urgent

Strengths

1. Successful track record of developing new products – product innovation.

2. Reliable suppliers – It has a strong base of reliable supplier of raw material thus enabling the company to overcome any supply chain bottlenecks.

3. Automation of activities brought consistency of quality to General Electric products and has enabled the company to scale up and scale down based on the demand conditions in the market.

4. Successful track record of integrating complimentary firms through mergers & acquisition. It has successfully integrated number of technology companies in the past few years to streamline its operations and to build a reliable supply chain.

5. Strong Brand Portfolio

6. Strong dealer community – It has built a culture among distributor & dealers where the dealers not only promote company’s products but also invest in training the sales team to explain to the customer how he/she can extract the maximum benefits out of the products.

7. Highly successful at Go To Market strategies for its products.

8. High level of customer satisfaction – the company with its dedicated customer relationship management department has able to achieve a high level of customer satisfaction among present customers and good brand equity among the potential customers

9. It is hailed as one of the most innovative, green and best places to work

10. Operates in more than 160 countries

11. Well balanced revenue stream among different sectors and hence reduced business risk

12. Extensive R&D capabilities with a strong workforce of over 300,000 people worldwide

13. Product Diversity - Aviation, consumer electronics, motors, energy, finance, gas, healthcare, lighting, oil, software etc form a part of its diversified product portfolio.

14. Global Recognition: by the Forbes magazine it was marked one of the largest corporations in the world and in the year 2011 it gained the position of 68th largest companies in the United States. These gave GE the global recognition, which helped to gain competitive advantage.15

15. Historical Background: as one of the oldest companies of the United States, it gained strong reputations.

Weakness

1. Limited success outside core business – even though General Electric is one of the leading organizations in its industry it has faced challenges in moving to other product segments with its present culture.

2. Cash flow problems: there's a scarcity of proper financial planning at General Electric regarding cash flows, resulting in certain circumstances where there isn’t enough income as needed resulting in unnecessary unplanned borrowing.

3. There are gaps in the product range sold by the company. This lack of choice can give a new competitor a foothold in the market.

4. Organization structure is only compatible with existing business models thus limiting expansion in adjacent product segments.

5. High attrition rate in the workforce – compared to other organizations in the industry General Electric has a higher attrition rate and has to spend a lot more compared to its competitors on training and development of its employees.

6. Need more investment in new technologies. Given the scale of expansion and different geographies the company is planning to expand into, General Electric needs to put more money in technology to integrate the processes across the board. Right now, the investment in technologies is not at par with the vision of the company

7. Dependence on third parties for raw materials can be a concern

8. Being a strong brand, easily targeted for litigation for even minor issues which otherwise can be easily resolved

9. Large and diverse businesses might overstretch the company and reduce reaction time to shift in target markets

10. Weak performance in Asian markets influences the conglomerate’s overall global performance. Mainly due to GE’s management approach that traditionally focuses on the biggest markets, such as the United States.

11. Breaching Accounting Rules: in the year of 2009, it breached accounting rules. As a result, GE gained a negative reputation.

12. A high amount of borrowed funds: GE has a significant amount of debt level, which affects the company’s operations.

13. Diversification within the workforce: The workforce at General Electric is concentrated with mostly local workers, and low amounts of workers from other racial backgrounds. Lack of diversification makes it difficult for workers from different racial backgrounds to regulate at the workplace, resulting in loss of talent.

14. Has failed in marketing, specifically unique selling proportions and positioning which are not defined clearly.

15. Numerous levels of reporting in its organizational structure.

Opportunities

1. Organization’s core competencies can be a success in similar other products field. A comparative example could be - GE healthcare research helped it in developing better Oil drilling machines.

2. Government green drive also opens an opportunity for procurement of General Electric products by the state as well as federal government contractors.

3. Opening up of new markets because of government agreement – the adoption of new technology standard and government free trade agreement has provided General Electric an opportunity to enter a new emerging market.

4. The new technology provides an opportunity to General Electric to practices differentiated pricing strategy in the new market. It will enable the firm to maintain its loyal customers with great service and lure new customers through other value oriented propositions.

5. New trends in the consumer behavior can open up new market for the General Electric . It provides a great opportunity for the organization to build new revenue streams and diversify into new product categories too.

6. New customers from online channel – Over the past few years the company has invested vast sum of money into the online platform. This investment has opened new sales channel for General Electric. In the next few years the company can leverage this opportunity by knowing its customer better and serving their needs using big data analytics.

7. Decreasing cost of transportation because of lower shipping prices can also bring down the cost of General Electric’s products thus providing an opportunity to the company - either to boost its profitability or pass on the benefits to the customers to gain market share.

