Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref (PCG_pd) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / MBA Resources

Introduction to SWOT Analysis

SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix for Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref (United States)

Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, increasing energy prices, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, wage bills are increasing, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, geopolitical disruptions, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, etc

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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref

SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University, we believe that Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd 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 Pd 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 Pd 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.

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SWOT Objectives / Importance of SWOT Analysis and SWOT Matrix

SWOT analysis of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref
2. Improving business portfolio management of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd 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 Pd Pref

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Strengths of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref are -

High brand equity

– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd 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 Pd Pref to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.

Analytics focus

– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd 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 Pd 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 Pd Pref in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.

Training and development

– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd 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.

Cross disciplinary teams

– Horizontal connected teams at the Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd 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.

Operational resilience

– The operational resilience strategy of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the Electric Utilities 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

– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd 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.

Superior customer experience

– The customer experience strategy of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref in Electric Utilities industry is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.

Organizational Resilience of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref

– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.

Sustainable margins compare to other players in Electric Utilities industry

– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd 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 Pd Pref to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.

Ability to recruit top talent

– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref is one of the leading players in the Electric Utilities industry in United States. It is in a position to attract the best talent available in United States. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.

Effective Research and Development (R&D)

– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd 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 Pd 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.

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Weaknesses of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref are -

Increasing silos among functional specialists

– The organizational structure of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Electric Utilities industry, but Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd 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 Pd Pref to focus more on services in the Electric Utilities industry rather than just following the product oriented approach.

High operating costs

– Compare to the competitors, Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd 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 Pd Pref lucrative customers.

High dependence on Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref ‘s star products

– The top 2 products and services of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref still accounts for major business revenue. This dependence on star products in Electric Utilities industry has resulted into insufficient focus on developing new products, even though Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref has relatively successful track record of launching new products.

Capital Spending Reduction

– Even during the low interest decade, Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref 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 Electric Utilities industry using digital technology.

Employees’ less understanding of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref strategy

– From the outside it seems that the employees of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref 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.

Slow decision making process

– As mentioned earlier in the report, Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd 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 Pd 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.

Compensation and incentives

– The revenue per employee of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref is just above the Electric Utilities 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.

Products dominated business model

– Even though Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref has some of the most successful models in the Electric Utilities industry, this business model has made each new product launch extremely critical for continuous financial growth of the organization. Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.

Need for greater diversity

– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref has taken concrete steps on diversity, equity, and inclusion. But the efforts so far has resulted in limited success. It needs to expand the recruitment and selection process to hire more people from the minorities and underprivileged background.

Ability to respond to the competition

– As the decision making is very deliberative at Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref, in the dynamic environment of Electric Utilities industry it has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.

Interest costs

– Compare to the competition, Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd 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.

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Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd 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 Pd Pref are -

Redefining models of collaboration and team work

– As explained in the weaknesses section, Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd 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.

Leveraging digital technologies

– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref 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.

Better consumer reach

– The expansion of the 5G network will help Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref to increase its market reach. Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd 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.

Creating value in data economy

– The success of analytics program of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in Electric Utilities industry. This can help Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref to build a more holistic ecosystem for Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref products in the Electric Utilities industry by providing – data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.

Buying journey improvements

– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd 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.

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. Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.

Reforming the budgeting process

- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.

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 Pd Pref can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.

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 Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref 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.

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 Pd Pref can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Electric Utilities sector.

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 Pd 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 Pd 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.

Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains

– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref 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 Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.

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 Pd 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 Pd Pref to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.

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Threats Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The threats of Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref are -

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 Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref.

Regulatory challenges

– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref 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 Electric Utilities industry regulations.

Shortening product life cycle

– it is one of the major threat that Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref is facing in Electric Utilities sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.

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 Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref in the Electric Utilities sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.

Consumer confidence and its impact on Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd 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.

Aging population

– As the populations of most advanced economies are aging, it will lead to high social security costs, higher savings among population, and lower demand for goods and services in the economy. The household savings in US, France, UK, Germany, and Japan are growing faster than predicted because of uncertainty caused by pandemic.

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 Pd Pref needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Electric Utilities 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 Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.

Trade war between China and United States

– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref in Electric Utilities industry. The Electric Utilities 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.

High dependence on third party suppliers

– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd 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.

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.

Environmental challenges

– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd 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 Pd Pref can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Electric Utilities industry.

Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution

– Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Electric Utilities industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd Pref needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Electric Utilities 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 Pacific Gas and Electric Co Pd 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 Pd 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 Pd 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 Pd 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 Pd 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 Pd Pref needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.

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