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Macfarlane Group PLC (MACF) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / MBA Resources

Introduction to SWOT Analysis

SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix for Macfarlane Group PLC (United Kingdom)


Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , Macfarlane Group PLC is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – there is increasing trade war between United States & China, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, technology disruption, increasing commodity prices, wage bills are increasing, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, there is backlash against globalization, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , etc



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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Macfarlane Group PLC


SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University, we believe that Macfarlane Group PLC can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Macfarlane Group PLC, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Macfarlane Group PLC 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 Macfarlane Group PLC can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning of Macfarlane Group PLC
2. Improving business portfolio management of Macfarlane Group PLC
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 Macfarlane Group PLC




Strengths of Macfarlane Group PLC | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of Macfarlane Group PLC are -

Ability to recruit top talent

– Macfarlane Group PLC 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.

Operational resilience

– The operational resilience strategy of Macfarlane Group PLC comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the Containers & Packaging 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.

Learning organization

- Macfarlane Group PLC 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 Macfarlane Group PLC is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders at Macfarlane Group PLC emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.

Superior customer experience

– The customer experience strategy of Macfarlane Group PLC in Containers & Packaging industry is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.

Strong track record of project management in the Containers & Packaging industry

– Macfarlane Group PLC is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.

Digital Transformation in Containers & Packaging industry

- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Macfarlane Group PLC digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Macfarlane Group PLC 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.

Sustainable margins compare to other players in Containers & Packaging industry

– Macfarlane Group PLC has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Macfarlane Group PLC to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Containers & Packaging industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Macfarlane Group PLC to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.

High switching costs

– The high switching costs that Macfarlane Group PLC 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.

Successful track record of launching new products

– Macfarlane Group PLC has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Macfarlane Group PLC 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.

Effective Research and Development (R&D)

– Macfarlane Group PLC has innovation driven culture where significant part of the revenues are spent on the research and development activities. This has resulted in – Macfarlane Group PLC 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.

Diverse revenue streams

– Macfarlane Group PLC is present in almost all the verticals within the Containers & Packaging industry. This has provided Macfarlane Group PLC 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.

Organizational Resilience of Macfarlane Group PLC

– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing Macfarlane Group PLC does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.






Weaknesses of Macfarlane Group PLC | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of Macfarlane Group PLC are -

Capital Spending Reduction

– Even during the low interest decade, Macfarlane Group PLC 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 Containers & Packaging industry using digital technology.

High dependence on Macfarlane Group PLC ‘s star products

– The top 2 products and services of Macfarlane Group PLC still accounts for major business revenue. This dependence on star products in Containers & Packaging industry has resulted into insufficient focus on developing new products, even though Macfarlane Group PLC has relatively successful track record of launching new products.

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 Macfarlane Group PLC supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes, Macfarlane Group PLC is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Macfarlane Group PLC vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.

High bargaining power of channel partners in Containers & Packaging industry

– because of the regulatory requirements in United Kingdom, Macfarlane Group PLC 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.

No frontier risks strategy

– From the 10K / annual statement of Macfarlane Group PLC, it seems that company is thinking out the frontier risks that can impact Containers & Packaging 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.

Interest costs

– Compare to the competition, Macfarlane Group PLC 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.

Workers concerns about automation

– As automation is fast increasing in the Containers & Packaging industry, Macfarlane Group PLC 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.

Ability to respond to the competition

– As the decision making is very deliberative at Macfarlane Group PLC, in the dynamic environment of Containers & Packaging industry it has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Macfarlane Group PLC has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.

High cash cycle compare to competitors

Macfarlane Group PLC 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.

Aligning sales with marketing

– From the outside it seems that Macfarlane Group PLC 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 Macfarlane Group PLC can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Macfarlane Group PLC is planning to shift buying processes online.

Compensation and incentives

– The revenue per employee of Macfarlane Group PLC is just above the Containers & Packaging 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.




Macfarlane Group PLC Opportunities | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis


The opportunities of Macfarlane Group PLC are -

Lowering marketing communication costs

– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Macfarlane Group PLC in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Containers & Packaging industry, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.

Building a culture of innovation

– managers at Macfarlane Group PLC 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.

Low interest rates

– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Macfarlane Group PLC 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.

Creating value in data economy

– The success of analytics program of Macfarlane Group PLC has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in Containers & Packaging industry. This can help Macfarlane Group PLC to build a more holistic ecosystem for Macfarlane Group PLC 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

– Macfarlane Group PLC 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 Macfarlane Group PLC to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Macfarlane Group PLC to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.

Reforming the budgeting process

- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Macfarlane Group PLC can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.

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. Macfarlane Group PLC 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. Macfarlane Group PLC 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.

Redefining models of collaboration and team work

– As explained in the weaknesses section, Macfarlane Group PLC is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Macfarlane Group PLC can utilize new technology in the field of Containers & Packaging industry to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.

Loyalty marketing

– Macfarlane Group PLC 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.

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. Macfarlane Group PLC can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.

Learning at scale

– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Macfarlane Group PLC 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.

Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities

– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Macfarlane Group PLC 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 Macfarlane Group PLC to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.

Better consumer reach

– The expansion of the 5G network will help Macfarlane Group PLC to increase its market reach. Macfarlane Group PLC 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.




Threats Macfarlane Group PLC External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis


The threats of Macfarlane Group PLC are -

Learning curve for new practices

– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, Macfarlane Group PLC may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Containers & Packaging sector.

Increasing wage structure of Macfarlane Group PLC

– 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 Macfarlane Group PLC.

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 Macfarlane Group PLC.

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. Macfarlane Group PLC can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.

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 Macfarlane Group PLC in the Containers & Packaging sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.

Trade war between China and United States

– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Macfarlane Group PLC in Containers & Packaging industry. The Containers & Packaging 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.

Shortening product life cycle

– it is one of the major threat that Macfarlane Group PLC is facing in Containers & Packaging sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.

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.

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. Macfarlane Group PLC needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Containers & Packaging industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.

Consumer confidence and its impact on Macfarlane Group PLC 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.

Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution

– Macfarlane Group PLC has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Containers & Packaging industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Macfarlane Group PLC 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.

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 Macfarlane Group PLC business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.

Environmental challenges

– Macfarlane Group PLC 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. Macfarlane Group PLC can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Containers & Packaging industry.




Weighted SWOT Analysis of Macfarlane Group PLC Template, Example


Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers at Macfarlane Group PLC 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 Macfarlane Group PLC 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 Macfarlane Group PLC 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 Macfarlane Group PLC 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 Macfarlane Group PLC needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.



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