China All Access (633) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / MBA Resources

Introduction to SWOT Analysis

SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix for China All Access (Hong Kong)

Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , China All Access is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, there is backlash against globalization, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, geopolitical disruptions, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, technology disruption, etc

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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of China All Access

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

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Strengths of China All Access | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of China All Access are -

Organizational Resilience of China All Access

– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing China All Access does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.

Superior customer experience

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

Strong track record of project management in the Computer Networks industry

– China All Access is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.

Highly skilled collaborators

– China All Access has highly efficient outsourcing and offshoring strategy. It has resulted in greater operational flexibility and bringing down the costs in highly price sensitive Computer Networks industry. Secondly the value chain collaborators of China All Access have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.

Effective Research and Development (R&D)

– China All Access has innovation driven culture where significant part of the revenues are spent on the research and development activities. This has resulted in – China All Access 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.

Training and development

– China All Access 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.

Cross disciplinary teams

– Horizontal connected teams at the China All Access 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.

Innovation driven organization

– China All Access is one of the most innovative firm in Computer Networks sector.

Successful track record of launching new products

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

High switching costs

– The high switching costs that China All Access 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.

Learning organization

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

Analytics focus

– China All Access 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 Hong Kong 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.

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Weaknesses of China All Access | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of China All Access are -

Lack of clear differentiation of China All Access products

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

Interest costs

– Compare to the competition, China All Access 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 dependence on China All Access ‘s star products

– The top 2 products and services of China All Access still accounts for major business revenue. This dependence on star products in Computer Networks industry has resulted into insufficient focus on developing new products, even though China All Access has relatively successful track record of launching new products.

Increasing silos among functional specialists

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

Workers concerns about automation

– As automation is fast increasing in the Computer Networks industry, China All Access 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.

Aligning sales with marketing

– From the outside it seems that China All Access needs to have more collaboration between its sales team and marketing team. Sales professionals in the Computer Networks industry have deep experience in developing customer relationships. Marketing department at China All Access can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as China All Access is planning to shift buying processes online.

Low market penetration in new markets

– Outside its home market of Hong Kong, China All Access needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.

Need for greater diversity

– China All Access 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.

Products dominated business model

– Even though China All Access has some of the most successful models in the Computer Networks industry, this business model has made each new product launch extremely critical for continuous financial growth of the organization. China All Access should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.

Slow to strategic competitive environment developments

– As China All Access is one of the leading players in the Computer Networks industry, it takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the Computer Networks industry in last five years.

High operating costs

– Compare to the competitors, China All Access has high operating costs in the Computer Networks industry. This can be harder to sustain given the new emerging competition from nimble players who are using technology to attract China All Access lucrative customers.

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China All Access Opportunities | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The opportunities of China All Access are -

Loyalty marketing

– China All Access 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.

Learning at scale

– Online learning technologies has now opened space for China All Access 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.

Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains

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

Better consumer reach

– The expansion of the 5G network will help China All Access to increase its market reach. China All Access 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, China All Access can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that China All Access operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Computer Networks sector.

Using analytics as competitive advantage

– China All Access 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 China All Access to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help China All Access 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 Networks industry

– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for China All Access in the Computer Networks industry. Now China All Access can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.

Developing new processes and practices

– China All Access 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.

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 China All Access 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.

Creating value in data economy

– The success of analytics program of China All Access has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in Computer Networks industry. This can help China All Access to build a more holistic ecosystem for China All Access products in the Computer Networks industry by providing – data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.

Redefining models of collaboration and team work

– As explained in the weaknesses section, China All Access is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. China All Access 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, China All Access 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 China All Access 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.

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Threats China All Access External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The threats of China All Access are -

Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins

– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, China All Access 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 China All Access prominent markets.

Increasing wage structure of China All Access

– 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 China All Access.

Barriers of entry lowering

– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry to Computer Networks industry are lowering. It can presents China All Access with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the Computer Networks sector.

Stagnating economy with rate increase

– China All Access 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.

High dependence on third party suppliers

– China All Access 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.

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. China All Access 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.

Consumer confidence and its impact on China All Access 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 Networks industry and other sectors.

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. China All Access can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.

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.

Regulatory challenges

– China All Access 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 Computer Networks industry regulations.

Environmental challenges

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

Learning curve for new practices

– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, China All Access 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.

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 China All Access business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.

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Weighted SWOT Analysis of China All Access Template, Example

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

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