Case Study Description of Copper and Zinc Markets--1996
Provides background information on copper and zinc markets as of mid-1996. Discusses supply and demand conditions, forecasts of the spot prices of the metals, and contracts for future delivery (forwards, futures, and options).
Swot Analysis of "Copper and Zinc Markets--1996" written by Peter Tufano, Alberto Moel includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Zinc Copper facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Financial markets and Finance & Accounting.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 casestudy better are - – cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, increasing commodity prices, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies,
geopolitical disruptions, increasing energy prices, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Copper and Zinc Markets--1996
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Zinc Copper, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Zinc Copper 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 Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Zinc Copper
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 Zinc Copper
Strengths Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Zinc Copper in Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 Harvard Business Review case study are -
Strong track record of project management
– Zinc Copper is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Training and development
– Zinc Copper has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Zinc Copper 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 Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Diverse revenue streams
– Zinc Copper is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 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.
Digital Transformation in Finance & Accounting segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Zinc Copper digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Zinc Copper 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Zinc Copper has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Zinc Copper 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.
Analytics focus
– Zinc Copper 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 Peter Tufano, Alberto Moel 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Finance & Accounting industry
– Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Zinc Copper to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Finance & Accounting industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Zinc Copper to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Zinc Copper in the sector have low bargaining power. Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Zinc Copper to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Organizational Resilience of Zinc Copper
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Zinc Copper does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Zinc Copper 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 Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 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.
Weaknesses Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 are -
Lack of clear differentiation of Zinc Copper products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Zinc Copper needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Copper and Zinc Markets--1996, in the dynamic environment Zinc Copper has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Zinc Copper has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Zinc Copper is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Finance & Accounting segment. Zinc Copper needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Zinc Copper to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Zinc Copper 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 harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Zinc Copper is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 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 operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 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 Zinc Copper 's lucrative customers.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 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 Zinc Copper has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Zinc Copper 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Zinc Copper 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 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 Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Zinc Copper is planning to shift buying processes online.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Copper and Zinc Markets--1996, it seems that the employees of Zinc Copper 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 Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 | 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 Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 are -
Buying journey improvements
– Zinc Copper can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Zinc Copper can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Zinc Copper has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Zinc Copper to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 case study. Zinc Copper can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Zinc Copper is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 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.
Reconfiguring business model
– The expansion of digital payment system, the bringing down of international transactions costs using Bitcoin and other blockchain based currencies, etc can help Zinc Copper to reconfigure its entire business model. For example it can used blockchain based technologies to reduce piracy of its products in the big markets such as China. Secondly it can use the popularity of e-commerce in various developing markets to build a Direct to Customer business model rather than the current Channel Heavy distribution network.
Loyalty marketing
– Zinc Copper has focused on building a highly responsive customer relationship management platform. This platform is built on in-house data and driven by analytics and artificial intelligence. The customer analytics can help the organization to fine tune its loyalty marketing efforts, increase the wallet share of the organization, reduce wastage on mainstream advertising spending, build better pricing strategies using personalization, etc.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Zinc Copper 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Zinc Copper 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.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Finance & Accounting industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Zinc Copper 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. Zinc Copper 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Zinc Copper 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, Copper and Zinc Markets--1996, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Zinc Copper in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Finance & Accounting segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Zinc Copper 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 Zinc Copper to increase its market reach. Zinc Copper 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 Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 are -
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Zinc Copper is facing in Finance & Accounting sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Aging population
– As the populations of most advanced economies are aging, it will lead to high social security costs, higher savings among population, and lower demand for goods and services in the economy. The household savings in US, France, UK, Germany, and Japan are growing faster than predicted because of uncertainty caused by pandemic.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Zinc Copper 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Zinc Copper 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 Finance & Accounting industry regulations.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Zinc Copper has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Finance & Accounting industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Zinc Copper 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.
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 Zinc Copper in the Finance & Accounting sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Zinc Copper 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 Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 .
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Zinc Copper 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.
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 Zinc Copper business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, 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. Zinc Copper needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Finance & Accounting industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Increasing wage structure of Zinc Copper
– 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 Zinc Copper.
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. Zinc Copper 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 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 Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 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 Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 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 Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 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 Copper and Zinc Markets--1996 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 Zinc Copper needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.