K Seng Seng Corp (KSSC) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / MBA Resources

Introduction to SWOT Analysis

SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix for K Seng Seng Corp (Malaysia)

Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , K Seng Seng Corp is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , there is backlash against globalization, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, wage bills are increasing, increasing transportation and logistics costs, increasing commodity prices, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, etc

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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of K Seng Seng Corp

SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University, we believe that K Seng Seng Corp can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the K Seng Seng Corp, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which K Seng Seng Corp 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.

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SWOT Objectives / Importance of SWOT Analysis and SWOT Matrix

SWOT analysis of K Seng Seng Corp can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning of K Seng Seng Corp
2. Improving business portfolio management of K Seng Seng Corp
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Malaysia
4. Making a Iron & Steel sector specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of K Seng Seng Corp

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Strengths of K Seng Seng Corp | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of K Seng Seng Corp are -

Digital Transformation in Iron & Steel industry

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

Operational resilience

– The operational resilience strategy of K Seng Seng Corp comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the Iron & Steel 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

– K Seng Seng Corp is one of the most innovative firm in Iron & Steel sector.

Effective Research and Development (R&D)

– K Seng Seng Corp has innovation driven culture where significant part of the revenues are spent on the research and development activities. This has resulted in – K Seng Seng Corp staying ahead in the Iron & Steel industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.

Successful track record of launching new products

– K Seng Seng Corp has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. K Seng Seng Corp 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.

Analytics focus

– K Seng Seng Corp 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 Iron & Steel industry. The technology infrastructure of Malaysia 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.

Sustainable margins compare to other players in Iron & Steel industry

– K Seng Seng Corp has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled K Seng Seng Corp to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Iron & Steel industry. The sustainable margins have also helped K Seng Seng Corp to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.

Ability to recruit top talent

– K Seng Seng Corp is one of the leading players in the Iron & Steel industry in Malaysia. It is in a position to attract the best talent available in Malaysia. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.

Diverse revenue streams

– K Seng Seng Corp is present in almost all the verticals within the Iron & Steel industry. This has provided K Seng Seng Corp 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.

Low bargaining power of suppliers

– Suppliers of K Seng Seng Corp in the Basic Materials sector have low bargaining power. K Seng Seng Corp has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps K Seng Seng Corp to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.

Learning organization

- K Seng Seng Corp 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 K Seng Seng Corp is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders at K Seng Seng Corp emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.

Training and development

– K Seng Seng Corp 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.

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Weaknesses of K Seng Seng Corp | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of K Seng Seng Corp are -

Slow decision making process

– As mentioned earlier in the report, K Seng Seng Corp has a very deliberative decision making approach. This approach has resulted in prudent decisions, but it has also resulted in missing opportunities in the Iron & Steel industry over the last five years. K Seng Seng Corp even though has strong showing on digital transformation primary two stages, it has struggled to capitalize the power of digital transformation in marketing efforts and new venture efforts.

Products dominated business model

– Even though K Seng Seng Corp has some of the most successful models in the Iron & Steel industry, this business model has made each new product launch extremely critical for continuous financial growth of the organization. K Seng Seng Corp should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.

High bargaining power of channel partners in Iron & Steel industry

– because of the regulatory requirements in Malaysia, K Seng Seng Corp 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 Iron & Steel industry.

Slow to strategic competitive environment developments

– As K Seng Seng Corp is one of the leading players in the Iron & Steel industry, it takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the Iron & Steel industry in last five years.

Need for greater diversity

– K Seng Seng Corp has taken concrete steps on diversity, equity, and inclusion. But the efforts so far has resulted in limited success. It needs to expand the recruitment and selection process to hire more people from the minorities and underprivileged background.

Workers concerns about automation

– As automation is fast increasing in the Iron & Steel industry, K Seng Seng Corp 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.

Employees’ less understanding of K Seng Seng Corp strategy

– From the outside it seems that the employees of K Seng Seng Corp 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.

Skills based hiring in Iron & Steel industry

– The stress on hiring functional specialists at K Seng Seng Corp 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, K Seng Seng Corp is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication can help K Seng Seng Corp to provide better information regarding Iron & Steel products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.

Compensation and incentives

– The revenue per employee of K Seng Seng Corp is just above the Iron & Steel 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.

High cash cycle compare to competitors

K Seng Seng Corp has a high cash cycle compare to other players in the Iron & Steel industry. It needs to shorten the cash cycle by 12% to be more competitive in the marketplace, reduce inventory costs, and be more profitable.

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K Seng Seng Corp Opportunities | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The opportunities of K Seng Seng Corp are -

Increase in government spending

– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, K Seng Seng Corp can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that K Seng Seng Corp operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Iron & Steel sector.

Finding new ways to collaborate

– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Iron & Steel industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. K Seng Seng Corp can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.

Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19

– consumer behavior has changed in the Iron & Steel industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. K Seng Seng Corp 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. K Seng Seng Corp 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.

Use of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies for transactions in Iron & Steel industry

– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for K Seng Seng Corp in the Iron & Steel industry. Now K Seng Seng Corp can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.

Redefining models of collaboration and team work

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

Developing new processes and practices

– K Seng Seng Corp can develop new processes and procedures in Iron & Steel 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.

Leveraging digital technologies

– K Seng Seng Corp 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.

Learning at scale

– Online learning technologies has now opened space for K Seng Seng Corp 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.

Reforming the budgeting process

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

Low interest rates

– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, K Seng Seng Corp 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.

Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities

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

Lowering marketing communication costs

– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for K Seng Seng Corp in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Iron & Steel industry, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.

Better consumer reach

– The expansion of the 5G network will help K Seng Seng Corp to increase its market reach. K Seng Seng Corp 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.

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Threats K Seng Seng Corp External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The threats of K Seng Seng Corp are -

Easy access to finance

– Easy access to finance in Iron & Steel industry will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. K Seng Seng Corp 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 K Seng Seng Corp is facing in Iron & Steel sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.

Increasing wage structure of K Seng Seng Corp

– 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 K Seng Seng Corp.

High dependence on third party suppliers

– K Seng Seng Corp 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.

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.

Trade war between China and United States

– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for K Seng Seng Corp in Iron & Steel industry. The Iron & Steel 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.

Learning curve for new practices

– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, K Seng Seng Corp may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Iron & Steel sector.

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 K Seng Seng Corp in the Iron & Steel sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.

Regulatory challenges

– K Seng Seng Corp 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 Iron & Steel industry regulations.

Consumer confidence and its impact on K Seng Seng Corp 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 Iron & Steel industry and other sectors.

Environmental challenges

– K Seng Seng Corp 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. K Seng Seng Corp can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Iron & Steel 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. K Seng Seng Corp 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.

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 K Seng Seng Corp business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.

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Weighted SWOT Analysis of K Seng Seng Corp Template, Example

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

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