Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Finance & Accounting
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Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues
Describes the revenue structure of U.S. public education. Covers funding by federal, state, and local governments. Examines in detail two federal education laws: the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Although these laws account for less than 7% of U.S. public funding for education, their mandates strongly influence the activities of schools and school districts. Includes a bibliography. A rewritten version of an earlier note. A rewritten version of an earlier note.
Swot Analysis of "Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues" written by Stig Leschly, Stacey Childress includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Education Laws facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Entrepreneurial finance, Financial analysis, Financial management, Policy and Finance & Accounting.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues casestudy better are - – banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, technology disruption, increasing commodity prices,
digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Education Laws, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Education Laws 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 U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Education Laws
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Finance & Accounting field.
4. Making a Finance & Accounting topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Education Laws
Strengths Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Education Laws in Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues Harvard Business Review case study are -
Successful track record of launching new products
– Education Laws has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Education Laws 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Education Laws 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 U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Ability to lead change in Finance & Accounting field
– Education Laws 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 Education Laws in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Strong track record of project management
– Education Laws is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Education Laws is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues 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
- Education Laws 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 Education Laws is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Finance & Accounting industry
– Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Education Laws to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Finance & Accounting industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Education Laws to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Education Laws 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.
Digital Transformation in Finance & Accounting segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Education Laws digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Education Laws has successfully integrated the four key components of digital transformation – digital integration in processes, digital integration in marketing and customer relationship management, digital integration into the value chain, and using technology to explore new products and market opportunities.
Organizational Resilience of Education Laws
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Education Laws does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Analytics focus
– Education Laws 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 Stig Leschly, Stacey Childress 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
– Education Laws is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues 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 Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues are -
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Education Laws 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. Education Laws 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.
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 Education Laws supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Education Laws vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Education Laws is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues 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 dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues 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 Education Laws has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Education Laws, firm in the HBR case study Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues, is just above the industry average. Education Laws 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.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues 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 Education Laws 's lucrative customers.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Education Laws 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.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues HBR case study mentions - Education Laws 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Education Laws has borrowed money from the capital market at higher rates. It needs to restructure the interest payment and costs so that it can compete better and improve profitability.
Lack of clear differentiation of Education Laws products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Education Laws needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Opportunities Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues | 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 U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues are -
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Education Laws 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 U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Education Laws is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues 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, Education Laws 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Education Laws 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 Finance & Accounting segment.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Education Laws can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Developing new processes and practices
– Education Laws can develop new processes and procedures in Finance & Accounting 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Education Laws can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Finance & Accounting 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.
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. Education Laws can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Education Laws 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Education Laws 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 Education Laws to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Education Laws can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Education Laws operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Finance & Accounting sector.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Education Laws 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 Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Education Laws to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Education Laws to increase its market reach. Education Laws 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 Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues 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 U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues are -
Consumer confidence and its impact on Education Laws 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
– Education Laws 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Education Laws with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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 U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues, Education Laws may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Finance & Accounting .
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. Education Laws needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Finance & Accounting industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Increasing wage structure of Education Laws
– 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 Education Laws.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Finance & Accounting field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Education Laws can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Environmental challenges
– Education Laws 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. Education Laws can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Finance & Accounting industry.
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. Education Laws 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.
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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Education Laws 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 U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues .
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Education Laws has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Finance & Accounting industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Education Laws needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Finance & Accounting 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Note on U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues 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 U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues 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 U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues 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 U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues 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 U.S. Public Education Finance (A): Revenues 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 Education Laws needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
