Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Organizational Development
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts
It can also be read on its own to gain a greater understanding of how organizational change unfolds over time. This note can also be used as a companion to other business cases or for so-called "live" cases that profile challenges currently experienced by organizations. Finally, the technical note can also be used to guide data collection and analysis for the purpose of researching or writing new cases on organizational change using the framework or model. Bruce J. Avolio and Chelley Patterson are affiliated with University of Washington.
Authors :: Bruce J. Avolio, Chelley Patterson, Bradford Baker
Swot Analysis of "Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts" written by Bruce J. Avolio, Chelley Patterson, Bradford Baker includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Note Avolio facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Leadership and Organizational Development.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts casestudy better are - – talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, there is backlash against globalization, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies,
supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Note Avolio, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Note Avolio 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 Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Note Avolio
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 Note Avolio
Strengths Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Note Avolio in Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts Harvard Business Review case study are -
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts 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.
Organizational Resilience of Note Avolio
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Note Avolio does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Note Avolio 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 Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Training and development
– Note Avolio has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts 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.
Ability to lead change in Organizational Development field
– Note Avolio 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 Note Avolio in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Note Avolio in the sector have low bargaining power. Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Note Avolio to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Note Avolio has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Note Avolio 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Note Avolio is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
High brand equity
– Note Avolio has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Note Avolio to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Analytics focus
– Note Avolio 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 Bruce J. Avolio, Chelley Patterson, Bradford Baker 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.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Note Avolio is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Learning organization
- Note Avolio 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 Note Avolio is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Weaknesses Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts are -
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts HBR case study mentions - Note Avolio 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts, is just above the industry average. Note Avolio 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Note Avolio 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 - Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts, it seems that the employees of Note Avolio 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.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts 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 Note Avolio 's lucrative customers.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Note Avolio 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. Note Avolio 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Note Avolio products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Note Avolio needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts, in the dynamic environment Note Avolio has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Note Avolio 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
– Note Avolio 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Note Avolio is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts 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 Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Note Avolio is planning to shift buying processes online.
Opportunities Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts | 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 Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts are -
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Note Avolio 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, Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
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 Note Avolio 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Note Avolio can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Note Avolio has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Note Avolio to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts case study. Note Avolio can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Loyalty marketing
– Note Avolio 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Note Avolio 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Note Avolio 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.
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. Note Avolio can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
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. Note Avolio 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. Note Avolio 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Note Avolio can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Note Avolio to increase its market reach. Note Avolio 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Note Avolio can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Note Avolio operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Organizational Development sector.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Note Avolio 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.
Threats Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts are -
Increasing wage structure of Note Avolio
– 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 Note Avolio.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Note Avolio 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.
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 Note Avolio.
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 Note Avolio business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, 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.
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. Note Avolio needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Organizational Development industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Note Avolio 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 Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts .
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts, Note Avolio 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 .
Environmental challenges
– Note Avolio 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. Note Avolio can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Organizational Development industry.
Regulatory challenges
– Note Avolio 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.
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. Note Avolio can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Note Avolio has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Organizational Development industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Note Avolio 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.
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 Note Avolio in the Organizational Development sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts 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 Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts 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 Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts 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 Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts 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 Note on Transformational Change: A Play in Four Acts 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 Note Avolio needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
