Microsoft Corporation
Microsoft Corporation is a market leader in developing and manufacturing softwares of different computer systems as well as a major operating system ‘Windows’. It also entails the entertainment version and provides products that are solely used for entertainment purposes (Xbox game), as well as different peripherals.
Strengths:
• Powerful and renowned brand name.
• Diversified product portfolio.
• Ranked among Fortune Top 50 (2010) with the revenue $58.437 billion.
• Revenue and profitability factor rising at a stable pace.
• A company that operates through regional subsidiaries that are set up in order to lessen the cultural differences.
• It operates in more than 60 countries.
• MSN being an online services provider and also a directory service.
• Microsoft rules the computer software industry for being at the top.
• Product development is rapid and innovation factor is high.
• Workforce is diverse, which encourages loyalty and hardwork without any discriminated approach.
• Flexible workforce that can work on project on seasonal or demand basis.
• Strong impact with product line of game (Xbox).
• The softwares and the OS (operating systems: windows) are widely accepted and used due to their user-friendliness, which has created a bond with the consumers and a critical factor to accept for businesspeople making it more standardized and cost effective.
• Windows operating systems have a market share of more than 85%.
Weaknesses:
• Dependent on hardware manufacturers to preinstall the MS OS.
• Level of sales is falling regarding the OS and server softwares.
• Insignificant presence regarding the wireless market.
• Organizational structure is not satisfactory regarding the 5 layer management and red-tapism.
• Failing to anticipate the internet and acting flexibly in the early years.
• Quite a few products regarding the internet applications.
• Products having single use and do not focus well on how it will work on upcoming products.
• Employee turnover.
Opportunities:
• Global touch using internet will be a lot cheaper to devise its applications, especially in the new markets.
• Mobile phone applications show a great potential regarding the future, as everything is going mobile, Microsoft should invest heavily on applications and consider the mobile market as a new advancement.
• Emerging markets in many countries show strong willingness of the consumers to buy Personal Computers.
Threats:
• Apple is a great threat with its hardware as well as Mac OS, which is threatening the Microsoft market domination.
• Linux being an open source is yet another major competitor that is threatening the position that MS has in the market especially the desktop market.
• Many manufacturers like Sun, IBM, Apple and Oracle are having their own prebundled applications on their hardware that is yet again reducing the market share of MS.
• PCs, cell phones, and many other entertainment oriented hardware devices do not require windows OS.
• Innovative mobile devices that are substituting the personal computers.
• The recent recession in the US slowed down the PC industry and its need decreased variably.
• Piracy of sofwares is a major issue that has and still threatens the revenue stream of many application developing firms.
• Technology life cycle is growing shorter by the passage of time, and innovation is playing a huge role in it as well.
• UNIX has unique operating abilities that Windows cannot handle (according to its users).
References:
http://www.wikiwealth.com/research:msft
http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune500/2010/snapshots/3063.html
http://www.bsu.edu/libraries/ahafner/awh-th-swot-ms.html
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