Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education
Describes the alliance that Manuel Ariztia (Don Manuel), a highly respected owner of one of the leading poultry companies in Chile, has forged with Melipilla, a Chilean municipality, to collaborate in the management of its public educational system. The vehicle used for this alliance is the Corporacion Municipal de Melipilla (CMM), which is defined as a private, not-for-profit, autonomous, nonpartisan entity that provides education and health services at the municipal level. Don Manuel became a leader on the board of directors of the CMM and was instrumental in improving CMM's financial and educational performance. Opens with the challenge facing the CMM--the upcoming retirement of the general manager, who has been in charge of the administration since the beginning. Additionally, the impending retirement of Don Manuel, whose presence has given the board an element of stability, along with the upcoming mayoral elections are jeopardizing the board's stability. Addresses issues of management succession, governance, decision making, and collaboration between business leaders and nonprofit organizations. Also addresses issues related to the key role that board of directors can play in the effective management of educational organizations.
Authors :: Rafael Aguila, Mladen Koljatic, Monica Silva
Swot Analysis of "Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education" written by Rafael Aguila, Mladen Koljatic, Monica Silva includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Manuel Cmm facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Government, Joint ventures, Leadership, Social enterprise, Succession planning and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education casestudy better are - – there is backlash against globalization, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing household debt because of falling income levels, geopolitical disruptions, increasing energy prices, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings,
customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, increasing commodity prices, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Manuel Cmm, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Manuel Cmm 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 Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Manuel Cmm
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 Manuel Cmm
Strengths Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Manuel Cmm in Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education Harvard Business Review case study are -
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Manuel Cmm 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.
Digital Transformation in Leadership & Managing People segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Manuel Cmm digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Manuel Cmm 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 Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education 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 brand equity
– Manuel Cmm has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Manuel Cmm to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Analytics focus
– Manuel Cmm 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 Rafael Aguila, Mladen Koljatic, Monica Silva 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.
Learning organization
- Manuel Cmm 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 Manuel Cmm is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Manuel Cmm in the sector have low bargaining power. Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Manuel Cmm to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Manuel Cmm has highly efficient outsourcing and offshoring strategy. It has resulted in greater operational flexibility and bringing down the costs in highly price sensitive segment. Secondly the value chain collaborators of the firm in Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Organizational Resilience of Manuel Cmm
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Manuel Cmm does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Manuel Cmm 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.
Training and development
– Manuel Cmm has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Leadership & Managing People industry
– Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Manuel Cmm to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Manuel Cmm to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Weaknesses Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education are -
Need for greater diversity
– Manuel Cmm has taken concrete steps on diversity, equity, and inclusion. But the efforts so far has resulted in limited success. It needs to expand the recruitment and selection process to hire more people from the minorities and underprivileged background.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education, in the dynamic environment Manuel Cmm has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Manuel Cmm has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
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 Manuel Cmm supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Manuel Cmm vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Manuel Cmm 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 star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education HBR case study still accounts for major business revenue. This dependence on star products in has resulted into insufficient focus on developing new products, even though Manuel Cmm has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education 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 Manuel Cmm 's lucrative customers.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education HBR case study mentions - Manuel Cmm 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Manuel Cmm 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Manuel Cmm, firm in the HBR case study Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education, 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Manuel Cmm 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.
Opportunities Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education | 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 Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education are -
Buying journey improvements
– Manuel Cmm can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Manuel Cmm 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 Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Manuel Cmm to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Developing new processes and practices
– Manuel Cmm 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.
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 Manuel Cmm in the consumer business. Now Manuel Cmm can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Manuel Cmm to increase its market reach. Manuel Cmm 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Manuel Cmm 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.
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. Manuel Cmm 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. Manuel Cmm 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Manuel Cmm can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Manuel Cmm operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Manuel Cmm 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Manuel Cmm has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Manuel Cmm to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education case study. Manuel Cmm can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Manuel Cmm 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.
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. Manuel Cmm can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Manuel Cmm is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education case study suggests that firm can utilize new technology to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.
Threats Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education are -
Regulatory challenges
– Manuel Cmm 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 Manuel Cmm.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Manuel Cmm 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 wage structure of Manuel Cmm
– 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 Manuel Cmm.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Manuel Cmm 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.
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. Manuel Cmm needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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.
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. Manuel Cmm can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Manuel Cmm has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Manuel Cmm 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Manuel Cmm 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 Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education .
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Manuel Cmm with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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. Manuel Cmm 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.
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 Manuel Cmm business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education 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 Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education 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 Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education 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 Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education 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 Business Leader's Involvement in the Improvement of Education 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 Manuel Cmm needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.