The IDIEM, through its Energy and Sustainability Department, has launched a new line of consultancy services for LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) in Chile. A central component of this initiative is the online Catalogo Verde, a portal for the environmental rating of construction materials. The site is designed to provide technical specifications and detailed materials testing results for architects designing buildings to be certified as LEED compliant. The LEED certification constitutes a third-party validation of the energy and environmental performance of buildings. An LEED certification is seen by the general public as an indicator of corporate social responsibility and good citizenship for the owners and users. The IDIEM-Catalogo Verde was designed as a knowledge instrument for the engineering and architecture markets, but also as a tool to build relationships and open doors for other IDIEM services. Besides, it is a tool to build the IDIEM brand among key influencers in the construction industry, government agencies, real estate investors, and materials suppliers. Catalogo Verde has been very well received. The backing of IDIEM is an umbrella that guarantees its excellence and competence. Management has launched a series of initiatives to build up online traffic and accelerate the adoption of LEED by architects in Chile.
Authors :: John Zerio, Paula Araneda Cedilia, Christian Fuentes
Swot Analysis of "IDIEM-Catalogo Verde" written by John Zerio, Paula Araneda Cedilia, Christian Fuentes includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Idiem Catalogo facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in IDIEM-Catalogo Verde case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, and Sales & Marketing.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the IDIEM-Catalogo Verde casestudy better are - – digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, wage bills are increasing,
banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of IDIEM-Catalogo Verde
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in IDIEM-Catalogo Verde case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Idiem Catalogo, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Idiem Catalogo 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 IDIEM-Catalogo Verde can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in IDIEM-Catalogo Verde case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Idiem Catalogo
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Sales & Marketing field.
4. Making a Sales & Marketing topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Idiem Catalogo
Strengths IDIEM-Catalogo Verde | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Idiem Catalogo in IDIEM-Catalogo Verde Harvard Business Review case study are -
High brand equity
– Idiem Catalogo has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Idiem Catalogo to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Sales & Marketing industry
– IDIEM-Catalogo Verde firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Idiem Catalogo to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Idiem Catalogo to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Analytics focus
– Idiem Catalogo 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 John Zerio, Paula Araneda Cedilia, Christian Fuentes 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Idiem Catalogo in the sector have low bargaining power. IDIEM-Catalogo Verde has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Idiem Catalogo to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Training and development
– Idiem Catalogo has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in IDIEM-Catalogo Verde 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 IDIEM-Catalogo Verde 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.
Learning organization
- Idiem Catalogo 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 Idiem Catalogo is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in IDIEM-Catalogo Verde Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Diverse revenue streams
– Idiem Catalogo is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in IDIEM-Catalogo Verde 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.
Ability to lead change in Sales & Marketing field
– Idiem Catalogo 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 Idiem Catalogo in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Idiem Catalogo in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Idiem Catalogo 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 IDIEM-Catalogo Verde HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Idiem Catalogo 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.
Weaknesses IDIEM-Catalogo Verde | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of IDIEM-Catalogo Verde are -
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study IDIEM-Catalogo Verde, in the dynamic environment Idiem Catalogo has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Idiem Catalogo has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
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 Idiem Catalogo supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - IDIEM-Catalogo Verde, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Idiem Catalogo vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Need for greater diversity
– Idiem Catalogo 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.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, John Zerio, Paula Araneda Cedilia, Christian Fuentes suggests that, Idiem Catalogo 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Idiem Catalogo, firm in the HBR case study IDIEM-Catalogo Verde needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Idiem Catalogo 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.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As IDIEM-Catalogo Verde HBR case study mentions - Idiem Catalogo 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 IDIEM-Catalogo Verde 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 IDIEM-Catalogo Verde can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Idiem Catalogo is planning to shift buying processes online.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Idiem Catalogo 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Idiem Catalogo 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 - IDIEM-Catalogo Verde should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Idiem Catalogo has created an environment where the organization is dominated by functional specialists rather than management generalist. This has resulted into product oriented approach rather than marketing oriented approach or consumers oriented approach.
Opportunities IDIEM-Catalogo Verde | 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 IDIEM-Catalogo Verde are -
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Sales & Marketing industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Idiem Catalogo 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. Idiem Catalogo 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
– Idiem Catalogo can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. IDIEM-Catalogo Verde 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
– Idiem Catalogo can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Sales & Marketing 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, Idiem Catalogo is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. IDIEM-Catalogo Verde 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. Idiem Catalogo can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Idiem Catalogo in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Sales & Marketing segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Idiem Catalogo 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Idiem Catalogo can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Idiem Catalogo operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Sales & Marketing sector.
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 Idiem Catalogo in the consumer business. Now Idiem Catalogo can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Idiem Catalogo to increase its market reach. Idiem Catalogo 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Idiem Catalogo can develop new processes and procedures in Sales & Marketing industry using technology such as automation using artificial intelligence, real time transportation and products tracking, 3D modeling for concept development and new products pilot testing etc.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Idiem Catalogo to expand its talent hiring zone. According to McKinsey Global Institute, 20% of the high end workforce in fields such as finance, information technology, can continously work from remote local post Covid-19. This presents a really great opportunity for Idiem Catalogo to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Idiem Catalogo 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, IDIEM-Catalogo Verde, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Threats IDIEM-Catalogo Verde External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study IDIEM-Catalogo Verde are -
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Sales & Marketing field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Idiem Catalogo can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Idiem Catalogo is facing in Sales & Marketing sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Idiem Catalogo with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Environmental challenges
– Idiem Catalogo 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. Idiem Catalogo can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry.
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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Idiem Catalogo 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Idiem Catalogo 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 IDIEM-Catalogo Verde .
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Idiem Catalogo has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Sales & Marketing industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Idiem Catalogo needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Sales & Marketing 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.
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 Idiem Catalogo.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Idiem Catalogo 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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study IDIEM-Catalogo Verde, Idiem Catalogo may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Sales & Marketing .
Regulatory challenges
– Idiem Catalogo 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 Sales & Marketing industry regulations.
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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of IDIEM-Catalogo Verde 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 IDIEM-Catalogo Verde 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 IDIEM-Catalogo Verde 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 IDIEM-Catalogo Verde 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 IDIEM-Catalogo Verde 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 Idiem Catalogo needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.