Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Organizational Development
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair
Adrian Ivinson is the director of Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair (HCNR), a not-for-profit research center at the Harvard Medical School (HMS). The center was started in late 2000 with a gift of $37.5 million from an anonymous donor. Its mandate was to conduct research that could lead to actual treatments for neurodegenerative disease (i.e., ALS, Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, MS, and Huntington's) and do so by encouraging collaboration among researchers in the HMS community. When Ivinson takes the helm in 2001, he finds a dysfunctional center with little organization or structure. In addition, he has little formal authority to make changes and he must navigate the complex culture of the HMS neurological research community as well as the HMS academic culture. Demonstrates Ivinson's efforts to develop HCNR as a catalyst for aligning scientific researchers in the HMS community by creating incentives for innovation and collaboration. Also, profiles the issues he faces as general manager at various stages of the organization's development--and how his style, priorities, and approach must change as the needs of the organization change. Provides an opportunity for action planning to address the major issues facing the HCNR at the end of 2005. Focuses on organizational culture, alignment, leadership style/fit, and change management.
Swot Analysis of "Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair" written by Robert Steven Kaplan, Ayesha Kanji includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Hms Hcnr facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Collaboration, Influence, Innovation, Leadership, Organizational culture, Social enterprise, Strategy and Organizational Development.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair casestudy better are - – wage bills are increasing, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, increasing commodity prices, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies,
there is backlash against globalization, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Hms Hcnr, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Hms Hcnr 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 Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Hms Hcnr
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 Hms Hcnr
Strengths Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Hms Hcnr in Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair Harvard Business Review case study are -
High brand equity
– Hms Hcnr has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Hms Hcnr to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Organizational Resilience of Hms Hcnr
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Hms Hcnr does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Training and development
– Hms Hcnr has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair 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.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair 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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Hms Hcnr in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Analytics focus
– Hms Hcnr 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 Robert Steven Kaplan, Ayesha Kanji 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Hms Hcnr is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Learning organization
- Hms Hcnr 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 Hms Hcnr is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Ability to lead change in Organizational Development field
– Hms Hcnr 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 Hms Hcnr in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Hms Hcnr 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 Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Hms Hcnr is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Hms Hcnr in the sector have low bargaining power. Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Hms Hcnr to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Weaknesses Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair are -
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Hms Hcnr 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Hms Hcnr 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Hms Hcnr 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Hms Hcnr 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.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair 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 Hms Hcnr 's lucrative customers.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Hms Hcnr is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair HBR case study mentions - Hms Hcnr 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair 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 Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Hms Hcnr is planning to shift buying processes online.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Robert Steven Kaplan, Ayesha Kanji suggests that, Hms Hcnr 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair, 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Hms Hcnr is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Organizational Development segment. Hms Hcnr needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Hms Hcnr to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Opportunities Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair | 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 Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair are -
Loyalty marketing
– Hms Hcnr 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 Hms Hcnr in the consumer business. Now Hms Hcnr can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Manufacturing automation
– Hms Hcnr can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Organizational Development segment. It can use CAD and 3D printing to build a quick prototype and pilot testing products. It can leverage automation using machine learning and artificial intelligence to do faster production at lowers costs, and it can leverage the growth in satellite and tracking technologies to improve inventory management, transportation, and shipping.
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. Hms Hcnr 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, Hms Hcnr is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair 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.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Organizational Development industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Hms Hcnr 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. Hms Hcnr 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Hms Hcnr has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Hms Hcnr to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair case study. Hms Hcnr can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Buying journey improvements
– Hms Hcnr can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Hms Hcnr can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Hms Hcnr operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Organizational Development sector.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Hms Hcnr 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Hms Hcnr 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, Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Hms Hcnr 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.
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 Hms Hcnr 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.
Threats Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair are -
Increasing wage structure of Hms Hcnr
– 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 Hms Hcnr.
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. Hms Hcnr needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Organizational Development industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Hms Hcnr is facing in Organizational Development sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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. Hms Hcnr can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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
– Hms Hcnr has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Organizational Development industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Hms Hcnr 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.
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. Hms Hcnr 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.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Hms Hcnr 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.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Hms Hcnr 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Hms Hcnr 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Hms Hcnr with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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 Hms Hcnr business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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 Hms Hcnr.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair 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 Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair 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 Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair 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 Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair 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 Adrian Ivinson at the Harvard Center for Neurodegeneration and Repair 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 Hms Hcnr needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