8. Stable free cash flow provides opportunities to invest in adjacent product segments. With more cash in bank the company can invest in new technologies as well as in new products segments. This should open a window of opportunity for General Electric in other product categories

9. Global acquisitions and buyouts to strengthen existing businesses

10. Growing demand for commercial airplanes

11. New pipeline of contracts to boost top line growth

12. Emerging economies give a huge scope provided the infrastructure required to build complete cities

13. Strong outlook for GE Capital in the US: With US business improving and credit cards market growing. GE Capital has a positive outlook in the US. The demand for GE capital products can grow and can strengthen the top-line.

14. Growth in the renewable energy market is an opportunity for the company to grow by expanding its Renewable Energy operating segment.

15. Growth in developing markets corresponds to potential increases in the company’s revenues.

Threats

1. New technologies developed by the competitor or market disruptor could be a serious threat to the industry in medium to long term future.

2. Rising pay level especially movements such as $15 an hour and increasing prices in the China can lead to serious pressure on profitability of General Electric

3. No regular supply of innovative products – Over the years the company has developed numerous products but those are often response to the development by other players. Secondly the supply of new products is not regular thus leading to high and low swings in the sales number over period of time.

4. The demand of the highly profitable products is seasonal in nature and any unlikely event during the peak season may impact the profitability of the company in short to medium term.

5. Intense competition – Stable profitability has increased the number of players in the industry over last two years which has put downward pressure on not only profitability but also on overall sales.

6. Liability laws in different countries are different and General Electric may be exposed to various liability claims

7. products but those are often response to the development by other players. Secondly the supply of new products is not regular thus leading to high and low swings in the sales number over period of time.

8. The demand of the highly profitable products is seasonal in nature and any unlikely event during the peak season may impact the profitability of the company in short to medium term.

9. Intense competition – Stable profitability has increased the number of players in the industry over last two years which has put downward pressure on not only profitability but also on overall sales.

10. Liability laws in different countries are different and General Electric may be exposed to various liability claims given change in policies in those markets.

11. As the company is operating in numerous countries it is exposed to currency fluctuations especially given the volatile political climate in number of markets across the world.

12. Increasing trend toward isolationism in the American economy can lead to similar reaction from other government thus negatively impacting the international sales.

13. As the company is operating in numerous countries it is exposed to currency fluctuations especially given the volatile political climate in number of markets across the world.

14. Strict government policies and environmental regulatory norms can affect operations

15. Since it is a powerful global brand, economic and political risks

Non-Swot Factors

1. Oil and Gas segment is a major revenue generator for the business.  

2. Asian markets are a potential pitfall for any company in this industry. Competition, labor, and consumers are different from the West.

3. GE is ranked 21 among the Fortune 500 companies in the United States in terms of gross revenue.

4. The company stock was steadily climbing all through 2019 to 2020 until the coronavirus.

5. The company’s capital financial segment almost toppled GE during the Great Recession.

6. One of the lowest moments during the recession was when the company’s stock fell by 42 percent in a year.

7. Company was once majority owners of NBC Universal.

8. The GE conglomerate consists of eight subsidiaries in different industries.

9. The company's founder, Thomas Edison, electrocuted animals to help generate more sales of his brand of electricity.

10. One of original 12 companies to debut on the Dow Jones back on May 26, 1896.

Mission Statement

General Electric (GE) Company’s mission statement is “building a world that works.” GE is moving the world forward by tackling big challenges and bringing real progress globally. GE has been operating for more than 125 years inventing the future in a vast and valuable line of products and services that includes aviation, power, healthcare, renewable energy, and financial services. As a global company each division has their own mission towards building a world that works. The mission of the power division is “powering lives and making electricity more affordable, reliable, accessible, and more sustainable.” Renewable Energy is “making renewable power sources more affordable, reliable, and accessible for the benefit of people everywhere.” Aviation is “providing customers with engines, components, avionics and systems for commercial, military and business & general aviation aircraft and a global service network to support these offerings.” Healthcare is “Operating at the center of an ecosystem working toward precision health – digitizing healthcare, helping drive productivity and improving outcomes across the health system.” And Capital is “designing and delivering innovative financial solutions for GE Industrial customers in markets around the world.”  As a pioneering leader, GE continues to be at the forefront of transforming its portfolio of business in the new technological era. With a local presence in over 180 countries, GE has built a strong brand and deep customer relationships. Our diverse and dedicated partners that include local talent and supply chains are armed with the critical infrastructure they need to generate sustainable growth and development as the company progresses globally.