Sharp Corporation is a Japanese company that manufactures electronic products. The company designs manufacture and distribute televisions, audio and sound systems, microwave, air purifiers, mobile phones, and projectors. With a total of 43,279 employees who work in various facilities across the world, Sharp electronic registered a turnover of 2,050,639 million yen as of the year 2017.
The company which was established in the year 1912 has almost a century of experience in manufacturing consumer electronics making it a veteran in this domain. The company is currently headed by Jeng-wu Ta after it was taken over by the Taiwanese company Foxconn Group. The company has been a pioneer in innovation right from its very first invention the Ever sharp pencil from which it has got its name.
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Strengths in The SWOT analysis of Sharp
Strengths are defined as what each business does best in its gamut of operations which can give it an upper hand over its competitors. The following are the strengths of Sharp electronics:
- Business Philosophy: The business philosophy of Sharp Electronics is centered around innovation that is beneficial to society. Their core values which are sincerity and creativity speak volumes about their commitment to delivering quality products to the customer.
- Japanese tradition: Most Japanese companies are centered around Japanese values which are the right blend of tradition and modernism. The values that the company believes in stems from the harmony between tradition, culture and modern day demands. This often helps the company to churn out products that suit the day and age.
- Trendsetters: Sharp electronics was one of the earliest companies to get into the electronics business and thus they were one of the pioneers in television. This gave them an advantage over players who got into the industry later especially in terms of goodwill and brand recognition.
- High level of ethics: The company attaches a lot of importance to ethics and morality and have always ensured that there is complete transparency of operations. The company also has high levels of commitment to the environment and society.
Weaknesses in The SWOT analysis of Sharp
Weaknesses are used to refer to areas where the business or the brand needs improvement. Some of the key weaknesses of Sharp electronic :
- Inability to innovate: Though Sharp Electronics was a forerunner in the early days of its inception, the company failed to innovate or to keep abreast with the trends in the business. This resulted in the death of the brand and it lost its market value.
- Too much focus on process: Sharp Electronics and other Japanese counterparts started giving more important to organizational structure, hierarchy, and processes.This resulted in them losing focus on aspects like creativity and flexibility which was what mattered in modern ages.
- Product experience: In the modern era the service and product experience are just as important as the products itself. People are willing to pay a premium for the product and shopping experience. This was totally missing in Sharp Products.
- Poor promotions: Sharp Electronics did not invest too much in product promotions with the result that customers would hardly recall the product. This resulted in competitors like Samsung or LG getting higher mindshare.
- Work culture: Sharp Electronics follows a work culture that is management centric where people work in silos and the focus is on delivery and hard work. These have resulted in creating unhealthy competition which in turn has completely negated the spirit of innovation amongst their employees.
Opportunities in The SWOT analysis of Sharp
Opportunities refer to those avenues in the environment that surrounds the business on which it can capitalize to increase its returns. Some of the opportunities include:
- Increased market potential for consumer electronics: The consumer electronics market is expected to grow at a rate of 5.4 % CAGR to get to an annual potential of USD 1210 billion by the year 2020. The top ten players will take up almost 52 % of the market share and this means that companies like Sharp will need to focus on improving their game.
- Positive consumer behavior trends: Consumers are experiencing an increase in their per capita income which in turn improves their propensity to spend. Online shopping will increase and the markets are growing beyond geographic boundaries. The shortage of time will increase their dependency on smart gadgets.
- IOT: In the consumer durables market, the next big trend to look out for will be Intenet of Things. Through automation, artificial intelligence and robotics human beings will become increasingly dependent on machines in the next many years.
Threats in The SWOT analysis of Sharp
Threats are those factors in the environment which can be detrimental to the growth of the business. Some of the threats include:
- Competition: The main competitors of Sharp Electronics are Panasonic, Sony, LG, Hitachi, and IFB.
- Growing costs: The costs of raw materials are on a perpetual increase. The changes in trends in creating a need for continuous research and the shelf life of products have reduced.
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