Sword (SWOR) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / MBA Resources

Introduction to SWOT Analysis

SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix for Sword (France)

Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , Sword is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – increasing commodity prices, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , there is increasing trade war between United States & China, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, increasing transportation and logistics costs, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, increasing energy prices, etc

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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Sword

SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University, we believe that Sword can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Sword, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Sword 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 Sword can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning of Sword
2. Improving business portfolio management of Sword
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in France
4. Making a Computer Networks sector specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Sword

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Strengths of Sword | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of Sword are -

Effective Research and Development (R&D)

– Sword has innovation driven culture where significant part of the revenues are spent on the research and development activities. This has resulted in – Sword staying ahead in the Computer Networks industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.

Ability to recruit top talent

– Sword is one of the leading players in the Computer Networks 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.

Successful track record of launching new products

– Sword has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Sword 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.

Ability to lead change in Computer Networks

– Sword is one of the leading players in the Computer Networks industry in France. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in the Computer Networks industry in France but also across the existing markets. The ability to lead change has enabled Sword in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.

Diverse revenue streams

– Sword is present in almost all the verticals within the Computer Networks industry. This has provided Sword 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 Computer Networks industry

- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Sword digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Sword 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.

High brand equity

– Sword has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Sword to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.

Innovation driven organization

– Sword is one of the most innovative firm in Computer Networks sector.

Analytics focus

– Sword 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 Computer Networks industry. The technology infrastructure of France 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.

Superior customer experience

– The customer experience strategy of Sword in Computer Networks industry is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.

Learning organization

- Sword 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 Sword is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders at Sword emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.

Low bargaining power of suppliers

– Suppliers of Sword in the Technology sector have low bargaining power. Sword has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Sword to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.

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Weaknesses of Sword | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of Sword are -

Lack of clear differentiation of Sword products

– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Sword needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.

Low market penetration in new markets

– Outside its home market of France, Sword needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.

Interest costs

– Compare to the competition, Sword 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.

Slow to harness new channels of communication

– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Sword is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication can help Sword to provide better information regarding Computer Networks 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 Sword, it seems that company is thinking out the frontier risks that can impact Computer Networks 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.

Increasing silos among functional specialists

– The organizational structure of Sword is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Computer Networks industry, but Sword needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Sword to focus more on services in the Computer Networks industry rather than just following the product oriented approach.

Compensation and incentives

– The revenue per employee of Sword is just above the Computer Networks 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.

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 Sword supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes, Sword is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Sword vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.

Employees’ less understanding of Sword strategy

– From the outside it seems that the employees of Sword 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, Sword has a very deliberative decision making approach. This approach has resulted in prudent decisions, but it has also resulted in missing opportunities in the Computer Networks industry over the last five years. Sword 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.

Need for greater diversity

– Sword 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.

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Sword Opportunities | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The opportunities of Sword are -

Building a culture of innovation

– managers at Sword 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 Computer Networks industry.

Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains

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

Using analytics as competitive advantage

– Sword has spent a significant amount of money and effort to integrate analytics and machine learning into its operations in Computer Networks sector. This continuous investment in analytics has enabled Sword to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Sword to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.

Developing new processes and practices

– Sword can develop new processes and procedures in Computer Networks 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.

Loyalty marketing

– Sword 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.

Buying journey improvements

– Sword can improve the customer journey of consumers in the Computer Networks 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. Sword can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.

Learning at scale

– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Sword 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.

Leveraging digital technologies

– Sword 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.

Lowering marketing communication costs

– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Sword in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Computer Networks industry, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.

Finding new ways to collaborate

– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Computer Networks industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Sword can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.

Redefining models of collaboration and team work

– As explained in the weaknesses section, Sword is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Sword can utilize new technology in the field of Computer Networks 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, Sword 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.

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Threats Sword External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The threats of Sword are -

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. Sword needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Computer Networks industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.

Learning curve for new practices

– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, Sword may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Computer Networks 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 Sword.

Stagnating economy with rate increase

– Sword 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 Computer Networks industry.

Trade war between China and United States

– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Sword in Computer Networks industry. The Computer Networks 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.

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.

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 Sword business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.

Increasing wage structure of Sword

– 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 Sword.

Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution

– Sword has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Computer Networks industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Sword needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Computer Networks 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.

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 Sword in the Computer Networks sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.

Environmental challenges

– Sword 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. Sword can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Computer Networks industry.

Easy access to finance

– Easy access to finance in Computer Networks industry will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Sword can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.

Shortening product life cycle

– it is one of the major threat that Sword is facing in Computer Networks sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.

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Weighted SWOT Analysis of Sword Template, Example

Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers at Sword 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 Sword 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 Sword 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 Sword 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 Sword needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.

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