Internet Initiative Japan ADR (IIJI) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / MBA Resources

Introduction to SWOT Analysis

SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix for Internet Initiative Japan ADR (United States)

Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , Internet Initiative Japan ADR is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , there is backlash against globalization, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, increasing transportation and logistics costs, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, increasing energy prices, wage bills are increasing, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, etc

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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Internet Initiative Japan ADR

SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University, we believe that Internet Initiative Japan ADR can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Internet Initiative Japan ADR, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Internet Initiative Japan ADR 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 Internet Initiative Japan ADR can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning of Internet Initiative Japan ADR
2. Improving business portfolio management of Internet Initiative Japan ADR
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in United States
4. Making a Computer Services sector specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Internet Initiative Japan ADR

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Strengths of Internet Initiative Japan ADR | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of Internet Initiative Japan ADR are -

Ability to lead change in Computer Services

– Internet Initiative Japan ADR is one of the leading players in the Computer Services industry in United States. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in the Computer Services industry in United States but also across the existing markets. The ability to lead change has enabled Internet Initiative Japan ADR in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.

High brand equity

– Internet Initiative Japan ADR has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Internet Initiative Japan ADR to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.

Operational resilience

– The operational resilience strategy of Internet Initiative Japan ADR comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the Computer Services 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.

Highly skilled collaborators

– Internet Initiative Japan ADR has highly efficient outsourcing and offshoring strategy. It has resulted in greater operational flexibility and bringing down the costs in highly price sensitive Computer Services industry. Secondly the value chain collaborators of Internet Initiative Japan ADR have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.

Ability to recruit top talent

– Internet Initiative Japan ADR is one of the leading players in the Computer Services industry in United States. It is in a position to attract the best talent available in United States. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.

Effective Research and Development (R&D)

– Internet Initiative Japan ADR has innovation driven culture where significant part of the revenues are spent on the research and development activities. This has resulted in – Internet Initiative Japan ADR staying ahead in the Computer Services industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.

Low bargaining power of suppliers

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

Innovation driven organization

– Internet Initiative Japan ADR is one of the most innovative firm in Computer Services sector.

Training and development

– Internet Initiative Japan ADR has one of the best training and development program in Technology 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.

Analytics focus

– Internet Initiative Japan ADR 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 Computer Services industry. The technology infrastructure of United States 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.

Cross disciplinary teams

– Horizontal connected teams at the Internet Initiative Japan ADR are driving operational speed, building greater agility, and keeping the organization nimble to compete with new competitors. It helps are organization to ideate new ideas, and execute them swiftly in the marketplace.

Successful track record of launching new products

– Internet Initiative Japan ADR has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Internet Initiative Japan ADR 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.

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Weaknesses of Internet Initiative Japan ADR | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of Internet Initiative Japan ADR are -

High bargaining power of channel partners in Computer Services industry

– because of the regulatory requirements in United States, Internet Initiative Japan ADR 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 Computer Services industry.

Slow decision making process

– As mentioned earlier in the report, Internet Initiative Japan ADR has a very deliberative decision making approach. This approach has resulted in prudent decisions, but it has also resulted in missing opportunities in the Computer Services industry over the last five years. Internet Initiative Japan ADR 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 Internet Initiative Japan ADR has some of the most successful models in the Computer Services industry, this business model has made each new product launch extremely critical for continuous financial growth of the organization. Internet Initiative Japan ADR should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.

Compensation and incentives

– The revenue per employee of Internet Initiative Japan ADR is just above the Computer Services 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.

Need for greater diversity

– Internet Initiative Japan ADR 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.

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

High dependence on Internet Initiative Japan ADR ‘s star products

– The top 2 products and services of Internet Initiative Japan ADR still accounts for major business revenue. This dependence on star products in Computer Services industry has resulted into insufficient focus on developing new products, even though Internet Initiative Japan ADR has relatively successful track record of launching new products.

No frontier risks strategy

– From the 10K / annual statement of Internet Initiative Japan ADR, it seems that company is thinking out the frontier risks that can impact Computer Services 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, Internet Initiative Japan ADR 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.

Increasing silos among functional specialists

– The organizational structure of Internet Initiative Japan ADR is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Computer Services industry, but Internet Initiative Japan ADR needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Internet Initiative Japan ADR to focus more on services in the Computer Services industry rather than just following the product oriented approach.

Lack of clear differentiation of Internet Initiative Japan ADR products

– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Internet Initiative Japan ADR needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.

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Internet Initiative Japan ADR Opportunities | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The opportunities of Internet Initiative Japan ADR are -

Redefining models of collaboration and team work

– As explained in the weaknesses section, Internet Initiative Japan ADR is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Internet Initiative Japan ADR can utilize new technology in the field of Computer Services industry to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.

Using analytics as competitive advantage

– Internet Initiative Japan ADR has spent a significant amount of money and effort to integrate analytics and machine learning into its operations in Computer Services sector. This continuous investment in analytics has enabled Internet Initiative Japan ADR to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Internet Initiative Japan ADR 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 Internet Initiative Japan ADR can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.

Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities

– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Internet Initiative Japan ADR 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 Internet Initiative Japan ADR to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.

Manufacturing automation

– Internet Initiative Japan ADR can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Computer Services 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

– Internet Initiative Japan ADR 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 Internet Initiative Japan ADR 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.

Finding new ways to collaborate

– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Computer Services industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Internet Initiative Japan ADR 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 Computer Services industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Internet Initiative Japan ADR 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. Internet Initiative Japan ADR 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.

Increase in government spending

– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Internet Initiative Japan ADR can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Internet Initiative Japan ADR operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Computer Services sector.

Low interest rates

– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Internet Initiative Japan ADR 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.

Lowering marketing communication costs

– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Internet Initiative Japan ADR in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Computer Services industry, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.

Better consumer reach

– The expansion of the 5G network will help Internet Initiative Japan ADR to increase its market reach. Internet Initiative Japan ADR 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 Internet Initiative Japan ADR External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The threats of Internet Initiative Japan ADR are -

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 Internet Initiative Japan ADR in the Computer Services sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.

Environmental challenges

– Internet Initiative Japan ADR 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. Internet Initiative Japan ADR can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Computer Services industry.

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.

Easy access to finance

– Easy access to finance in Computer Services industry will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Internet Initiative Japan ADR can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.

Consumer confidence and its impact on Internet Initiative Japan ADR 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 Computer Services industry and other sectors.

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. Internet Initiative Japan ADR 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.

Shortening product life cycle

– it is one of the major threat that Internet Initiative Japan ADR is facing in Computer Services sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.

Increasing wage structure of Internet Initiative Japan ADR

– 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 Internet Initiative Japan ADR.

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 Internet Initiative Japan ADR.

Stagnating economy with rate increase

– Internet Initiative Japan ADR can face lack of demand in the market place because of Fed actions to reduce inflation. This can lead to sluggish growth in the economy, lower demands, lower investments, higher borrowing costs, and consolidation in the Computer Services industry.

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 Internet Initiative Japan ADR business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.

Barriers of entry lowering

– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry to Computer Services industry are lowering. It can presents Internet Initiative Japan ADR with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the Computer Services sector.

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Weighted SWOT Analysis of Internet Initiative Japan ADR Template, Example

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

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