SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix for Lindblad Expeditions (United States)
Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , Lindblad Expeditions is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – technology disruption, there is backlash against globalization, wage bills are increasing, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies,
increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, increasing commodity prices, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Lindblad Expeditions
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University, we believe that Lindblad Expeditions can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Lindblad Expeditions, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Lindblad Expeditions 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 Lindblad Expeditions can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning of Lindblad Expeditions
2. Improving business portfolio management of Lindblad Expeditions
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in United States
4. Making a Water Transportation sector specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Lindblad Expeditions
Strengths of Lindblad Expeditions | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Lindblad Expeditions are -
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Lindblad Expeditions 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.
Diverse revenue streams
– Lindblad Expeditions is present in almost all the verticals within the Water Transportation industry. This has provided Lindblad Expeditions 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Lindblad Expeditions has innovation driven culture where significant part of the revenues are spent on the research and development activities. This has resulted in – Lindblad Expeditions staying ahead in the Water Transportation 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 Lindblad Expeditions in Water Transportation industry is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Analytics focus
– Lindblad Expeditions 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 Water Transportation 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Lindblad Expeditions has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Lindblad Expeditions 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Lindblad Expeditions in the Transportation sector have low bargaining power. Lindblad Expeditions has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Lindblad Expeditions to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Organizational Resilience of Lindblad Expeditions
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing Lindblad Expeditions does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Ability to lead change in Water Transportation
– Lindblad Expeditions is one of the leading players in the Water Transportation industry in United States. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in the Water Transportation industry in United States but also across the existing markets. The ability to lead change has enabled Lindblad Expeditions in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Digital Transformation in Water Transportation industry
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Lindblad Expeditions digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Lindblad Expeditions 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 Water Transportation industry
– Lindblad Expeditions has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Lindblad Expeditions to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Water Transportation industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Lindblad Expeditions to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Lindblad Expeditions has highly efficient outsourcing and offshoring strategy. It has resulted in greater operational flexibility and bringing down the costs in highly price sensitive Water Transportation industry. Secondly the value chain collaborators of Lindblad Expeditions have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Weaknesses of Lindblad Expeditions | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Lindblad Expeditions are -
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Lindblad Expeditions 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.
High bargaining power of channel partners in Water Transportation industry
– because of the regulatory requirements in United States, Lindblad Expeditions 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 Water Transportation industry.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the Water Transportation industry, Lindblad Expeditions needs to come up with a strategy to reduce the workers concern regarding automation. Without a clear strategy, it could lead to disruption and uncertainty within the organization.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Lindblad Expeditions is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Water Transportation industry, but Lindblad Expeditions needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Lindblad Expeditions to focus more on services in the Water Transportation industry rather than just following the product oriented approach.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, Lindblad Expeditions has high operating costs in the Water Transportation industry. This can be harder to sustain given the new emerging competition from nimble players who are using technology to attract Lindblad Expeditions lucrative customers.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Lindblad Expeditions has some of the most successful models in the Water Transportation industry, this business model has made each new product launch extremely critical for continuous financial growth of the organization. Lindblad Expeditions should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
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 Lindblad Expeditions supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes, Lindblad Expeditions is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Lindblad Expeditions vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Employees’ less understanding of Lindblad Expeditions strategy
– From the outside it seems that the employees of Lindblad Expeditions 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Lindblad Expeditions products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Lindblad Expeditions needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Lindblad Expeditions 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 Water Transportation industry using digital technology.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Lindblad Expeditions is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication can help Lindblad Expeditions to provide better information regarding Water Transportation products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Lindblad Expeditions Opportunities | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The opportunities of Lindblad Expeditions are -
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– consumer behavior has changed in the Water Transportation industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Lindblad Expeditions 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. Lindblad Expeditions 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Lindblad Expeditions can develop new processes and procedures in Water Transportation 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Lindblad Expeditions 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 Lindblad Expeditions to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Buying journey improvements
– Lindblad Expeditions can improve the customer journey of consumers in the Water Transportation 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Lindblad Expeditions 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Lindblad Expeditions has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in Water Transportation industry. This can help Lindblad Expeditions to build a more holistic ecosystem for Lindblad Expeditions products in the Water Transportation industry by providing – data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
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 Lindblad Expeditions 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Lindblad Expeditions can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Water Transportation 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.
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. Lindblad Expeditions can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Lindblad Expeditions has spent a significant amount of money and effort to integrate analytics and machine learning into its operations in Water Transportation sector. This continuous investment in analytics has enabled Lindblad Expeditions to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Lindblad Expeditions to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Lindblad Expeditions is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Lindblad Expeditions can utilize new technology in the field of Water Transportation industry to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Lindblad Expeditions 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 Lindblad Expeditions 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 Water Transportation industry.
Threats Lindblad Expeditions External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats of Lindblad Expeditions are -
Regulatory challenges
– Lindblad Expeditions 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 Water Transportation industry regulations.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, Lindblad Expeditions may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Water Transportation sector.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Lindblad Expeditions 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 Water Transportation industry and other sectors.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Water Transportation industry will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Lindblad Expeditions can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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 Lindblad Expeditions business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Lindblad Expeditions has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Water Transportation industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Lindblad Expeditions needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Water Transportation 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry to Water Transportation industry are lowering. It can presents Lindblad Expeditions with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the Water Transportation sector.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Lindblad Expeditions 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 Water Transportation industry.
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.
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. Lindblad Expeditions 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.
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 Lindblad Expeditions.
Environmental challenges
– Lindblad Expeditions 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. Lindblad Expeditions can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Water Transportation industry.
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 Lindblad Expeditions in the Water Transportation sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Lindblad Expeditions Template, Example
Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers at Lindblad Expeditions 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 Lindblad Expeditions 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 Lindblad Expeditions 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 Lindblad Expeditions 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 Lindblad Expeditions needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
