Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , EVOC Intelligent Tech is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – increasing transportation and logistics costs, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, wage bills are increasing, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, there is backlash against globalization,
increasing commodity prices, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of EVOC Intelligent Tech
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University, we believe that EVOC Intelligent Tech can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the EVOC Intelligent Tech, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which EVOC Intelligent Tech 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 EVOC Intelligent Tech can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning of EVOC Intelligent Tech
2. Improving business portfolio management of EVOC Intelligent Tech
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Hong Kong
4. Making a Computer Hardware sector specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of EVOC Intelligent Tech
Strengths of EVOC Intelligent Tech | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of EVOC Intelligent Tech are -
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the EVOC Intelligent Tech 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.
Diverse revenue streams
– EVOC Intelligent Tech is present in almost all the verticals within the Computer Hardware industry. This has provided EVOC Intelligent Tech 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.
Training and development
– EVOC Intelligent Tech 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.
Innovation driven organization
– EVOC Intelligent Tech is one of the most innovative firm in Computer Hardware sector.
Highly skilled collaborators
– EVOC Intelligent Tech has highly efficient outsourcing and offshoring strategy. It has resulted in greater operational flexibility and bringing down the costs in highly price sensitive Computer Hardware industry. Secondly the value chain collaborators of EVOC Intelligent Tech have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy of EVOC Intelligent Tech comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the Computer Hardware 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 EVOC Intelligent Tech 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.
Ability to lead change in Computer Hardware
– EVOC Intelligent Tech is one of the leading players in the Computer Hardware industry in Hong Kong. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in the Computer Hardware industry in Hong Kong but also across the existing markets. The ability to lead change has enabled EVOC Intelligent Tech in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Strong track record of project management in the Computer Hardware industry
– EVOC Intelligent Tech is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Organizational Resilience of EVOC Intelligent Tech
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing EVOC Intelligent Tech does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of EVOC Intelligent Tech in the Technology sector have low bargaining power. EVOC Intelligent Tech has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps EVOC Intelligent Tech to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Computer Hardware industry
– EVOC Intelligent Tech has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled EVOC Intelligent Tech to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Computer Hardware industry. The sustainable margins have also helped EVOC Intelligent Tech to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Weaknesses of EVOC Intelligent Tech | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of EVOC Intelligent Tech are -
High bargaining power of channel partners in Computer Hardware industry
– because of the regulatory requirements in Hong Kong, EVOC Intelligent Tech 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 Computer Hardware industry.
Lack of clear differentiation of EVOC Intelligent Tech products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, EVOC Intelligent Tech needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, EVOC Intelligent Tech 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Hong Kong, EVOC Intelligent Tech 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 EVOC Intelligent Tech, in the dynamic environment of Computer Hardware industry it has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. EVOC Intelligent Tech has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, EVOC Intelligent Tech has high operating costs in the Computer Hardware industry. This can be harder to sustain given the new emerging competition from nimble players who are using technology to attract EVOC Intelligent Tech lucrative customers.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee of EVOC Intelligent Tech is just above the Computer Hardware 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of EVOC Intelligent Tech is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Computer Hardware industry, but EVOC Intelligent Tech needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help EVOC Intelligent Tech to focus more on services in the Computer Hardware industry rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Products dominated business model
– Even though EVOC Intelligent Tech has some of the most successful models in the Computer Hardware industry, this business model has made each new product launch extremely critical for continuous financial growth of the organization. EVOC Intelligent Tech should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
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 EVOC Intelligent Tech supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes, EVOC Intelligent Tech is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left EVOC Intelligent Tech vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, EVOC Intelligent Tech has not been able to do capital spending to the tune of the competition. This has resulted into fewer innovations and company facing stiff competition from both existing competitors and new entrants who are disrupting the Computer Hardware industry using digital technology.
EVOC Intelligent Tech Opportunities | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The opportunities of EVOC Intelligent Tech are -
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects EVOC Intelligent Tech can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, EVOC Intelligent Tech is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. EVOC Intelligent Tech can utilize new technology in the field of Computer Hardware industry to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for EVOC Intelligent Tech 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 Hardware industry, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, EVOC Intelligent Tech 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.
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 EVOC Intelligent Tech to reconfigure its entire business model. For example it can used blockchain based technologies to reduce piracy of its products in the big markets such as China. Secondly it can use the popularity of e-commerce in various developing markets to build a Direct to Customer business model rather than the current Channel Heavy distribution network.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, EVOC Intelligent Tech can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that EVOC Intelligent Tech operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Computer Hardware sector.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help EVOC Intelligent Tech to increase its market reach. EVOC Intelligent Tech 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 EVOC Intelligent Tech 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– EVOC Intelligent Tech has spent a significant amount of money and effort to integrate analytics and machine learning into its operations in Computer Hardware sector. This continuous investment in analytics has enabled EVOC Intelligent Tech to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help EVOC Intelligent Tech to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Use of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies for transactions in Computer Hardware industry
– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for EVOC Intelligent Tech in the Computer Hardware industry. Now EVOC Intelligent Tech can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of EVOC Intelligent Tech has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in Computer Hardware industry. This can help EVOC Intelligent Tech to build a more holistic ecosystem for EVOC Intelligent Tech products in the Computer Hardware industry by providing – data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Loyalty marketing
– EVOC Intelligent Tech 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
– EVOC Intelligent Tech can improve the customer journey of consumers in the Computer Hardware 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.
Threats EVOC Intelligent Tech External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats of EVOC Intelligent Tech are -
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 EVOC Intelligent Tech business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Computer Hardware industry will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. EVOC Intelligent Tech can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Increasing wage structure of EVOC Intelligent Tech
– 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 EVOC Intelligent Tech.
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 EVOC Intelligent Tech.
Consumer confidence and its impact on EVOC Intelligent Tech 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 Computer Hardware industry and other sectors.
Aging population
– As the populations of most advanced economies are aging, it will lead to high social security costs, higher savings among population, and lower demand for goods and services in the economy. The household savings in US, France, UK, Germany, and Japan are growing faster than predicted because of uncertainty caused by pandemic.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, EVOC Intelligent Tech 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 EVOC Intelligent Tech prominent markets.
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. EVOC Intelligent Tech needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Computer Hardware industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Instability in the European markets
– European Union markets are facing three big challenges post Covid – expanded balance sheets, Brexit related business disruption, and aggressive Russia looking to distract the existing security mechanism. EVOC Intelligent Tech will face different problems in different parts of Europe. For example it will face inflationary pressures in UK, France, and Germany, balance sheet expansion and demand challenges in Southern European countries, and geopolitical instability in the Eastern Europe.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that EVOC Intelligent Tech is facing in Computer Hardware sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– EVOC Intelligent Tech 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 Hardware industry.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, EVOC Intelligent Tech 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 Hardware sector.
Environmental challenges
– EVOC Intelligent Tech 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. EVOC Intelligent Tech can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Computer Hardware industry.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of EVOC Intelligent Tech Template, Example
Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers at EVOC Intelligent Tech 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 EVOC Intelligent Tech 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 EVOC Intelligent Tech 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 EVOC Intelligent Tech 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 EVOC Intelligent Tech needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
