In-Depth SWOT Analysis of Bharti Infratel – India’s largest Consolidated Tower Infrastructure Company

Updated on: Dec 13, 2021
SWOT Analysis of Bharat Infratel - Featured Image

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In our previous blog, we understood the marketing strategy of Bharti Infratel. Here we will understand the emerging SWOT analysis of Bharti Infratel.

Bharti Infratel, an Indian telecom tower firm, offers shared telecom infrastructure to mobile carriers. It is a subsidiary of Bharti Airtel, India’s largest mobile service provider. Bharti Infratel joined together with competitors Vodafone and Idea Cellular to create Indus Towers, a joint venture to aggregate and share the three firms’ tower assets.

Another factor that has contributed to Bharti Infratel’s current status is its marketing initiatives. Marketing is evolving as the world becomes digitized and if you are curious about how it works — check out our Free MasterClass on Digital Marketing 101 by the CEO and Founder of IIDE, Karan Shah.

Are you eager to know how Bharti Infratel is expertise in the telecommunications industry? In this blog, we will case study the SWOT analysis of Bharti Infratel and find out the answer. But before this, let us learn more about Bharti Infratel, the company, its founding, products, financial status, and competitors.

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About Bharti Infratel

SWOT Analysis of Bharti Infratel - Bharti Infratel Merges With Indus Towers
(Bharti Infratel Merges With Indus Towers, Source: MarketFeed)

Bharti Infratel is now merged with Indus Towers. Bharti Infratel Limited is a telecommunications infrastructure firm that offers telecom infrastructure to Bharti Airtel and other telecommunications companies in India, such as telecom towers, fibre networks, and other related equipment. It’s India’s largest consolidated palace structure company, with Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea as its major clients. 

Bharti Infratel was the first Indian company to launch a tower infrastructure sharing business, and it remains the market leader in this area today. The company acquired 42 per cent of Indus Towers, a joint venture between Bharti Airtel and now-merged Vodafone Idea that runs approximately 42,053 unique communication towers across 11 telecom circles across India.

Quick Stats on Bharti Infratel
Founder Bharti Airtel
Year Founded 2007
Origin Gurugram, India
No. of Employees 1,248+
Company Type Public
Market Cap Rs 63,200 Crore (2021)
Annual Revenue Rs 6,871.70 Crore (2020)
Net Income/ Profit Rs 3,298.70 Crore (2020)

 

SWOT Analysis of Bharti Infratel - Indus Seamless Internet Connectivity

Services by Bharti Infratel

Bharti Infratel is the telecommunications industry since 2007 and deals in services:

  • Bharti Infratel
  • Indus Towers
  • Brightstar Telecommunications India Ltd
  • Field Fresh Foods
  • Bharti Retail


Competitors of Bharti Infratel

Bharti Infratel competes on a global level with many other telecommunication industries. The top competitors are:

  • NETCOM Technologies
  • Westell Technologies
  • IPConsul 
  • Crown Castle.


Now we acknowledge the company’s core business, let’s dive into the SWOT Analysis of Bharti Infratel.


SWOT Analysis of Bharti Infratel

Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats are the four fundamental aspects of SWOT analysis. Bharti Infratel can use its strengths to create niche positioning in the market, strive to reduce and eliminate weaknesses so that it can compete more effectively with competitors, look for opportunities provided by industry structure, regulations, and other developments in the external environment, and finally make provisions and develop strategies to mitigate threats that could undermine Bharti Infratel’s business model.

To better understand the SWOT analysis of Bharti Infratel, refer to the infographic below:

SWOT Analysis of Bharti Infratel - SWOT Infographics of Bharti Infratel

Below is an explicit guide to the SWOT analysis of Bharti Infratel.

Strengths of Bharti Infratel

Bharti Infratel’s strengths include its capabilities and resources, which it can use to create a long-term competitive edge in the market. Strengths stem from positive characteristics of five important resources and capabilities: activities and processes, prior experiences and triumphs, physical resources such as land and buildings, financial resources, and people resources.

