Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Strategy & Execution
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version
Tin Mining, Inc. was a company located in a developing country called Boldavia mainly dedicated to tin exploitation and production. During its initial thirty-three years of operation (1971-2004), it developed three organizational capabilities (technical, productive, and trust building). The case illustrates three typical characteristics of capabilities: effective solution to complex problems, regular and successful practice, and reliability and development over time. Additionally, it also illustrates the organizational capabilities paradox which emerges during the 2004-2008 period and three of its causes: path dependency (lock in), structural inertia, and the absence of a capability dynamization function. In 2009, Tin Mining, Inc. faced the need to reshape its organizational capabilities, and the arrival of a new president to the company was a propitious moment to analyze this option. Universidad de Los Andes' case collection
Swot Analysis of "Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version" written by Jose Camilo Davila, Roberto Gutierrez includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Tin Capabilities facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, and Strategy & Execution.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version casestudy better are - – increasing energy prices, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, increasing commodity prices, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, geopolitical disruptions,
supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Tin Capabilities, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Tin Capabilities 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 Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Tin Capabilities
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Strategy & Execution field.
4. Making a Strategy & Execution topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Tin Capabilities
Strengths Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Tin Capabilities in Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version Harvard Business Review case study are -
High brand equity
– Tin Capabilities has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Tin Capabilities to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Training and development
– Tin Capabilities has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version 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.
Organizational Resilience of Tin Capabilities
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Tin Capabilities does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Strong track record of project management
– Tin Capabilities is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Strategy & Execution industry
– Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Tin Capabilities to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Tin Capabilities to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Tin Capabilities is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Tin Capabilities 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 Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Tin Capabilities in the sector have low bargaining power. Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Tin Capabilities to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Learning organization
- Tin Capabilities 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 Tin Capabilities is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Innovation driven organization
– Tin Capabilities is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Tin Capabilities in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Tin Capabilities 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 Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Weaknesses Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version are -
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Jose Camilo Davila, Roberto Gutierrez suggests that, Tin Capabilities 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.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Tin Capabilities 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. Tin Capabilities 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Strategy & Execution 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.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Tin Capabilities 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version, is just above the industry average. Tin Capabilities 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Tin Capabilities is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version 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 Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version 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 Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Tin Capabilities is planning to shift buying processes online.
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 Tin Capabilities supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Tin Capabilities vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Need for greater diversity
– Tin Capabilities 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Tin Capabilities 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.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version, it seems that the employees of Tin Capabilities 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.
Opportunities Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version | 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 Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version are -
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Tin Capabilities 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, Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Tin Capabilities 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.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Strategy & Execution industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Tin Capabilities can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Tin Capabilities 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 Tin Capabilities to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Tin Capabilities has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Tin Capabilities to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version case study. Tin Capabilities can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Strategy & Execution industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Tin Capabilities 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. Tin Capabilities 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Tin Capabilities 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Tin Capabilities 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Tin Capabilities to increase its market reach. Tin Capabilities 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
– Tin Capabilities can develop new processes and procedures in Strategy & Execution 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.
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 Tin Capabilities in the consumer business. Now Tin Capabilities can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Tin Capabilities 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 Strategy & Execution segment.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Tin Capabilities can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Threats Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version are -
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Tin Capabilities 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Tin Capabilities 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 Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version .
Increasing wage structure of Tin Capabilities
– 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 Tin Capabilities.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Strategy & Execution field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Tin Capabilities can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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 Tin Capabilities in the Strategy & Execution sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Environmental challenges
– Tin Capabilities 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. Tin Capabilities can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Tin Capabilities is facing in Strategy & Execution 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. Tin Capabilities needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Strategy & Execution industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Tin Capabilities with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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.
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 Tin Capabilities.
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 Tin Capabilities business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Tin Capabilities 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version 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 Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version 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 Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version 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 Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version 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 Tin Mining, Inc., Spanish Version 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 Tin Capabilities needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.