A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program
Easwaran Iyer, Dean of the Jain University's Business School, wanted to ensure that they admitted the right set of students to their Master of Business Administration (MBA) program, but he was not sure about the parameters that could be used to identify students who were ideal for the MBA program. Jain University received applications for the MBA program from across India and admitted approximately 400 students every year. There had been a steady increase in the number of applications received by Jain University over the years. Placement performance played a major role in attracting good quality students to the MBA program in India. In 2012, over 180 Business Schools in major cities such as Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Ahmedabad, Kolkata, Lucknow, and Dehradun closed down. Although, there could be many reasons for their closure, their inability to place their students played a key role. At the beginning of every admissions season, which began in April and stretched until July, Iyer thoroughly screened the admission seeking candidates and decided along with his admission committee which of candidates were admitted or rejected. Although there was no penalty if a non-placeable student was selected, it would weigh heavily on the institute's reputation. A wrong pick could eventually contribute towards an increase in the number of unplaced students as well as a reduction in the average salary. Moreover, there was the possibility of rejecting a placeable candidate. What made Iyer's job tougher was that he was expected to increase the batch size while also increasing the quality of the admitted set of students. He acknowledged that MBA admissions needed much more analytical reasoning, taking multiple criteria into consideration.
Swot Analysis of "A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program" written by Dhimant Ganatra, Dinesh Kumar Unnikrishnan includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Admitted Mba facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Decision making, Financial analysis and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program casestudy better are - – increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, there is backlash against globalization, increasing transportation and logistics costs, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models,
increasing commodity prices, technology disruption, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Admitted Mba, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Admitted Mba operates in.
According to Harvard Business Review, 75% of the managers use SWOT analysis for various purposes such as – evaluating current scenario, strategic planning, new venture feasibility, personal growth goals, new market entry, Go To market strategies, portfolio management and strategic trade-off assessment, organizational restructuring, etc.
SWOT Objectives / Importance of SWOT Analysis and SWOT Matrix
SWOT analysis of A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Admitted Mba
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Leadership & Managing People field.
4. Making a Leadership & Managing People topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Admitted Mba
Strengths A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Admitted Mba in A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program Harvard Business Review case study are -
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program Harvard Business Review case study comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the industry, building diversified operations across different geographies so that disruption in one part of the world doesn’t impact the overall performance of the firm, and integrating the various business operations and processes through its digital transformation drive.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Admitted Mba has built up over years in its products and services combo offer has resulted in high retention of customers, lower marketing costs, and greater ability of the firm to focus on its customers.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Admitted Mba is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Ability to lead change in Leadership & Managing People field
– Admitted Mba is one of the leading players in its industry. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in its segment but also across the whole industry. The ability to lead change has enabled Admitted Mba in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Admitted Mba has innovation driven culture where significant part of the revenues are spent on the research and development activities. This has resulted in, as mentioned in case study A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Analytics focus
– Admitted Mba is putting a lot of focus on utilizing the power of analytics in business decision making. This has put it among the leading players in the industry. The technology infrastructure suggested by Dhimant Ganatra, Dinesh Kumar Unnikrishnan can also help it to harness the power of analytics for – marketing optimization, demand forecasting, customer relationship management, inventory management, information sharing across the value chain etc.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Admitted Mba in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
High brand equity
– Admitted Mba has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Admitted Mba to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Learning organization
- Admitted Mba is a learning organization. It has inculcated three key characters of learning organization in its processes and operations – exploration, creativity, and expansiveness. The work place at Admitted Mba is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Innovation driven organization
– Admitted Mba is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Organizational Resilience of Admitted Mba
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Admitted Mba does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Admitted Mba in the sector have low bargaining power. A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Admitted Mba to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Weaknesses A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program are -
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Admitted Mba needs to come up with a strategy to reduce the workers concern regarding automation. Without a clear strategy, it could lead to disruption and uncertainty within the organization.
