Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B (900912) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / MBA Resources
Retail (Department & Discount)
Strategy / MBA Resources
Introduction to SWOT Analysis
SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix for Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B (China)
Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – there is backlash against globalization, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, increasing energy prices, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, there is increasing trade war between United States & China,
technology disruption, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University, we believe that Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B 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 Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning of Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B
2. Improving business portfolio management of Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in China
4. Making a Retail (Department & Discount) sector specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B
Strengths of Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B are -
Highly skilled collaborators
– Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B has highly efficient outsourcing and offshoring strategy. It has resulted in greater operational flexibility and bringing down the costs in highly price sensitive Retail (Department & Discount) industry. Secondly the value chain collaborators of Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Training and development
– Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B has one of the best training and development program in Services 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 Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B 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.
High brand equity
– Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Strong track record of project management in the Retail (Department & Discount) industry
– Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy of Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the Retail (Department & Discount) 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.
Organizational Resilience of Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Ability to lead change in Retail (Department & Discount)
– Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B is one of the leading players in the Retail (Department & Discount) industry in China. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in the Retail (Department & Discount) industry in China but also across the existing markets. The ability to lead change has enabled Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Analytics focus
– Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B 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 Retail (Department & Discount) industry. The technology infrastructure of China 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.
Diverse revenue streams
– Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B is present in almost all the verticals within the Retail (Department & Discount) industry. This has provided Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B 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.
Digital Transformation in Retail (Department & Discount) industry
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B in the Services sector have low bargaining power. Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Weaknesses of Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B are -
High bargaining power of channel partners in Retail (Department & Discount) industry
– because of the regulatory requirements in China, Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B 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 Retail (Department & Discount) industry.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication can help Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B to provide better information regarding Retail (Department & Discount) products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of China, Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B 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 Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B, in the dynamic environment of Retail (Department & Discount) industry it has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Aligning sales with marketing
– From the outside it seems that Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B needs to have more collaboration between its sales team and marketing team. Sales professionals in the Retail (Department & Discount) industry have deep experience in developing customer relationships. Marketing department at Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B is planning to shift buying processes online.
Employees’ less understanding of Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B strategy
– From the outside it seems that the employees of Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B 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 Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B ‘s star products
– The top 2 products and services of Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B still accounts for major business revenue. This dependence on star products in Retail (Department & Discount) industry has resulted into insufficient focus on developing new products, even though Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B 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 cash cycle compare to competitors
Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B has a high cash cycle compare to other players in the Retail (Department & Discount) industry. It needs to shorten the cash cycle by 12% to be more competitive in the marketplace, reduce inventory costs, and be more profitable.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Retail (Department & Discount) industry, but Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B to focus more on services in the Retail (Department & Discount) industry rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B has some of the most successful models in the Retail (Department & Discount) industry, this business model has made each new product launch extremely critical for continuous financial growth of the organization. Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B Opportunities | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The opportunities of Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B are -
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B has spent a significant amount of money and effort to integrate analytics and machine learning into its operations in Retail (Department & Discount) sector. This continuous investment in analytics has enabled Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B 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 Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Use of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies for transactions in Retail (Department & Discount) industry
– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B in the Retail (Department & Discount) industry. Now Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Retail (Department & Discount) sector.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– consumer behavior has changed in the Retail (Department & Discount) industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B 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. Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B can utilize new technology in the field of Retail (Department & Discount) industry to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B to increase its market reach. Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Retail (Department & Discount) 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Retail (Department & Discount) industry, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B 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.
Threats Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats of Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B are -
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B is facing in Retail (Department & Discount) sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Retail (Department & Discount) industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Retail (Department & Discount) 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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Retail (Department & Discount) sector.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Retail (Department & Discount) industry will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Technology disruption because of hacks, piracy etc
– The colonial pipeline illustrated, how vulnerable modern organization are to international hackers, miscreants, and disruptors. The cyber security interruption, data leaks, etc can seriously jeopardize the future growth of the organization.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B 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.
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.
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 Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B in the Retail (Department & Discount) sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Increasing wage structure of Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B
– 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 Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B.
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 Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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 Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B.
Regulatory challenges
– Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B 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 Retail (Department & Discount) industry regulations.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B 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 Retail (Department & Discount) industry and other sectors.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B Template, Example
Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers at Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B 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 Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B 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 Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B 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 Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B 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 Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone B needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
