Swot Analysis of "First National City Bank Operating Group (A1)" written by Jay W. Lorsch, Cyrus F. Gibson, John A. Seeger includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that A1 City facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Performance measurement, Reorganization and Organizational Development.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) casestudy better are - – banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, increasing commodity prices, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%,
increasing energy prices, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of First National City Bank Operating Group (A1)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the A1 City, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which A1 City 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 First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of A1 City
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Organizational Development field.
4. Making a Organizational Development topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of A1 City
Strengths First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of A1 City in First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) Harvard Business Review case study are -
Training and development
– A1 City has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) 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 Organizational Development industry
– First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled A1 City to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Organizational Development industry. The sustainable margins have also helped A1 City to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that A1 City 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of A1 City in the sector have low bargaining power. First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps A1 City to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Learning organization
- A1 City 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 A1 City is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
High brand equity
– A1 City has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled A1 City to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Innovation driven organization
– A1 City is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) 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 Organizational Development segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For A1 City digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. A1 City 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the A1 City 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.
Diverse revenue streams
– A1 City is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– A1 City 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 First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Ability to lead change in Organizational Development field
– A1 City 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 A1 City in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Weaknesses First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) are -
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) 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 A1 City has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of A1 City, firm in the HBR case study First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
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 A1 City supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - First National City Bank Operating Group (A1), it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left A1 City vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study First National City Bank Operating Group (A1), it seems that the employees of A1 City 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.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, A1 City 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. A1 City 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study First National City Bank Operating Group (A1), it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Organizational Development 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, A1 City 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, A1 City 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of A1 City is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Organizational Development segment. A1 City needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help A1 City to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study First National City Bank Operating Group (A1), in the dynamic environment A1 City has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. A1 City has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Need for greater diversity
– A1 City 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.
Opportunities First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) | 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 First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) are -
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of A1 City has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help A1 City to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) case study. A1 City 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 A1 City 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 Organizational Development segment.
Developing new processes and practices
– A1 City can develop new processes and procedures in Organizational Development 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for A1 City in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Organizational Development segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Leveraging digital technologies
– A1 City 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.
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 A1 City in the consumer business. Now A1 City 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 Organizational Development industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. A1 City can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, A1 City 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for A1 City 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 A1 City to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for A1 City 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.
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 A1 City 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help A1 City to increase its market reach. A1 City 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– A1 City 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 First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help A1 City to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Threats First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) are -
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 A1 City business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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. A1 City 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.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Organizational Development field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. A1 City 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 A1 City with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study First National City Bank Operating Group (A1), A1 City may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Organizational Development .
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for A1 City in the Organizational Development industry. The Organizational Development 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on A1 City 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that A1 City is facing in Organizational Development sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– A1 City has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Organizational Development industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, A1 City needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Organizational Development 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, A1 City 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 First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) .
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. A1 City needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Organizational Development industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Regulatory challenges
– A1 City 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 Organizational Development industry regulations.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) 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 First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) 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 First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) 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 First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) 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 First National City Bank Operating Group (A1) 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 A1 City needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
