaLa Net with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the Schools sector.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, SuRaLa Net 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 SuRaLa Net prominent markets.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of SuRaLa Net Template, Example
Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers at SuRaLa Net 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 SuRaLa Net 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 SuRaLa Net 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 SuRaLa Net 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 SuRaLa Net needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.