Imura Envelope Co (3955) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / MBA Resources
Office Supplies
Strategy / MBA Resources
Introduction to SWOT Analysis
SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix for Imura Envelope Co (Japan)
Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , Imura Envelope Co is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – increasing energy prices, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, there is backlash against globalization, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, geopolitical disruptions, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies,
increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Imura Envelope Co
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University, we believe that Imura Envelope Co can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Imura Envelope Co, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Imura Envelope Co 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 Imura Envelope Co can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning of Imura Envelope Co
2. Improving business portfolio management of Imura Envelope Co
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Japan
4. Making a Office Supplies sector specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Imura Envelope Co
Strengths of Imura Envelope Co | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Imura Envelope Co are -
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Office Supplies industry
– Imura Envelope Co has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Imura Envelope Co to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Office Supplies industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Imura Envelope Co to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Learning organization
- Imura Envelope Co 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 Imura Envelope Co is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders at Imura Envelope Co emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Imura Envelope Co has innovation driven culture where significant part of the revenues are spent on the research and development activities. This has resulted in – Imura Envelope Co staying ahead in the Office Supplies industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
High brand equity
– Imura Envelope Co has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Imura Envelope Co to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Imura Envelope Co 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Imura Envelope Co in the Consumer/Non-Cyclical sector have low bargaining power. Imura Envelope Co has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Imura Envelope Co to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy of Imura Envelope Co comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the Office Supplies 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.
Training and development
– Imura Envelope Co 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Imura Envelope Co has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Imura Envelope Co 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.
Digital Transformation in Office Supplies industry
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Imura Envelope Co digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Imura Envelope Co 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.
Organizational Resilience of Imura Envelope Co
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing Imura Envelope Co 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 Imura Envelope Co 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.
Weaknesses of Imura Envelope Co | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Imura Envelope Co are -
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Imura Envelope Co 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 Office Supplies industry using digital technology.
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 Imura Envelope Co supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes, Imura Envelope Co is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Imura Envelope Co vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Imura Envelope Co has some of the most successful models in the Office Supplies industry, this business model has made each new product launch extremely critical for continuous financial growth of the organization. Imura Envelope Co should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
No frontier risks strategy
– From the 10K / annual statement of Imura Envelope Co, it seems that company is thinking out the frontier risks that can impact Office Supplies 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Imura Envelope Co is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Office Supplies industry, but Imura Envelope Co needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Imura Envelope Co to focus more on services in the Office Supplies industry rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the Office Supplies industry, Imura Envelope Co needs to come up with a strategy to reduce the workers concern regarding automation. Without a clear strategy, it could lead to disruption and uncertainty within the organization.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Imura Envelope Co 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Imura Envelope Co products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Imura Envelope Co needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Imura Envelope Co has a high cash cycle compare to other players in the Office Supplies industry. It needs to shorten the cash cycle by 12% to be more competitive in the marketplace, reduce inventory costs, and be more profitable.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative at Imura Envelope Co, in the dynamic environment of Office Supplies industry it has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Imura Envelope Co has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
High dependence on Imura Envelope Co ‘s star products
– The top 2 products and services of Imura Envelope Co still accounts for major business revenue. This dependence on star products in Office Supplies industry has resulted into insufficient focus on developing new products, even though Imura Envelope Co has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Imura Envelope Co Opportunities | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The opportunities of Imura Envelope Co are -
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Imura Envelope Co 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, Imura Envelope Co is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Imura Envelope Co can utilize new technology in the field of Office Supplies industry to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.
Manufacturing automation
– Imura Envelope Co can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Office Supplies 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Imura Envelope Co to increase its market reach. Imura Envelope Co 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Imura Envelope Co 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Imura Envelope Co has spent a significant amount of money and effort to integrate analytics and machine learning into its operations in Office Supplies sector. This continuous investment in analytics has enabled Imura Envelope Co to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Imura Envelope Co to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Use of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies for transactions in Office Supplies industry
– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for Imura Envelope Co in the Office Supplies industry. Now Imura Envelope Co can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
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. Imura Envelope Co can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Buying journey improvements
– Imura Envelope Co can improve the customer journey of consumers in the Office Supplies 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Imura Envelope Co in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Office Supplies industry, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Imura Envelope Co has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in Office Supplies industry. This can help Imura Envelope Co to build a more holistic ecosystem for Imura Envelope Co products in the Office Supplies industry by providing – data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Imura Envelope Co 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 Imura Envelope Co to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Imura Envelope Co 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 Office Supplies industry.
Threats Imura Envelope Co External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats of Imura Envelope Co are -
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Imura Envelope Co 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 Imura Envelope Co prominent markets.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Imura Envelope Co in Office Supplies industry. The Office Supplies 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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Imura Envelope Co 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 Office Supplies industry.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, Imura Envelope Co may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Office Supplies sector.
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. Imura Envelope Co 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.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Office Supplies industry will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Imura Envelope Co can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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 Imura Envelope Co business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry to Office Supplies industry are lowering. It can presents Imura Envelope Co with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the Office Supplies sector.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Imura Envelope Co has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Office Supplies industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Imura Envelope Co needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Office Supplies 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 Imura Envelope Co in the Office Supplies sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Environmental challenges
– Imura Envelope Co 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. Imura Envelope Co can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Office Supplies industry.
Regulatory challenges
– Imura Envelope Co 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 Office Supplies industry regulations.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Imura Envelope Co is facing in Office Supplies sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Imura Envelope Co Template, Example
Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers at Imura Envelope Co 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 Imura Envelope Co 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 Imura Envelope Co 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 Imura Envelope Co 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 Imura Envelope Co needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.