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IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution

Case Study Description of IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept


IBM's Corporate Citizenship office created a social and organizational innovation in public education through a business-school partnership. IBM's Stanley Litow was the key architect in designing Pathways in Technology Early College High School, known as P-TECH. The open enrollment high school located in New York City's Brooklyn was launched in 2011 through a joint partnership between IBM, City University of New York (CUNY), and the New York City Department of Education (NYCDOE). The innovative design incorporated career and technical education (CTE), STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math), and early college. Students could graduate with an associate degree (essentially, two free years of college) and be "first in line" for jobs at IBM. The school was already seeing remarkable results; one third of the inaugural class entered P-TECH below grade level and nearly all students were promoted to the 10th grade and more than half of them took college courses before the end of their sophomore year. This case explores the motivation behind P-TECH (a growing skills gap), how it was developed along with the challenges, and the attention generated by the unique school design.

Authors :: Rosabeth Moss Kanter, Ai-Ling Jamila Malone

Topics :: Leadership & Managing People

Tags :: Joint ventures, Leadership, Marketing, Technology, SWOT Analysis, SWOT Matrix, TOWS, Weighted SWOT Analysis

Swot Analysis of "IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept" written by Rosabeth Moss Kanter, Ai-Ling Jamila Malone includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that School Tech facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Joint ventures, Leadership, Marketing, Technology and Leadership & Managing People.


Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept casestudy better are - – increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, geopolitical disruptions, increasing commodity prices, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, increasing transportation and logistics costs, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, there is backlash against globalization, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, etc



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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept


SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the School Tech, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which School Tech 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 IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of School Tech
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 School Tech




Strengths IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of School Tech in IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept Harvard Business Review case study are -

Diverse revenue streams

– School Tech is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept case study a diverse revenue stream that has helped it to survive disruptions such as global pandemic in Covid-19, financial disruption of 2008, and supply chain disruption of 2021.

Innovation driven organization

– School Tech is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept 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 School Tech digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. School Tech 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.

Operational resilience

– The operational resilience strategy in the IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept 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.

Training and development

– School Tech has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept Harvard Business Review case study by analyzing – employees retention, in-house promotion, loyalty, new venture initiation, lack of conflict, and high level of both employees and customer engagement.

Learning organization

- School Tech 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 School Tech is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.

High brand equity

– School Tech has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled School Tech to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.

Ability to recruit top talent

– School Tech is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.

Sustainable margins compare to other players in Leadership & Managing People industry

– IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled School Tech to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped School Tech to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.

Analytics focus

– School Tech 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 Rosabeth Moss Kanter, Ai-Ling Jamila Malone 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.

Successful track record of launching new products

– School Tech has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. School Tech has effective processes in place that helps in exploring new product needs, doing quick pilot testing, and then launching the products quickly using its extensive distribution network.

Cross disciplinary teams

– Horizontal connected teams at the School Tech are driving operational speed, building greater agility, and keeping the organization nimble to compete with new competitors. It helps are organization to ideate new ideas, and execute them swiftly in the marketplace.






Weaknesses IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept are -

Slow to strategic competitive environment developments

– As IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept HBR case study mentions - School Tech 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.

Skills based hiring

– The stress on hiring functional specialists at School Tech 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.

High operating costs

– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept 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 School Tech 's lucrative customers.

No frontier risks strategy

– After analyzing the HBR case study IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Leadership & Managing People strategy. But it has very little resources allocation to manage the risks emerging from events such as natural disasters, climate change, melting of permafrost, tacking the rise of artificial intelligence, opportunities and threats emerging from commercialization of space etc.

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 School Tech supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left School Tech vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.

Low market penetration in new markets

– Outside its home market of School Tech, firm in the HBR case study IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.

Products dominated business model

– Even though School Tech 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 - IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.

Aligning sales with marketing

– It come across in the case study IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept that the firm needs to have more collaboration between its sales team and marketing team. Sales professionals in the industry have deep experience in developing customer relationships. Marketing department in the case IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as School Tech is planning to shift buying processes online.

Interest costs

– Compare to the competition, School Tech has borrowed money from the capital market at higher rates. It needs to restructure the interest payment and costs so that it can compete better and improve profitability.

Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy

– From the instances in the HBR case study IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept, it seems that the employees of School Tech 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.

Increasing silos among functional specialists

– The organizational structure of School Tech is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Leadership & Managing People segment. School Tech needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help School Tech to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.




Opportunities IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept | 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 IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept are -

Leveraging digital technologies

– School Tech can leverage digital technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning to automate the production process, customer analytics to get better insights into consumer behavior, realtime digital dashboards to get better sales tracking, logistics and transportation, product tracking, etc.

Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities

– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for School Tech 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 School Tech to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.

Building a culture of innovation

– managers at School Tech 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.

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 School Tech in the consumer business. Now School Tech 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. School Tech can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.

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. School Tech 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. School Tech 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.

Developing new processes and practices

– School Tech 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.

Reforming the budgeting process

- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects School Tech can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.

Using analytics as competitive advantage

– School Tech 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 IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help School Tech to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.

Better consumer reach

– The expansion of the 5G network will help School Tech to increase its market reach. School Tech 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.

Creating value in data economy

– The success of analytics program of School Tech has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help School Tech to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept case study. School Tech 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, School Tech 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.

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. School Tech can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.




Threats IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis


The threats mentioned in the HBR case study IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept are -

Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution

– School Tech has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, School Tech 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.

Trade war between China and United States

– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for School Tech 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.

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. School Tech can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.

Barriers of entry lowering

– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents School Tech with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.

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 School Tech.

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 School Tech in the Leadership & Managing People sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.

High dependence on third party suppliers

– School Tech 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.

Stagnating economy with rate increase

– School Tech 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

– School Tech 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.

Consumer confidence and its impact on School Tech demand

– There is a high probability of declining consumer confidence, given – high inflammation rate, rise of gig economy, lower job stability, increasing cost of living, higher interest rates, and aging demography. All the factors contribute to people saving higher rate of their income, resulting in lower consumer demand in the industry and other sectors.

High level of anxiety and lack of motivation

– the Great Resignation in United States is the sign of broader dissatisfaction among the workforce in United States. School Tech needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.

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.




Weighted SWOT Analysis of IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept 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 IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept 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 IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept 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 IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept 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 IBM and the Reinvention of High School (A): Proving the P-TECH Concept 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 School Tech needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.



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