Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank
To maximize their effectiveness, color cases should be printed in color.In his role as Senior Vice President and Director of Research at the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis (Minneapolis Fed), Art Rolnick and his colleague, Rob Grunewald, had written "Early Childhood Development: Economic Development with a High Public Return." The thesis was fairly straightforward; early childhood development (ECD) had the highest returns so states and local governments should invest in it. But the idea of investing in ECD for economic development was new and had never been tested on a large scale, particularly in the way that Rolnick and Grunewald recommended in a later paper - using market forces to drive demand for high-quality ECD programs. The Minnesota Early Learning Foundation (MELF), formed in 2005, invested in two projects designed to test the economists' recommendations. The St. Paul Early Childhood Scholarship Program (SPECSP) provided up to $13,000 a year per child for parents in two St. Paul neighborhoods to select a high-quality ECD program of their choice. MELF had also invested in Five Hundred Under 5 (FHU5), a Minneapolis program formed to improve the capacity and quality of providers. Comparing SPECSP to FHU5 would offer insights on the potential impact of supply-side versus demand-side ECD initiatives. Rolnick reflected on the two MELF experiments. Which would be more effective? Would parents in St. Paul really drive up the quality of providers through the choices they made or was it better to work with providers directly to improve quality?
Swot Analysis of "Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank" written by Stacey Childress, Geoff Marietta includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Ecd Melf facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Costs, Economic development, Economics, Entrepreneurship, Generational issues and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank casestudy better are - – supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, increasing commodity prices, technology disruption, there is backlash against globalization,
banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Ecd Melf, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Ecd Melf 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 Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Ecd Melf
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 Ecd Melf
Strengths Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Ecd Melf in Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank Harvard Business Review case study are -
Strong track record of project management
– Ecd Melf is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank 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.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Ecd Melf is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Innovation driven organization
– Ecd Melf is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Digital Transformation in Leadership & Managing People segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Ecd Melf digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Ecd Melf has successfully integrated the four key components of digital transformation – digital integration in processes, digital integration in marketing and customer relationship management, digital integration into the value chain, and using technology to explore new products and market opportunities.
Learning organization
- Ecd Melf 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 Ecd Melf is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Leadership & Managing People industry
– Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Ecd Melf to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Ecd Melf to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Analytics focus
– Ecd Melf 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 Stacey Childress, Geoff Marietta 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.
Organizational Resilience of Ecd Melf
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Ecd Melf does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
High brand equity
– Ecd Melf has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Ecd Melf to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Ecd Melf 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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Ecd Melf in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Weaknesses Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank are -
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Ecd Melf is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Leadership & Managing People segment. Ecd Melf needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Ecd Melf to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Ecd Melf 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.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank HBR case study mentions - Ecd Melf takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the industry in last five years.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank 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 Ecd Melf 's lucrative customers.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Stacey Childress, Geoff Marietta suggests that, Ecd Melf is facing high bargaining power of the channel partners. So far it has not able to streamline the operations to reduce the bargaining power of the value chain partners in the industry.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Ecd Melf has not been able to do capital spending to the tune of the competition. This has resulted into fewer innovations and company facing stiff competition from both existing competitors and new entrants who are disrupting the industry using digital technology.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Ecd Melf 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. Ecd Melf 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.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Ecd Melf 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Ecd Melf, firm in the HBR case study Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank, in the dynamic environment Ecd Melf has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Ecd Melf has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Lack of clear differentiation of Ecd Melf products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Ecd Melf needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Opportunities Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank | 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 Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank are -
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Ecd Melf to conduct training and development for its employees across the world. This will result in not only reducing the cost of training but also help employees in different part of the world to integrate with the headquarter work culture, ethos, and standards.
Developing new processes and practices
– Ecd Melf can develop new processes and procedures in Leadership & Managing People industry using technology such as automation using artificial intelligence, real time transportation and products tracking, 3D modeling for concept development and new products pilot testing etc.
Loyalty marketing
– Ecd Melf has focused on building a highly responsive customer relationship management platform. This platform is built on in-house data and driven by analytics and artificial intelligence. The customer analytics can help the organization to fine tune its loyalty marketing efforts, increase the wallet share of the organization, reduce wastage on mainstream advertising spending, build better pricing strategies using personalization, etc.
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 Ecd Melf in the consumer business. Now Ecd Melf can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
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. Ecd Melf can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Ecd Melf 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 Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Ecd Melf to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Ecd Melf can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Ecd Melf 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Ecd Melf to increase its market reach. Ecd Melf will be able to reach out to new customers. Secondly 5G will also provide technology framework to build new tools and products that can help more immersive consumer experience and faster consumer journey.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Ecd Melf can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Ecd Melf operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.
Buying journey improvements
– Ecd Melf can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank suggest that firm can provide automated chats to help consumers solve their own problems, provide online suggestions to get maximum out of the products and services, and help consumers to build a community where they can interact with each other to develop new features and uses.
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 Ecd Melf 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Ecd Melf 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, Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Threats Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank are -
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.
Increasing wage structure of Ecd Melf
– 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 Ecd Melf.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Ecd Melf with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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.
Backlash against dominant players
– US Congress and other legislative arms of the government are getting tough on big business especially technology companies. The digital arm of Ecd Melf business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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. Ecd Melf can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Ecd Melf 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 Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank .
Instability in the European markets
– European Union markets are facing three big challenges post Covid – expanded balance sheets, Brexit related business disruption, and aggressive Russia looking to distract the existing security mechanism. Ecd Melf will face different problems in different parts of Europe. For example it will face inflationary pressures in UK, France, and Germany, balance sheet expansion and demand challenges in Southern European countries, and geopolitical instability in the Eastern Europe.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Ecd Melf has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Ecd Melf 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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Ecd Melf 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
– Ecd Melf 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.
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 Ecd Melf.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Ecd Melf is facing in Leadership & Managing People sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank 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 Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank 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 Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank 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 Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank 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 Investing in Early Learning as Economic Development at the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank 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 Ecd Melf needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
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