Lol Swot Summary

SWOT SUMMARY

Land O'Lakes clearly has strengths with the economies of scale which in turn provides significant cost advantages. A very successful brand and leader in farm management along with genetically differentiated products puts Land O'Lakes in a strong position for the immediate future. The fact that the organisation is a cooperative ensures that the wealth created from value-added business remains within the community as a result of local ownership. This local ownership provides consistency for planning, facility operations and assists with product quality and refinement. The vertical integration established with a cooperative organisation allows farmers to retain ownership of their commodities beyond the farm and therefore contribute to the value added process.

The existing weaknesses for Land O'Lakes, that stand out are the inherent weaknesses that come with the cooperative organisation. For example, originators of the business venture may want more control and more reward for their efforts in developing the concept and the business. Additionally members and directors may not have the required expertise in running the processing business or finding and distributing the finished product to the market. Land O'Lakes tries to combat this issue to some degree with the election of 24 directors from across the dairy and agricultural areas. Also, they rely heavily on brand recognition which can be detrimental for the organisation if the name was tainted by an unfortunate accident or mal practice suit of some type. Jack Gherty's leadership has been an important part in organisation's success to this point but rumours exist that he may be moving on in the near future. A change at the head of the organisation could be considered a potential weakness until it is proven otherwise. Internet marketing and sales are not prominent for Land O'Lakes and this needs to be embraced and exploited. Federal Market Order regulations can impact this segment by imposing restrictions on producer-handler processing. As this predominately affects cooperative organisations, they are more at risk than non cooperatives.

There are many opportunities for Land O'Lakes to capitalise on the current industry and economic situation as well as just improve business efficiency and focus. For example, Land O'Lakes needs to undertake meaningful cost reductions and improved efficiency by undertaking continued systematic evaluation of all processes and overhead costs in all its businesses. They need to build a high-performance, winning culture with the best people. To do this they need to further promote their business via the website, not just for sales, but for educating people about employment opportunities. They need