SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Organizational Development
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa
In 2005, USAID and the U.S. PresidentA?s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), created the Supply Chain Management System (SCMS) to procure and distribute essential medicines and supplies; provide technical assistance to transform existing supply chains; and collaborated with in-country and global partners to coordinate efforts. The new US Global Health Initiative (GHI) initialized in 2010 sought to build on these efforts through strengthened platforms and systems. PEPFAR's five-year strategy, as contribution to the GHI, focused on transitioning the program from an emergency response to a sustainable, country-owned effort. The case describes the general approach designed by SCMS, the intricacies of its successful implementation in Ethiopia, and the challenges moving forward in that country.
Authors :: Ananth Raman, Noel Watson, Santiago Kraiselburd, Emmanuel Akili
Swot Analysis of "SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa" written by Ananth Raman, Noel Watson, Santiago Kraiselburd, Emmanuel Akili includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Scms Ghi facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Emerging markets, Health, Strategy, Supply chain and Organizational Development.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa casestudy better are - – there is backlash against globalization, increasing energy prices, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies,
competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Scms Ghi, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Scms Ghi 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 SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Scms Ghi
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 Scms Ghi
Strengths SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Scms Ghi in SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa Harvard Business Review case study are -
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa 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.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Scms Ghi is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Scms Ghi 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
– Scms Ghi has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Scms Ghi has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Scms Ghi has effective processes in place that helps in exploring new product needs, doing quick pilot testing, and then launching the products quickly using its extensive distribution network.
Organizational Resilience of Scms Ghi
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Scms Ghi does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Organizational Development industry
– SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Scms Ghi to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Organizational Development industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Scms Ghi to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Analytics focus
– Scms Ghi 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 Ananth Raman, Noel Watson, Santiago Kraiselburd, Emmanuel Akili 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.
Diverse revenue streams
– Scms Ghi is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa 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)
– Scms Ghi 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 SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Scms Ghi 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 SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Innovation driven organization
– Scms Ghi is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Weaknesses SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa are -
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Scms Ghi is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Organizational Development segment. Scms Ghi needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Scms Ghi to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa, it seems that the employees of Scms Ghi 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Scms Ghi products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Scms Ghi needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa 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 Scms Ghi has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa 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 SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Scms Ghi is planning to shift buying processes online.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Scms Ghi 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Scms Ghi has some of the most successful products in the industry, this business model has made each new product launch extremely critical for continuous financial growth of the organization. firm in the HBR case study - SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa 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 Scms Ghi 's lucrative customers.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Scms Ghi 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. Scms Ghi 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Scms Ghi is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa 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 cash cycle compare to competitors
Scms Ghi 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.
Opportunities SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa | 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 SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa are -
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Scms Ghi is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Scms Ghi 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Scms Ghi 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
– Scms Ghi 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Scms Ghi can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Scms Ghi 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 SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Scms Ghi to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
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 Scms Ghi in the consumer business. Now Scms Ghi can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Scms Ghi can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Scms Ghi operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Organizational Development sector.
Loyalty marketing
– Scms Ghi 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Scms Ghi 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Scms Ghi to increase its market reach. Scms Ghi 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.
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. Scms Ghi can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Scms Ghi 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.
Threats SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa are -
Increasing wage structure of Scms Ghi
– 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 Scms Ghi.
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. Scms Ghi 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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Scms Ghi has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Organizational Development industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Scms Ghi 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Scms Ghi 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 Scms Ghi business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Scms Ghi can face lack of demand in the market place because of Fed actions to reduce inflation. This can lead to sluggish growth in the economy, lower demands, lower investments, higher borrowing costs, and consolidation in the field.
Regulatory challenges
– Scms Ghi 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.
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 Scms Ghi in the Organizational Development sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Environmental challenges
– Scms Ghi 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. Scms Ghi can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Organizational Development industry.
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 Scms Ghi.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Scms Ghi 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.
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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Scms Ghi 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 SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa .
Weighted SWOT Analysis of SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa 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 SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa 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 SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa 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 SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa 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 SCMS: Battling HIV/AIDS in Africa 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 Scms Ghi needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
