E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref (DD_pa) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / MBA Resources
Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber
Strategy / MBA Resources
Introduction to SWOT Analysis
SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix for E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref (United States)
Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, increasing commodity prices, there is backlash against globalization, increasing transportation and logistics costs, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%,
increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University, we believe that E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref 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 E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning of E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref
2. Improving business portfolio management of E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in United States
4. Making a Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber sector specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref
Strengths of E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref are -
Digital Transformation in Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref 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 Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry
– E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry. The sustainable margins have also helped E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref has innovation driven culture where significant part of the revenues are spent on the research and development activities. This has resulted in – E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref staying ahead in the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref in Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Organizational Resilience of E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Highly skilled collaborators
– E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref has highly efficient outsourcing and offshoring strategy. It has resulted in greater operational flexibility and bringing down the costs in highly price sensitive Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry. Secondly the value chain collaborators of E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref in the Basic Materials sector have low bargaining power. E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Successful track record of launching new products
– E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref 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.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy of E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber 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.
Ability to lead change in Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber
– E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref is one of the leading players in the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry in United States. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry in United States but also across the existing markets. The ability to lead change has enabled E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
High brand equity
– E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref 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.
Weaknesses of E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref are -
Need for greater diversity
– E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee of E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref is just above the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber 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 operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref has high operating costs in the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry. This can be harder to sustain given the new emerging competition from nimble players who are using technology to attract E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref lucrative customers.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref 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 Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry using digital technology.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry, but E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref to focus more on services in the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication can help E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref to provide better information regarding Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Lack of clear differentiation of E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
High bargaining power of channel partners in Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry
– because of the regulatory requirements in United States, E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref 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 Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry.
High dependence on E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref ‘s star products
– The top 2 products and services of E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref still accounts for major business revenue. This dependence on star products in Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry has resulted into insufficient focus on developing new products, even though E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Aligning sales with marketing
– From the outside it seems that E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref needs to have more collaboration between its sales team and marketing team. Sales professionals in the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry have deep experience in developing customer relationships. Marketing department at E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref is planning to shift buying processes online.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref has a high cash cycle compare to other players in the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry. It needs to shorten the cash cycle by 12% to be more competitive in the marketplace, reduce inventory costs, and be more profitable.
E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref Opportunities | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The opportunities of E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref are -
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. E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref 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 E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref to increase its market reach. E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref can utilize new technology in the field of Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref 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 E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Loyalty marketing
– E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref 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.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref 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 Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber sector.
Use of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies for transactions in Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry
– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref in the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry. Now E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Manufacturing automation
– E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref 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.
Threats E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats of E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref are -
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref in Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry. The Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber 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.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref 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 E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref prominent markets.
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.
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 E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber sector.
Environmental challenges
– E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref 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. E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref is facing in Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber 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. E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref 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.
Regulatory challenges
– E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref 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 Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry regulations.
Increasing wage structure of E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref
– 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 E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref.
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. E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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 E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref Template, Example
Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers at E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref 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 E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref 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 E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref 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 E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref 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 E I du Pont de Nemours Pa Pref needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
