Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref (PCG_pa) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / MBA Resources
Electric Utilities
Strategy / MBA Resources
Introduction to SWOT Analysis
SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix for Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref (United States)
Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – increasing commodity prices, technology disruption, geopolitical disruptions, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, there is backlash against globalization, increasing energy prices, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings,
supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University, we believe that Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref operates in.
According to Harvard Business Review, 75% of the managers use SWOT analysis for various purposes such as – evaluating current scenario, strategic planning, new venture feasibility, personal growth goals, new market entry, Go To market strategies, portfolio management and strategic trade-off assessment, organizational restructuring, etc.
SWOT Objectives / Importance of SWOT Analysis and SWOT Matrix
SWOT analysis of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref
2. Improving business portfolio management of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in United States
4. Making a Electric Utilities sector specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref
Strengths of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref are -
Training and development
– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref has one of the best training and development program in Utilities 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Electric Utilities industry
– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Electric Utilities industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
High brand equity
– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Digital Transformation in Electric Utilities industry
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref has successfully integrated the four key components of digital transformation – digital integration in processes, digital integration in marketing and customer relationship management, digital integration into the value chain, and using technology to explore new products and market opportunities.
Strong track record of project management in the Electric Utilities industry
– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref has innovation driven culture where significant part of the revenues are spent on the research and development activities. This has resulted in – Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref staying ahead in the Electric Utilities industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref 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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref in Electric Utilities industry is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref has effective processes in place that helps in exploring new product needs, doing quick pilot testing, and then launching the products quickly using its extensive distribution network.
Organizational Resilience of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Analytics focus
– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref 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 Electric Utilities 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 Electric Utilities
– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref is one of the leading players in the Electric Utilities industry in United States. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in the Electric Utilities industry in United States but also across the existing markets. The ability to lead change has enabled Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Weaknesses of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref are -
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref has a high cash cycle compare to other players in the Electric Utilities industry. It needs to shorten the cash cycle by 12% to be more competitive in the marketplace, reduce inventory costs, and be more profitable.
No frontier risks strategy
– From the 10K / annual statement of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref, it seems that company is thinking out the frontier risks that can impact Electric Utilities 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, Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref 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 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 Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes, Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Skills based hiring in Electric Utilities industry
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Electric Utilities industry, but Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref to focus more on services in the Electric Utilities industry rather than just following the product oriented approach.
High bargaining power of channel partners in Electric Utilities industry
– because of the regulatory requirements in United States, Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref is facing high bargaining power of the channel partners. So far it has not able to streamline the operations to reduce the bargaining power of the value chain partners in the Electric Utilities industry.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the Electric Utilities industry, Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref 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.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref has high operating costs in the Electric Utilities industry. This can be harder to sustain given the new emerging competition from nimble players who are using technology to attract Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref lucrative customers.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref is one of the leading players in the Electric Utilities industry, it takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the Electric Utilities industry in last five years.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref has a very deliberative decision making approach. This approach has resulted in prudent decisions, but it has also resulted in missing opportunities in the Electric Utilities industry over the last five years. Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref 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.
Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref Opportunities | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The opportunities of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref are -
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref to increase its market reach. Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref will be able to reach out to new customers. Secondly 5G will also provide technology framework to build new tools and products that can help more immersive consumer experience and faster consumer journey.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Electric Utilities sector.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Electric Utilities industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref has spent a significant amount of money and effort to integrate analytics and machine learning into its operations in Electric Utilities sector. This continuous investment in analytics has enabled Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref to conduct training and development for its employees across the world. This will result in not only reducing the cost of training but also help employees in different part of the world to integrate with the headquarter work culture, ethos, and standards.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in Electric Utilities industry. This can help Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref to build a more holistic ecosystem for Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref products in the Electric Utilities industry by providing – data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref 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 Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref can make experimentation a productive activity and build a culture of innovation using approaches such as – mining transaction data, A/B testing of websites and selling platforms, engaging potential customers over various needs, and building on small ideas in the Electric Utilities industry.
Buying journey improvements
– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref can improve the customer journey of consumers in the Electric Utilities 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref has focused on building a highly responsive customer relationship management platform. This platform is built on in-house data and driven by analytics and artificial intelligence. The customer analytics can help the organization to fine tune its loyalty marketing efforts, increase the wallet share of the organization, reduce wastage on mainstream advertising spending, build better pricing strategies using personalization, etc.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref can utilize new technology in the field of Electric Utilities industry to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– consumer behavior has changed in the Electric Utilities industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref 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. Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref 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.
Threats Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref are -
Environmental challenges
– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref needs to have a robust strategy against the disruptions arising from climate change and energy requirements. EU has identified it as key priority area and spending 30% of its 880 billion Euros European post Covid-19 recovery funds on green technology. Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Electric Utilities industry.
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. Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Electric Utilities industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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. Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref will face different problems in different parts of Europe. For example it will face inflationary pressures in UK, France, and Germany, balance sheet expansion and demand challenges in Southern European countries, and geopolitical instability in the Eastern Europe.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref 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 Electric Utilities industry and other sectors.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref is facing in Electric Utilities sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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 Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref 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 Electric Utilities industry.
Increasing wage structure of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref
– Post Covid-19 there is a sharp increase in the wages especially in the jobs that require interaction with people. The increasing wages can put downward pressure on the margins of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref can face downward pressure on margins from increasing competition from international players. The international players have stable revenue in their home market and can use those resources to penetrate Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref prominent markets.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Electric Utilities sector.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry to Electric Utilities industry are lowering. It can presents Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the Electric Utilities sector.
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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref Template, Example
Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers at Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref needs to zero down on the relative importance of each factor mentioned in the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants.
We can provide the relative importance to each factor by assigning relative weights. Weighted SWOT analysis process is a three stage process –
First stage for doing weighted SWOT analysis of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref is to rank the strengths and weaknesses of the organization. This will help you to assess the most important strengths and weaknesses of the firm and which one of the strengths and weaknesses mentioned in the initial lists are marginal and can be left out.
Second stage for conducting weighted SWOT analysis of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref is to give probabilities to the external strategic factors thus better understanding the opportunities and threats arising out of macro environment changes and developments.
Third stage of constructing weighted SWOT analysis of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref to provide strategic recommendations includes – joining likelihood of external strategic factors such as opportunities and threats to the internal strategic factors – strengths and weaknesses. You should start with external factors as they will provide the direction of the overall industry. Secondly by joining probabilities with internal strategic factors can help the company not only strategic fit but also the most probably strategic trade-off that Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pa Pref needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.