John Wiley&Sons (JWa) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / MBA Resources

Introduction to SWOT Analysis

SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix for John Wiley&Sons (United States)

Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , John Wiley&Sons is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, increasing commodity prices, there is backlash against globalization, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, etc

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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of John Wiley&Sons

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

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Strengths of John Wiley&Sons | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of John Wiley&Sons are -

High brand equity

– John Wiley&Sons has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled John Wiley&Sons to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.

Ability to recruit top talent

– John Wiley&Sons is one of the leading players in the Printing & Publishing 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.

High switching costs

– The high switching costs that John Wiley&Sons 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.

Learning organization

- John Wiley&Sons 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 John Wiley&Sons is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders at John Wiley&Sons emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.

Low bargaining power of suppliers

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

Operational resilience

– The operational resilience strategy of John Wiley&Sons comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the Printing & Publishing 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.

Successful track record of launching new products

– John Wiley&Sons has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. John Wiley&Sons 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.

Digital Transformation in Printing & Publishing industry

- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For John Wiley&Sons digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. John Wiley&Sons 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 Printing & Publishing industry

– John Wiley&Sons has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled John Wiley&Sons to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Printing & Publishing industry. The sustainable margins have also helped John Wiley&Sons to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.

Analytics focus

– John Wiley&Sons 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 Printing & Publishing 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.

Ability to lead change in Printing & Publishing

– John Wiley&Sons is one of the leading players in the Printing & Publishing industry in United States. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in the Printing & Publishing industry in United States but also across the existing markets. The ability to lead change has enabled John Wiley&Sons in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.

Strong track record of project management in the Printing & Publishing industry

– John Wiley&Sons is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.

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Weaknesses of John Wiley&Sons | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of John Wiley&Sons are -

Lack of clear differentiation of John Wiley&Sons products

– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, John Wiley&Sons needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.

Employees’ less understanding of John Wiley&Sons strategy

– From the outside it seems that the employees of John Wiley&Sons 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.

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

High bargaining power of channel partners in Printing & Publishing industry

– because of the regulatory requirements in United States, John Wiley&Sons 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 Printing & Publishing industry.

High cash cycle compare to competitors

John Wiley&Sons has a high cash cycle compare to other players in the Printing & Publishing industry. It needs to shorten the cash cycle by 12% to be more competitive in the marketplace, reduce inventory costs, and be more profitable.

Low market penetration in new markets

– Outside its home market of United States, John Wiley&Sons needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.

Compensation and incentives

– The revenue per employee of John Wiley&Sons is just above the Printing & Publishing 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.

Slow to strategic competitive environment developments

– As John Wiley&Sons is one of the leading players in the Printing & Publishing industry, it takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the Printing & Publishing industry in last five years.

Skills based hiring in Printing & Publishing industry

– The stress on hiring functional specialists at John Wiley&Sons 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.

No frontier risks strategy

– From the 10K / annual statement of John Wiley&Sons, it seems that company is thinking out the frontier risks that can impact Printing & Publishing 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.

Ability to respond to the competition

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

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John Wiley&Sons Opportunities | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The opportunities of John Wiley&Sons are -

Leveraging digital technologies

– John Wiley&Sons 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.

Redefining models of collaboration and team work

– As explained in the weaknesses section, John Wiley&Sons is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. John Wiley&Sons can utilize new technology in the field of Printing & Publishing 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, John Wiley&Sons 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 John Wiley&Sons to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.

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. John Wiley&Sons can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.

Building a culture of innovation

– managers at John Wiley&Sons 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 Printing & Publishing industry.

Low interest rates

– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, John Wiley&Sons 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.

Loyalty marketing

– John Wiley&Sons 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.

Reforming the budgeting process

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

Better consumer reach

– The expansion of the 5G network will help John Wiley&Sons to increase its market reach. John Wiley&Sons 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.

Developing new processes and practices

– John Wiley&Sons can develop new processes and procedures in Printing & Publishing 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.

Learning at scale

– Online learning technologies has now opened space for John Wiley&Sons 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.

Reconfiguring business model

– The expansion of digital payment system, the bringing down of international transactions costs using Bitcoin and other blockchain based currencies, etc can help John Wiley&Sons to reconfigure its entire business model. For example it can used blockchain based technologies to reduce piracy of its products in the big markets such as China. Secondly it can use the popularity of e-commerce in various developing markets to build a Direct to Customer business model rather than the current Channel Heavy distribution network.

Lowering marketing communication costs

– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for John Wiley&Sons in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Printing & Publishing industry, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.

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Threats John Wiley&Sons External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The threats of John Wiley&Sons are -

Consumer confidence and its impact on John Wiley&Sons 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 Printing & Publishing industry and other sectors.

Trade war between China and United States

– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for John Wiley&Sons in Printing & Publishing industry. The Printing & Publishing 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.

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.

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. John Wiley&Sons needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Printing & Publishing industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.

Environmental challenges

– John Wiley&Sons 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. John Wiley&Sons can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Printing & Publishing industry.

Increasing wage structure of John Wiley&Sons

– 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 John Wiley&Sons.

Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins

– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, John Wiley&Sons 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 John Wiley&Sons prominent markets.

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 John Wiley&Sons.

Easy access to finance

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

High dependence on third party suppliers

– John Wiley&Sons 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.

Stagnating economy with rate increase

– John Wiley&Sons 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 Printing & Publishing industry.

Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution

– John Wiley&Sons has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Printing & Publishing industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, John Wiley&Sons needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Printing & Publishing 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.

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Weighted SWOT Analysis of John Wiley&Sons Template, Example

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

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