High dependence on existing supply chain
– The disruption in the global supply chains because of the Covid-19 pandemic and blockage of the Suez Canal illustrated the fragile nature of Admitted Mba supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Admitted Mba vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program, it seems that the employees of Admitted Mba don’t have comprehensive understanding of the firm’s strategy. This is reflected in number of promotional campaigns over the last few years that had mixed messaging and competing priorities. Some of the strategic activities and services promoted in the promotional campaigns were not consistent with the organization’s strategy.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Admitted Mba has some of the most successful products in the industry, this business model has made each new product launch extremely critical for continuous financial growth of the organization. firm in the HBR case study - A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Admitted Mba has a very deliberative decision making approach. This approach has resulted in prudent decisions, but it has also resulted in missing opportunities in the industry over the last five years. Admitted Mba even though has strong showing on digital transformation primary two stages, it has struggled to capitalize the power of digital transformation in marketing efforts and new venture efforts.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Admitted Mba has a high cash cycle compare to other players in the industry. It needs to shorten the cash cycle by 12% to be more competitive in the marketplace, reduce inventory costs, and be more profitable.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Admitted Mba is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Leadership & Managing People segment. Admitted Mba needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Admitted Mba to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Lack of clear differentiation of Admitted Mba products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Admitted Mba needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Admitted Mba has created an environment where the organization is dominated by functional specialists rather than management generalist. This has resulted into product oriented approach rather than marketing oriented approach or consumers oriented approach.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program, in the dynamic environment Admitted Mba has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Admitted Mba has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program has high operating costs in the. This can be harder to sustain given the new emerging competition from nimble players who are using technology to attract Admitted Mba 's lucrative customers.
Opportunities A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The opportunities highlighted in the Harvard Business Review case study A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program are -
Identify volunteer opportunities
– Covid-19 has impacted working population in two ways – it has led to people soul searching about their professional choices, resulting in mass resignation. Secondly it has encouraged people to do things that they are passionate about. This has opened opportunities for businesses to build volunteer oriented socially driven projects. Admitted Mba can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Use of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies for transactions
– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for Admitted Mba in the consumer business. Now Admitted Mba can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Leadership & Managing People industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Admitted Mba can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Admitted Mba has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Admitted Mba to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program case study. Admitted Mba can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Admitted Mba can still utilize the low interest rates to borrow money for capital investment. Secondly it can also use the increase of government spending in infrastructure projects to get new business.
Reconfiguring business model
– The expansion of digital payment system, the bringing down of international transactions costs using Bitcoin and other blockchain based currencies, etc can help Admitted Mba to reconfigure its entire business model. For example it can used blockchain based technologies to reduce piracy of its products in the big markets such as China. Secondly it can use the popularity of e-commerce in various developing markets to build a Direct to Customer business model rather than the current Channel Heavy distribution network.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Admitted Mba can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Leadership & Managing People industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Admitted Mba can take advantage of these changes in consumer behavior to build a far more efficient business model. For example consumer regular ordering of products can reduce both last mile delivery costs and market penetration costs. Admitted Mba can further use this consumer data to build better customer loyalty, provide better products and service collection, and improve the value proposition in inflationary times.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Admitted Mba to expand its talent hiring zone. According to McKinsey Global Institute, 20% of the high end workforce in fields such as finance, information technology, can continously work from remote local post Covid-19. This presents a really great opportunity for Admitted Mba to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Admitted Mba has spent a significant amount of money and effort to integrate analytics and machine learning into its operations in the sector. This continuous investment in analytics has enabled, as illustrated in the Harvard case study A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Admitted Mba to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Admitted Mba can build a diversified supply chain model across various countries in - South East Asia, India, and other parts of the world. This reconfiguration of global supply chain can help, as suggested in case study, A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Manufacturing automation
– Admitted Mba can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Leadership & Managing People segment. It can use CAD and 3D printing to build a quick prototype and pilot testing products. It can leverage automation using machine learning and artificial intelligence to do faster production at lowers costs, and it can leverage the growth in satellite and tracking technologies to improve inventory management, transportation, and shipping.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Admitted Mba can make experimentation a productive activity and build a culture of innovation using approaches such as – mining transaction data, A/B testing of websites and selling platforms, engaging potential customers over various needs, and building on small ideas in the Leadership & Managing People segment.
