Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Organizational Development
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon
In 2002, the Orsa Group consisted of several business units in the pulp, paper, and packaging sector, having grossed nearly US$ 250 million that year. The Group's enterprises were: Orsa Celulose; Papel e Embalagens [Orsa Pulp, Paper and Packaging], featuring industrial plants in the states of Sao Paulo and Goias and in the Amazon; and Jari Celulose and Orsa Florestal, both located in the Jari region in the heart of the Amazon rainforest. In addition, its philosophical principle of social and environmental responsibility led the Group to create a non-profit organization, the Orsa Foundation, supported by 1% of the Group's consolidated gross sales. More than a mere social welfare action branch, the Orsa Foundation became a priority within company operations as a result of two major factors: a) Orsa was a family-owned business run by main shareholder and president Sergio Amoroso, an entrepreneur with a penchant for social issues; and b) the strategic alignment, especially at the Jari Celulose unit, between business objectives and local, sustainable development. In the light of the specific challenges faced by pulp companies and international markets in general, Amoroso, along with Orsa Group's advisors and top managers, needed to assess the impact of the Orsa Foundation's social strategy on Jari operations.
Authors :: Rosa Maria Fischer, Decio Zylbersztajn, Joao Teixeira Pires, Luciana Rocha Mendonca
Swot Analysis of "Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon" written by Rosa Maria Fischer, Decio Zylbersztajn, Joao Teixeira Pires, Luciana Rocha Mendonca includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Orsa Jari facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Joint ventures and Organizational Development.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon casestudy better are - – increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, increasing energy prices, technology disruption, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, there is increasing trade war between United States & China,
central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, wage bills are increasing, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Orsa Jari, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Orsa Jari 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 Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Orsa Jari
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 Orsa Jari
Strengths Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Orsa Jari in Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon Harvard Business Review case study are -
Highly skilled collaborators
– Orsa Jari 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 Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Orsa Jari in the sector have low bargaining power. Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Orsa Jari to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Orsa Jari 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.
Learning organization
- Orsa Jari 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 Orsa Jari is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Orsa Jari 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.
Ability to lead change in Organizational Development field
– Orsa Jari 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 Orsa Jari in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Orsa Jari is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon 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
– Orsa Jari has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon 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
– Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Orsa Jari to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Organizational Development industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Orsa Jari to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Digital Transformation in Organizational Development segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Orsa Jari digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Orsa Jari 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Orsa Jari is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Weaknesses Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon are -
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon 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 Orsa Jari 's lucrative customers.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon 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 Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Orsa Jari is planning to shift buying processes online.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon, is just above the industry average. Orsa Jari needs to redesign the compensation structure and incentives to increase the revenue per employees. Some of the steps that it can take are – hiring more specialists on project basis, etc.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Orsa Jari is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Rosa Maria Fischer, Decio Zylbersztajn, Joao Teixeira Pires, Luciana Rocha Mendonca suggests that, Orsa Jari 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Orsa Jari is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Organizational Development segment. Orsa Jari needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Orsa Jari to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon, 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Orsa Jari 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.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Orsa Jari 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 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 Orsa Jari supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Orsa Jari vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon, it seems that the employees of Orsa Jari 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.
Opportunities Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon | 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 Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon are -
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Orsa Jari can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
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. Orsa Jari can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Buying journey improvements
– Orsa Jari can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Orsa Jari 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Orsa Jari is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon 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.
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. Orsa Jari can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Orsa Jari 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Orsa Jari 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.
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. Orsa Jari 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. Orsa Jari 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, Orsa Jari can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Orsa Jari operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Organizational Development sector.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Orsa Jari to increase its market reach. Orsa Jari 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
– Orsa Jari 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 Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Orsa Jari to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Orsa Jari 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.
Threats Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon are -
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 Orsa Jari in the Organizational Development sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Orsa Jari 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Orsa Jari is facing in Organizational Development sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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 Orsa Jari 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 Orsa Jari.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Orsa Jari 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Orsa Jari 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 Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon .
Regulatory challenges
– Orsa Jari 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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon, Orsa Jari 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 .
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. Orsa Jari needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Organizational Development industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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. Orsa Jari can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Orsa Jari 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.
Environmental challenges
– Orsa Jari needs to have a robust strategy against the disruptions arising from climate change and energy requirements. EU has identified it as key priority area and spending 30% of its 880 billion Euros European post Covid-19 recovery funds on green technology. Orsa Jari can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Organizational Development industry.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon 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 Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon 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 Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon 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 Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon 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 Orsa Group: the Challenge of Sustainable Development in the Amazon 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 Orsa Jari needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.