SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix for UUV Aquabotix (Australia)
Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , UUV Aquabotix is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – geopolitical disruptions, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, increasing transportation and logistics costs, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, increasing commodity prices, wage bills are increasing,
technology disruption, there is backlash against globalization, etc
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University, we believe that UUV Aquabotix can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the UUV Aquabotix, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which UUV Aquabotix 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 UUV Aquabotix can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning of UUV Aquabotix
2. Improving business portfolio management of UUV Aquabotix
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Australia
4. Making a Aerospace & Defense sector specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of UUV Aquabotix
Strengths of UUV Aquabotix | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of UUV Aquabotix are -
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy of UUV Aquabotix comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the Aerospace & Defense 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
– UUV Aquabotix is one of the most innovative firm in Aerospace & Defense sector.
Diverse revenue streams
– UUV Aquabotix is present in almost all the verticals within the Aerospace & Defense industry. This has provided UUV Aquabotix a diverse revenue stream that has helped it to survive disruptions such as global pandemic in Covid-19, financial disruption of 2008, and supply chain disruption of 2021.
Highly skilled collaborators
– UUV Aquabotix has highly efficient outsourcing and offshoring strategy. It has resulted in greater operational flexibility and bringing down the costs in highly price sensitive Aerospace & Defense industry. Secondly the value chain collaborators of UUV Aquabotix have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Organizational Resilience of UUV Aquabotix
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing UUV Aquabotix does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Learning organization
- UUV Aquabotix 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 UUV Aquabotix is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders at UUV Aquabotix emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the UUV Aquabotix 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
– UUV Aquabotix 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 Aerospace & Defense industry. The technology infrastructure of Australia 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 lead change in Aerospace & Defense
– UUV Aquabotix is one of the leading players in the Aerospace & Defense industry in Australia. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in the Aerospace & Defense industry in Australia but also across the existing markets. The ability to lead change has enabled UUV Aquabotix in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that UUV Aquabotix 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Aerospace & Defense industry
– UUV Aquabotix has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled UUV Aquabotix to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Aerospace & Defense industry. The sustainable margins have also helped UUV Aquabotix to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Digital Transformation in Aerospace & Defense industry
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For UUV Aquabotix digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. UUV Aquabotix 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.
Weaknesses of UUV Aquabotix | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of UUV Aquabotix are -
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee of UUV Aquabotix is just above the Aerospace & Defense 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.
Employees’ less understanding of UUV Aquabotix strategy
– From the outside it seems that the employees of UUV Aquabotix 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 operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, UUV Aquabotix has high operating costs in the Aerospace & Defense industry. This can be harder to sustain given the new emerging competition from nimble players who are using technology to attract UUV Aquabotix lucrative 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 UUV Aquabotix supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes, UUV Aquabotix is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left UUV Aquabotix vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of UUV Aquabotix is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Aerospace & Defense industry, but UUV Aquabotix needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help UUV Aquabotix to focus more on services in the Aerospace & Defense industry rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Lack of clear differentiation of UUV Aquabotix products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, UUV Aquabotix needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative at UUV Aquabotix, in the dynamic environment of Aerospace & Defense industry it has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. UUV Aquabotix has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, UUV Aquabotix is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication can help UUV Aquabotix to provide better information regarding Aerospace & Defense products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Skills based hiring in Aerospace & Defense industry
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at UUV Aquabotix 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.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As UUV Aquabotix is one of the leading players in the Aerospace & Defense industry, it takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the Aerospace & Defense industry in last five years.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
UUV Aquabotix has a high cash cycle compare to other players in the Aerospace & Defense industry. It needs to shorten the cash cycle by 12% to be more competitive in the marketplace, reduce inventory costs, and be more profitable.
UUV Aquabotix Opportunities | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The opportunities of UUV Aquabotix are -
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– UUV Aquabotix has spent a significant amount of money and effort to integrate analytics and machine learning into its operations in Aerospace & Defense sector. This continuous investment in analytics has enabled UUV Aquabotix to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help UUV Aquabotix to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, UUV Aquabotix is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. UUV Aquabotix can utilize new technology in the field of Aerospace & Defense industry to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help UUV Aquabotix to increase its market reach. UUV Aquabotix 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, UUV Aquabotix 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 UUV Aquabotix to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Buying journey improvements
– UUV Aquabotix can improve the customer journey of consumers in the Aerospace & Defense 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– UUV Aquabotix can develop new processes and procedures in Aerospace & Defense 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.
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 UUV Aquabotix 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, UUV Aquabotix can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that UUV Aquabotix operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Aerospace & Defense sector.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for UUV Aquabotix 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 UUV Aquabotix to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Manufacturing automation
– UUV Aquabotix can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Aerospace & Defense 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at UUV Aquabotix 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 Aerospace & Defense industry.
Loyalty marketing
– UUV Aquabotix has focused on building a highly responsive customer relationship management platform. This platform is built on in-house data and driven by analytics and artificial intelligence. The customer analytics can help the organization to fine tune its loyalty marketing efforts, increase the wallet share of the organization, reduce wastage on mainstream advertising spending, build better pricing strategies using personalization, etc.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects UUV Aquabotix can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Threats UUV Aquabotix External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats of UUV Aquabotix are -
High dependence on third party suppliers
– UUV Aquabotix 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.
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 UUV Aquabotix in the Aerospace & Defense sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
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.
Increasing wage structure of UUV Aquabotix
– 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 UUV Aquabotix.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, UUV Aquabotix 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 UUV Aquabotix prominent markets.
Consumer confidence and its impact on UUV Aquabotix 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 Aerospace & Defense industry and other sectors.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– UUV Aquabotix has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Aerospace & Defense industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, UUV Aquabotix needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Aerospace & Defense 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.
Environmental challenges
– UUV Aquabotix 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. UUV Aquabotix can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Aerospace & Defense industry.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– UUV Aquabotix 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 Aerospace & Defense industry.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that UUV Aquabotix is facing in Aerospace & Defense sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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. UUV Aquabotix 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.
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 UUV Aquabotix.
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 UUV Aquabotix business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of UUV Aquabotix Template, Example
Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers at UUV Aquabotix 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 UUV Aquabotix 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 UUV Aquabotix 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 UUV Aquabotix 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 UUV Aquabotix needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