Threats A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program are -
Capital market disruption
– During the Covid-19, Dow Jones has touched record high. The valuations of a number of companies are way beyond their existing business model potential. This can lead to capital market correction which can put a number of suppliers, collaborators, value chain partners in great financial difficulty. It will directly impact the business of Admitted Mba.
Increasing wage structure of Admitted Mba
– Post Covid-19 there is a sharp increase in the wages especially in the jobs that require interaction with people. The increasing wages can put downward pressure on the margins of Admitted Mba.
New competition
– After the dotcom bust of 2001, financial crisis of 2008-09, the business formation in US economy had declined. But in 2020 alone, there are more than 1.5 million new business applications in United States. This can lead to greater competition for Admitted Mba in the Leadership & Managing People sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Aging population
– As the populations of most advanced economies are aging, it will lead to high social security costs, higher savings among population, and lower demand for goods and services in the economy. The household savings in US, France, UK, Germany, and Japan are growing faster than predicted because of uncertainty caused by pandemic.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Admitted Mba can face lack of demand in the market place because of Fed actions to reduce inflation. This can lead to sluggish growth in the economy, lower demands, lower investments, higher borrowing costs, and consolidation in the field.
Regulatory challenges
– Admitted Mba needs to prepare for regulatory challenges as consumer protection groups and other pressure groups are vigorously advocating for more regulations on big business - to reduce inequality, to create a level playing field, to product data privacy and consumer privacy, to reduce the influence of big money on democratic institutions, etc. This can lead to significant changes in the Leadership & Managing People industry regulations.
Technology disruption because of hacks, piracy etc
– The colonial pipeline illustrated, how vulnerable modern organization are to international hackers, miscreants, and disruptors. The cyber security interruption, data leaks, etc can seriously jeopardize the future growth of the organization.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Admitted Mba high dependence on third party suppliers can disrupt its processes and delivery mechanism. For example -the current troubles of car makers because of chip shortage is because the chip companies started producing chips for electronic companies rather than car manufacturers.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program, Admitted Mba may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Leadership & Managing People .
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Leadership & Managing People field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Admitted Mba can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Admitted Mba in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The Leadership & Managing People industry is already at various protected from local competition in China, with the rise of trade war the protection levels may go up. This presents a clear threat of current business model in Chinese market.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Admitted Mba can face downward pressure on margins from increasing competition from international players. The international players have stable revenue in their home market and can use those resources to penetrate prominent markets illustrated in HBR case study A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program .
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Admitted Mba has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Admitted Mba needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Leadership & Managing People sector. According to Mckinsey study top managers believe that the adoption of technology in operations, communications is 20-25 times faster than what they planned in the beginning of 2019.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program Template, Example
Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers in the HBR case study A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program needs to zero down on the relative importance of each factor mentioned in the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants.
We can provide the relative importance to each factor by assigning relative weights. Weighted SWOT analysis process is a three stage process –
First stage for doing weighted SWOT analysis of the case study A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program is to rank the strengths and weaknesses of the organization. This will help you to assess the most important strengths and weaknesses of the firm and which one of the strengths and weaknesses mentioned in the initial lists are marginal and can be left out.
Second stage for conducting weighted SWOT analysis of the Harvard case study A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program is to give probabilities to the external strategic factors thus better understanding the opportunities and threats arising out of macro environment changes and developments.
Third stage of constructing weighted SWOT analysis of A Dean's Dilemma: Selection of Students for the MBA Program is to provide strategic recommendations includes – joining likelihood of external strategic factors such as opportunities and threats to the internal strategic factors – strengths and weaknesses. You should start with external factors as they will provide the direction of the overall industry. Secondly by joining probabilities with internal strategic factors can help the company not only strategic fit but also the most probably strategic trade-off that Admitted Mba needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.