SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix for Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning (China)
Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – geopolitical disruptions, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, there is backlash against globalization, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, increasing commodity prices, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, increasing transportation and logistics costs,
increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University, we believe that Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning 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 Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning of Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning
2. Improving business portfolio management of Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in China
4. Making a Electronic Instr. & Controls sector specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning
Strengths of Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning are -
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning has innovation driven culture where significant part of the revenues are spent on the research and development activities. This has resulted in – Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning staying ahead in the Electronic Instr. & Controls industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Diverse revenue streams
– Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning is present in almost all the verticals within the Electronic Instr. & Controls industry. This has provided Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning 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.
High brand equity
– Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Training and development
– Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning has one of the best training and development program in Technology 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.
Ability to lead change in Electronic Instr. & Controls
– Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning is one of the leading players in the Electronic Instr. & Controls industry in China. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in the Electronic Instr. & Controls industry in China but also across the existing markets. The ability to lead change has enabled Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning is one of the leading players in the Electronic Instr. & Controls industry in China. It is in a position to attract the best talent available in China. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Learning organization
- Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning is a learning organization. It has inculcated three key characters of learning organization in its processes and operations – exploration, creativity, and expansiveness. The work place at Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders at Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Analytics focus
– Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning 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 Electronic Instr. & Controls 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning 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.
Digital Transformation in Electronic Instr. & Controls industry
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning 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.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy of Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the Electronic Instr. & Controls 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.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning 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.
Weaknesses of Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning are -
Employees’ less understanding of Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning strategy
– From the outside it seems that the employees of Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning 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 Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning ‘s star products
– The top 2 products and services of Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning still accounts for major business revenue. This dependence on star products in Electronic Instr. & Controls industry has resulted into insufficient focus on developing new products, even though Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Electronic Instr. & Controls industry, but Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning to focus more on services in the Electronic Instr. & Controls industry rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative at Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning, in the dynamic environment of Electronic Instr. & Controls industry it has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Need for greater diversity
– Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning 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.
Skills based hiring in Electronic Instr. & Controls industry
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning 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.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the Electronic Instr. & Controls industry, Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning has some of the most successful models in the Electronic Instr. & Controls industry, this business model has made each new product launch extremely critical for continuous financial growth of the organization. Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Lack of clear differentiation of Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning has a high cash cycle compare to other players in the Electronic Instr. & Controls industry. It needs to shorten the cash cycle by 12% to be more competitive in the marketplace, reduce inventory costs, and be more profitable.
High bargaining power of channel partners in Electronic Instr. & Controls industry
– because of the regulatory requirements in China, Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning 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 Electronic Instr. & Controls industry.
Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning Opportunities | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The opportunities of Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning are -
Leveraging digital technologies
– Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning 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.
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. Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– consumer behavior has changed in the Electronic Instr. & Controls industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning 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. Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Electronic Instr. & Controls industry, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning can utilize new technology in the field of Electronic Instr. & Controls industry to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.
Developing new processes and practices
– Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning can develop new processes and procedures in Electronic Instr. & Controls 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.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Electronic Instr. & Controls industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Electronic Instr. & Controls sector.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning has spent a significant amount of money and effort to integrate analytics and machine learning into its operations in Electronic Instr. & Controls sector. This continuous investment in analytics has enabled Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning to increase its market reach. Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning 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.
Threats Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats of Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning are -
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 Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning in the Electronic Instr. & Controls sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Capital market disruption
– During the Covid-19, Dow Jones has touched record high. The valuations of a number of companies are way beyond their existing business model potential. This can lead to capital market correction which can put a number of suppliers, collaborators, value chain partners in great financial difficulty. It will directly impact the business of Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning is facing in Electronic Instr. & Controls sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Regulatory challenges
– Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning 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 Electronic Instr. & Controls industry regulations.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning 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 Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning prominent markets.
Increasing wage structure of Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning
– 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 Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning.
Environmental challenges
– Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning 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. Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Electronic Instr. & Controls industry.
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 Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning 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 Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning in Electronic Instr. & Controls industry. The Electronic Instr. & Controls 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 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. Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Electronic Instr. & Controls industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning 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 Electronic Instr. & Controls industry and other sectors.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Electronic Instr. & Controls sector.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning Template, Example
Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers at Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning 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 Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning 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 Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning 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 Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning 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 Sichuan Zhongguang Lightning needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.