  • Domestic Market Is Robust: Bharti Infratel’s domestic market is both a source of strength and a hindrance to the company’s growth and innovation. According to the information presented in the Bharti Infratel: Unlocking Value in Mobile Infrastructure case study, Bharti Infratel may easily grow in its home market without much innovation, but entering the international market would necessitate more investment in research and development. So far, the temptation for Bharti Infratel’s executives has been to focus solely on the home market.
  • High Margins: In comparison to its rivals, Bharti Infratel charges a premium. It has enabled Bharti Infratel the resources to not just withstand competition challenges, but also to engage in R&D.
  • Intellectual Property Rights: Bharti Infratel has collected a vast assortment of patents and copyrights via the invention and buying such rights from the authors. This can assist Bharti Infratel in fending off competitors in a variety of industries, including collaborations, acquisitions and mergers, and mobile.
  • First Mover Advantage: In several segments, Bharti Infratel enjoys a first-mover advantage. It has experimented in a variety of sectors, including joint ventures, mergers and acquisitions, and mobile. The strategy & execution solutions & strategies have assisted Bharti Infratel in developing a one-of-a-kind solution to penetrate untapped markets.
  • Managing Rules and the Business Environment: Bharti Infratel works in an environment fraught with regulations and government directives. The company must negotiate the climate in joint ventures, mergers and acquisitions, and mobile sectors by developing strong relationships with lobby organisations and political networks.
  • Superior Product & Service Quality: It assists Bharti Infratel in expanding its market share because current customers are particularly loyal to it. There is ample proof that Bharti Infratel can compete with other global competitors in the worldwide market with such high-quality products and services.

SWOT Analysis of Bharti Infratel -#TowersAreGood
(#TowersAreGood, Source: Facebook)

Did You Know? Indus Towers Limited formerly known as Bharti Infratel is highly promoting India’s digital transformation and online learning through their initiative to offer seamless connectivity which will enhance your online learning experience. After unlock you can still learn various digital marketing skills online which will nourish your knowledge in the field of digital marketing. As most of the businesses are now online which opens up enormous job opportunities for digital marketing roles, it is still the right time to certify yourself in the areas of digital marketing.   


Weaknesses of Bharti Infratel

Bharti Infratel’s weaknesses are the areas, competencies, or skills that it lacks. It hinders the firm’s capacity to develop a lasting competitive edge. Weaknesses result from a lack of five important resources and capabilities: people resources, previous experiences and accomplishments, activities and procedures, physical resources such as land and buildings, and financial resources.

  • Customer Unhappiness: Even though product demand has not decreased, there is a simmering feeling of dissatisfaction among Bharti Infratel customers. It may be seen in the reviews on many online sites. Bharti Infratel should concentrate on areas where it can improve the buy and post-purchase experiences of its customers.
  • Technology Implementation in Operations: Even though Bharti Infratel has integrated technology in its backend processes, it has yet to harness the potential of technology in its front end processes.
  • Low Return on Investment: Despite Bharti Infratel’s healthy financial sheet, one statistic that requires consideration is “Return on Invested Capital.” In the sectors of Joint Ventures, Mergers & Acquisitions, and Mobile in which Bharti Infratel operates, the most dependable metric of profitability is Return on Invested Capital, rather than those used by financial experts such as Return on Equity and Return on Assets.
  • Lack of Workforce Diversity: Bharti Infratel’s workforce is not diversified enough, considering that the majority of its growth has occurred in its home market. This may limit Bharti Infratel’s ability to succeed in the foreign market.
  • Track Record on Environmental Issues is Unimpressive: Bharti Infratel’s track record on environmental concerns is unimpressive. This may result in consumer backlash since customers now regard environmental regulations to be an essential aspect of conducting business.


