Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG (0NZ7) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / MBA Resources
Containers & Packaging
Strategy / MBA Resources
Introduction to SWOT Analysis
SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix for Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG (United Kingdom)
Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, wage bills are increasing, increasing energy prices, increasing transportation and logistics costs, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy,
increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University, we believe that Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG 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 Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning of Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG
2. Improving business portfolio management of Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in United Kingdom
4. Making a Containers & Packaging sector specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG
Strengths of Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG are -
Ability to recruit top talent
– Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG is one of the leading players in the Containers & Packaging industry in United Kingdom. It is in a position to attract the best talent available in United Kingdom. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Containers & Packaging industry
– Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Containers & Packaging industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Digital Transformation in Containers & Packaging industry
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG 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.
High brand equity
– Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Training and development
– Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG has one of the best training and development program in Basic Materials 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG has highly efficient outsourcing and offshoring strategy. It has resulted in greater operational flexibility and bringing down the costs in highly price sensitive Containers & Packaging industry. Secondly the value chain collaborators of Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Learning organization
- Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG 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 Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders at Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG has innovation driven culture where significant part of the revenues are spent on the research and development activities. This has resulted in – Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG staying ahead in the Containers & Packaging industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Analytics focus
– Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG 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 Containers & Packaging industry. The technology infrastructure of United Kingdom 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.
Diverse revenue streams
– Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG is present in almost all the verticals within the Containers & Packaging industry. This has provided Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG is one of the most innovative firm in Containers & Packaging sector.
Weaknesses of Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG are -
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the Containers & Packaging industry, Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG 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.
Skills based hiring in Containers & Packaging industry
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG 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 harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication can help Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG to provide better information regarding Containers & Packaging products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG has some of the most successful models in the Containers & Packaging industry, this business model has made each new product launch extremely critical for continuous financial growth of the organization. Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of United Kingdom, Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– From the outside it seems that Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG needs to have more collaboration between its sales team and marketing team. Sales professionals in the Containers & Packaging industry have deep experience in developing customer relationships. Marketing department at Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG is planning to shift buying processes online.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG is one of the leading players in the Containers & Packaging industry, it takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the Containers & Packaging industry in last five years.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG has a high cash cycle compare to other players in the Containers & Packaging 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 Containers & Packaging industry
– because of the regulatory requirements in United Kingdom, Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG 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 Containers & Packaging industry.
Lack of clear differentiation of Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG Opportunities | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The opportunities of Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG are -
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Containers & Packaging sector.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in Containers & Packaging industry. This can help Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG to build a more holistic ecosystem for Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG products in the Containers & Packaging industry by providing – data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG has spent a significant amount of money and effort to integrate analytics and machine learning into its operations in Containers & Packaging sector. This continuous investment in analytics has enabled Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Buying journey improvements
– Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG can improve the customer journey of consumers in the Containers & Packaging 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.
Use of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies for transactions in Containers & Packaging industry
– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG in the Containers & Packaging industry. Now Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Containers & Packaging 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG can develop new processes and procedures in Containers & Packaging 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.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– consumer behavior has changed in the Containers & Packaging industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG 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. Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG 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.
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. Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG 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 Containers & Packaging industry.
Threats Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats of Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG are -
Increasing wage structure of Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG
– 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 Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG.
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. Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Containers & Packaging industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Containers & Packaging industry will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG is facing in Containers & Packaging sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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 Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Containers & Packaging industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Containers & Packaging 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.
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 Containers & Packaging industry are lowering. It can presents Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the Containers & Packaging sector.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG 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 Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG prominent markets.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG 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 Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG 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 Containers & Packaging industry and other sectors.
Environmental challenges
– Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG 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. Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Containers & Packaging industry.
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. Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG Template, Example
Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers at Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG 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 Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG 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 Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG 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 Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG 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 Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
