Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , Kraig Biocraft Labs is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, geopolitical disruptions, there is backlash against globalization, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, technology disruption, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models,
wage bills are increasing, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Kraig Biocraft Labs
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University, we believe that Kraig Biocraft Labs can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Kraig Biocraft Labs, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Kraig Biocraft Labs 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 Kraig Biocraft Labs can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning of Kraig Biocraft Labs
2. Improving business portfolio management of Kraig Biocraft Labs
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 Kraig Biocraft Labs
Strengths of Kraig Biocraft Labs | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Kraig Biocraft Labs are -
Analytics focus
– Kraig Biocraft Labs 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 Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry
– Kraig Biocraft Labs has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Kraig Biocraft Labs to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Kraig Biocraft Labs to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Ability to lead change in Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber
– Kraig Biocraft Labs 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 Kraig Biocraft Labs in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Kraig Biocraft Labs is one of the leading players in the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Kraig Biocraft Labs is one of the most innovative firm in Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber sector.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Kraig Biocraft Labs 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 Kraig Biocraft Labs have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Kraig Biocraft Labs has built up over years in its products and services combo offer has resulted in high retention of customers, lower marketing costs, and greater ability of the firm to focus on its customers.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Kraig Biocraft Labs has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Kraig Biocraft Labs 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.
Diverse revenue streams
– Kraig Biocraft Labs is present in almost all the verticals within the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry. This has provided Kraig Biocraft Labs 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.
Learning organization
- Kraig Biocraft Labs 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 Kraig Biocraft Labs is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders at Kraig Biocraft Labs emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Digital Transformation in Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Kraig Biocraft Labs digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Kraig Biocraft Labs 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.
Training and development
– Kraig Biocraft Labs 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.
Weaknesses of Kraig Biocraft Labs | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Kraig Biocraft Labs are -
Aligning sales with marketing
– From the outside it seems that Kraig Biocraft Labs 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 Kraig Biocraft Labs can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Kraig Biocraft Labs is planning to shift buying processes online.
Employees’ less understanding of Kraig Biocraft Labs strategy
– From the outside it seems that the employees of Kraig Biocraft Labs 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 Kraig Biocraft Labs supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes, Kraig Biocraft Labs is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Kraig Biocraft Labs vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Kraig Biocraft Labs is one of the leading players in the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry, it takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry in last five years.
High bargaining power of channel partners in Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry
– because of the regulatory requirements in United States, Kraig Biocraft Labs 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Kraig Biocraft Labs is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry, but Kraig Biocraft Labs needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Kraig Biocraft Labs to focus more on services in the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Lack of clear differentiation of Kraig Biocraft Labs products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Kraig Biocraft Labs needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of United States, Kraig Biocraft Labs needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative at Kraig Biocraft Labs, in the dynamic environment of Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry it has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Kraig Biocraft Labs has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Skills based hiring in Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Kraig Biocraft Labs 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, Kraig Biocraft Labs is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication can help Kraig Biocraft Labs 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.
Kraig Biocraft Labs Opportunities | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The opportunities of Kraig Biocraft Labs are -
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– consumer behavior has changed in the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Kraig Biocraft Labs 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. Kraig Biocraft Labs 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Kraig Biocraft Labs 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Kraig Biocraft Labs can develop new processes and procedures in Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Kraig Biocraft Labs 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Kraig Biocraft Labs can improve the customer journey of consumers in the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. It can provide automated chats to help consumers solve their own problems, provide online suggestions to get maximum out of the products and services, and help consumers to build a community where they can interact with each other to develop new features and uses.
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. Kraig Biocraft Labs can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Kraig Biocraft Labs has spent a significant amount of money and effort to integrate analytics and machine learning into its operations in Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber sector. This continuous investment in analytics has enabled Kraig Biocraft Labs to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Kraig Biocraft Labs to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Kraig Biocraft Labs 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.
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 Kraig Biocraft Labs in the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry. Now Kraig Biocraft Labs can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Kraig Biocraft Labs to increase its market reach. Kraig Biocraft Labs 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Kraig Biocraft Labs 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 Kraig Biocraft Labs 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
– Kraig Biocraft Labs 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 Kraig Biocraft Labs can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Threats Kraig Biocraft Labs External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats of Kraig Biocraft Labs are -
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Kraig Biocraft Labs 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 Kraig Biocraft Labs prominent markets.
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. Kraig Biocraft Labs can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Kraig Biocraft Labs has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Kraig Biocraft Labs needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber 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.
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 Kraig Biocraft Labs.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry to Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry are lowering. It can presents Kraig Biocraft Labs with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber sector.
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. Kraig Biocraft Labs 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.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Kraig Biocraft Labs 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.
Environmental challenges
– Kraig Biocraft Labs 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. Kraig Biocraft Labs 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 Kraig Biocraft Labs is facing in Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, Kraig Biocraft Labs 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.
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. Kraig Biocraft Labs 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 Kraig Biocraft Labs business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Kraig Biocraft Labs Template, Example
Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers at Kraig Biocraft Labs 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 Kraig Biocraft Labs 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 Kraig Biocraft Labs 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 Kraig Biocraft Labs 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 Kraig Biocraft Labs needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
