Voyageurs du Monde SA (ALVDM) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / MBA Resources
Personal Services
Strategy / MBA Resources
Introduction to SWOT Analysis
SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix for Voyageurs du Monde SA (France)
Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , Voyageurs du Monde SA is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – there is increasing trade war between United States & China, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing household debt because of falling income levels, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, there is backlash against globalization,
banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, increasing commodity prices, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Voyageurs du Monde SA
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University, we believe that Voyageurs du Monde SA can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Voyageurs du Monde SA, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Voyageurs du Monde SA 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 Voyageurs du Monde SA can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning of Voyageurs du Monde SA
2. Improving business portfolio management of Voyageurs du Monde SA
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in France
4. Making a Personal Services sector specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Voyageurs du Monde SA
Strengths of Voyageurs du Monde SA | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Voyageurs du Monde SA are -
Training and development
– Voyageurs du Monde SA 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Voyageurs du Monde SA has innovation driven culture where significant part of the revenues are spent on the research and development activities. This has resulted in – Voyageurs du Monde SA staying ahead in the Personal Services industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Digital Transformation in Personal Services industry
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Voyageurs du Monde SA digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Voyageurs du Monde SA 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.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Voyageurs du Monde SA is one of the leading players in the Personal Services industry in France. It is in a position to attract the best talent available in France. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Voyageurs du Monde SA in Personal Services industry is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Voyageurs du Monde SA has highly efficient outsourcing and offshoring strategy. It has resulted in greater operational flexibility and bringing down the costs in highly price sensitive Personal Services industry. Secondly the value chain collaborators of Voyageurs du Monde SA have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy of Voyageurs du Monde SA comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the Personal Services 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.
Learning organization
- Voyageurs du Monde SA 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 Voyageurs du Monde SA is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders at Voyageurs du Monde SA emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Innovation driven organization
– Voyageurs du Monde SA is one of the most innovative firm in Personal Services sector.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Voyageurs du Monde SA 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Personal Services industry
– Voyageurs du Monde SA has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Voyageurs du Monde SA to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Personal Services industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Voyageurs du Monde SA to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Voyageurs du Monde SA 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 Voyageurs du Monde SA | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Voyageurs du Monde SA are -
Lack of clear differentiation of Voyageurs du Monde SA products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Voyageurs du Monde SA needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
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 Voyageurs du Monde SA supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes, Voyageurs du Monde SA is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Voyageurs du Monde SA vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative at Voyageurs du Monde SA, in the dynamic environment of Personal Services industry it has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Voyageurs du Monde SA has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
High dependence on Voyageurs du Monde SA ‘s star products
– The top 2 products and services of Voyageurs du Monde SA still accounts for major business revenue. This dependence on star products in Personal Services industry has resulted into insufficient focus on developing new products, even though Voyageurs du Monde SA has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Voyageurs du Monde SA is one of the leading players in the Personal Services industry, it takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the Personal Services industry in last five years.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Voyageurs du Monde SA is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication can help Voyageurs du Monde SA to provide better information regarding Personal Services products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
No frontier risks strategy
– From the 10K / annual statement of Voyageurs du Monde SA, it seems that company is thinking out the frontier risks that can impact Personal Services 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, Voyageurs du Monde SA 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Voyageurs du Monde SA has some of the most successful models in the Personal Services industry, this business model has made each new product launch extremely critical for continuous financial growth of the organization. Voyageurs du Monde SA should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, Voyageurs du Monde SA has high operating costs in the Personal Services industry. This can be harder to sustain given the new emerging competition from nimble players who are using technology to attract Voyageurs du Monde SA lucrative customers.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Voyageurs du Monde SA has a high cash cycle compare to other players in the Personal Services industry. It needs to shorten the cash cycle by 12% to be more competitive in the marketplace, reduce inventory costs, and be more profitable.
Voyageurs du Monde SA Opportunities | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The opportunities of Voyageurs du Monde SA are -
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Voyageurs du Monde SA 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 Voyageurs du Monde SA to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Developing new processes and practices
– Voyageurs du Monde SA can develop new processes and procedures in Personal Services 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Voyageurs du Monde SA 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.
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 Voyageurs du Monde SA 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Voyageurs du Monde SA 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 Voyageurs du Monde SA to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Voyageurs du Monde SA has spent a significant amount of money and effort to integrate analytics and machine learning into its operations in Personal Services sector. This continuous investment in analytics has enabled Voyageurs du Monde SA to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Voyageurs du Monde SA to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Voyageurs du Monde SA has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in Personal Services industry. This can help Voyageurs du Monde SA to build a more holistic ecosystem for Voyageurs du Monde SA products in the Personal Services industry by providing – data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
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. Voyageurs du Monde SA can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Voyageurs du Monde SA is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Voyageurs du Monde SA can utilize new technology in the field of Personal Services industry to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Voyageurs du Monde SA 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Voyageurs du Monde SA 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 Personal Services industry.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Voyageurs du Monde SA to increase its market reach. Voyageurs du Monde SA 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, Voyageurs du Monde SA can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Voyageurs du Monde SA operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Personal Services sector.
Threats Voyageurs du Monde SA External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats of Voyageurs du Monde SA are -
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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Voyageurs du Monde SA has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Personal Services industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Voyageurs du Monde SA needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Personal Services 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Voyageurs du Monde SA 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 Personal Services industry regulations.
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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Voyageurs du Monde SA 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 Personal Services industry.
Environmental challenges
– Voyageurs du Monde SA 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. Voyageurs du Monde SA can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Personal Services industry.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, Voyageurs du Monde SA may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Personal Services sector.
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 Voyageurs du Monde SA.
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 Voyageurs du Monde SA business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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. Voyageurs du Monde SA needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Personal Services industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Voyageurs du Monde SA in Personal Services industry. The Personal Services 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Voyageurs du Monde SA 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 Voyageurs du Monde SA prominent markets.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Voyageurs du Monde SA 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 Personal Services industry and other sectors.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Voyageurs du Monde SA Template, Example
Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers at Voyageurs du Monde SA 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 Voyageurs du Monde SA 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 Voyageurs du Monde SA 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 Voyageurs du Monde SA 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 Voyageurs du Monde SA needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
