A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Sales & Marketing
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda
On February 5, 2012, the founder of McDonald Kinley Emerson, a consultancy in Toronto, Canada, was asked to give a talk about country branding. She decided to focus on the efforts of Racepoint, a U.S. marketing services agency, to reshape the image of Rwanda. As it attempted to shift perceptions of the country from war-torn and chaotic, Racepoint's campaign attracted controversy amid allegations that wrongdoings were being glossed over in favour of a tourist- and business-friendly image. In August 2011, the publication of documents outlining the contractual agreement between Racepoint and the current Rwandan government sparked scrutiny of the government's perceived remaking of the country's image. Can a country overcome its reputation for genocide and violence? Should countries actively use public relations tactics to change or reinforce their reputations in the same way that corporations do?
Swot Analysis of "A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda" written by Mary Weil, Ken Mark includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Racepoint Rwanda facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Corporate governance, Public relations and Sales & Marketing.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda casestudy better are - – wage bills are increasing, there is backlash against globalization, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing energy prices, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models,
technology disruption, increasing transportation and logistics costs, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Racepoint Rwanda, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Racepoint Rwanda 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 A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Racepoint Rwanda
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 Racepoint Rwanda
Strengths A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Racepoint Rwanda in A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda Harvard Business Review case study are -
High brand equity
– Racepoint Rwanda has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Racepoint Rwanda to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Racepoint Rwanda in the sector have low bargaining power. A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Racepoint Rwanda to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Racepoint Rwanda is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Racepoint Rwanda in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda 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 Racepoint Rwanda
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Racepoint Rwanda does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Innovation driven organization
– Racepoint Rwanda is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Racepoint Rwanda 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 A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Analytics focus
– Racepoint Rwanda 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 Mary Weil, Ken Mark 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Racepoint Rwanda 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 A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Strong track record of project management
– Racepoint Rwanda is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Diverse revenue streams
– Racepoint Rwanda is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda 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.
Weaknesses A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda are -
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Racepoint Rwanda 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.
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 Racepoint Rwanda supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Racepoint Rwanda vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda HBR case study mentions - Racepoint Rwanda 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.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Mary Weil, Ken Mark suggests that, Racepoint Rwanda 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.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda 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 Racepoint Rwanda has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda 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 Racepoint Rwanda 's lucrative customers.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Sales & Marketing 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Racepoint Rwanda is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Racepoint Rwanda 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Racepoint Rwanda, firm in the HBR case study A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Racepoint Rwanda 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 A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda | 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 A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda are -
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Racepoint Rwanda is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda 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.
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 Racepoint Rwanda in the consumer business. Now Racepoint Rwanda can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Racepoint Rwanda 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 Sales & Marketing segment.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Racepoint Rwanda can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
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. Racepoint Rwanda can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Racepoint Rwanda has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Racepoint Rwanda to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda case study. Racepoint Rwanda can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Racepoint Rwanda 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.
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. Racepoint Rwanda 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. Racepoint Rwanda 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Racepoint Rwanda 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 Racepoint Rwanda to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Manufacturing automation
– Racepoint Rwanda 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Racepoint Rwanda can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Racepoint Rwanda operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Sales & Marketing sector.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Racepoint Rwanda 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Racepoint Rwanda to increase its market reach. Racepoint Rwanda 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.
Threats A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda are -
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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Racepoint Rwanda is facing in Sales & Marketing sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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. Racepoint Rwanda needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Sales & Marketing industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Racepoint Rwanda 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 wage structure of Racepoint Rwanda
– 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 Racepoint Rwanda.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Racepoint Rwanda in the Sales & Marketing industry. The Sales & Marketing 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.
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. Racepoint Rwanda can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Racepoint Rwanda with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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 Racepoint Rwanda.
Regulatory challenges
– Racepoint Rwanda 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Racepoint Rwanda 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.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Racepoint Rwanda 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.
Environmental challenges
– Racepoint Rwanda 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. Racepoint Rwanda can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Sales & Marketing industry.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda 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 A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda 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 A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda 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 A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda 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 A Public Relations Campaign for Rwanda 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 Racepoint Rwanda needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.