Opportunities for Bharti Infratel

Opportunities are macro-environmental conditions and trends that Bharti Infratel may employ to either solidify its present market position or expand further. Economic growth, increases in consumer disposable income, technical advancements, changes in consumer tastes, and political events and regulatory changes can all create opportunities.

  • Artificial Intelligence Advances: Bharti Infratel can employ artificial intelligence advancements to better forecast customer demand, cater to speciality sectors, and create better recommendation engines.
  • International Markets Offer Profitable Opportunities: Globalization has created opportunities in the global market. Bharti Infratel is well-positioned to capitalize on these prospects and expand its market share. Growth in the overseas market can also assist Bharti Infratel to diversify its risk by reducing its reliance on the local market for income.
  • Increasing Standardization: Bharti Infratel can capitalise on this trend by reducing the number of options in the market and concentrating marketing efforts on only the most successful items.
  • Changing Technology Environment: The rise of machine learning and artificial intelligence are reshaping the technical environment in which Bharti Infratel works. These advancements can help Bharti Infratel improve efficiency, cut costs, and alter operations.
  • Access to International Talent in the Global Request: One of the issues that Bharti Infratel is now facing is a lack of access to high-position gift requests due to a limited budget. Bharti Infratel’s overseas expansion may enable them to access the international talent market. It may also aid in attracting talent into the local market and growing into new industries through joint ventures, mergers and acquisitions, and mobile technology.


Threats to Bharti Infratel

Threats are macroenvironmental conditions and changes that might disrupt Bharti Infratel’s business strategy. Threats can arise as a result of a variety of circumstances, including technology advancements, increases in consumer disposable income, changes in consumer tastes, economic growth, and political events and policy changes.

  • Increasing Expenses for Functioning in Developed Markets Due to Environmental Restrictions: Bharti Infratel must deal with these costs as governments attempt to collect greater environmental fees to encourage greener solutions. It may result in greater shipping and packaging expenses for Bharti Infratel.
  • Middle-Class Squeeze in the Developed and Developing Worlds: Growing inequality is a major danger to not only globalisation but also capitalism. Bharti Infratel has experienced the impact firsthand, with decreasing demand for its goods from middle-class clients in the US and EU markets.
  • Developing Protectionism: Bharti Infratel should offset the risk of growing protectionism by doing things like storing data in foreign markets and diversifying risk by operating in nations with diverse economic cycles.
  • New Entrants in Cost-Cutting and Efficiency-Increasing Technologies: As Bharti Infratel may benefit from low-cost client acquisition via social media and e-commerce, so can rivals — both domestic and foreign.
  • Government Rules and Bureaucracy: Bharti Infratel should keep a sharp eye on the rapidly changing government regulations in the face of increasing pressure from protest groups and non-governmental organisations, particularly in the areas of environmental and labour safety.

This ends our in-depth SWOT analysis of Bharti Infratel. Let us conclude our learning below.

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To Conclude

As we look in the SWOT Analysis of Bharti Infratel, Bharti Infratel has had a considerable effect in the general market due to its excellent delivery and sector experience. The merger and major acquisitions have provided a significant boost, bringing in large chunks of much-needed market share in favour of Bharti Infratel, establishing it as India’s top tower infrastructure firm.

Another major aspect of the company is their strong base and good online marketing strategies. As a result, it has become a very competitive arena for colossal corporations like NETCOM and Westell Technologies to control this section of the market, despite their efforts to reach out to Bharti Infratel. If you want to learn more and expand your skills, check out IIDE’s 3 Month Advanced Online Digital Marketing Course to know more. 

We hope this blog on the SWOT analysis of Bharti Infratel has given you a good insight into the company’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.

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Aditya Shastri

Lead Trainer & Head of Learning & Development at IIDE

Leads the Learning & Development segment at IIDE. He is a Content Marketing Expert and has trained 6000+ students and working professionals on various topics of Digital Marketing. He has been a guest speaker at prominent colleges in India including IIMs......[Read full bio]

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