Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Strategy & Execution
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun
Three financial upheavals have jarred the business and nonprofit worlds in the last 20 years. But related governance reforms, such as Sarbanes-Oxley, the Intermediate Sanctions Act, and new security exchange regulations, are just being employed. Consequently, the internal control information reaching boards is not what it should be. Applications of ethics codes need more attention. Directors' time requirements are expanding. Board agendas are more extensive, and committees, especially audit groups, are meeting more frequently. Prospective directors need to develop robust due diligence processes. The excessive reliance on directors' and officers' liability policies needs assessing. All this adds up to one conclusion: Governance reform has a long way to go yet.
Swot Analysis of "Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun" written by Eugene H. Fram includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Directors Governance facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Corporate governance, Ethics, Mergers & acquisitions and Strategy & Execution.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun casestudy better are - – geopolitical disruptions, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, increasing commodity prices, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google,
wage bills are increasing, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Directors Governance, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Directors Governance 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 Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Directors Governance
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 Directors Governance
Strengths Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Directors Governance in Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun Harvard Business Review case study are -
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Directors Governance 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 Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Diverse revenue streams
– Directors Governance is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Directors Governance has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Directors Governance 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.
Learning organization
- Directors Governance 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 Directors Governance is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Strong track record of project management
– Directors Governance is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Directors Governance 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 Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Directors Governance is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Training and development
– Directors Governance has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun 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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Directors Governance in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Directors Governance in the sector have low bargaining power. Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Directors Governance to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Directors Governance has built up over years in its products and services combo offer has resulted in high retention of customers, lower marketing costs, and greater ability of the firm to focus on its customers.
High brand equity
– Directors Governance has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Directors Governance to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Weaknesses Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun are -
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun 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 Directors Governance 's lucrative customers.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun 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 Directors Governance has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun 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 Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Directors Governance is planning to shift buying processes online.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Directors Governance is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Strategy & Execution segment. Directors Governance needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Directors Governance to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Directors Governance 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.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Eugene H. Fram suggests that, Directors Governance 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Directors Governance has some of the most successful products in the industry, this business model has made each new product launch extremely critical for continuous financial growth of the organization. firm in the HBR case study - Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun, in the dynamic environment Directors Governance has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Directors Governance has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Directors Governance 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. Directors Governance 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun, is just above the industry average. Directors Governance 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 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 Directors Governance supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Directors Governance vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Opportunities Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun | 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 Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun are -
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 Directors Governance in the consumer business. Now Directors Governance can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
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. Directors Governance can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
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 Directors Governance 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Directors Governance 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 Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Directors Governance to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
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. Directors Governance can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Loyalty marketing
– Directors Governance 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Directors Governance in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Strategy & Execution segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Directors Governance has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Directors Governance to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun case study. Directors Governance can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Directors Governance can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Directors Governance operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Strategy & Execution sector.
Developing new processes and practices
– Directors Governance 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Directors Governance 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Directors Governance to increase its market reach. Directors Governance 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.
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. Directors Governance 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. Directors Governance 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.
Threats Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun 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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Directors Governance 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.
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. Directors Governance needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Strategy & Execution industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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 Directors Governance business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Regulatory challenges
– Directors Governance 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 Strategy & Execution industry regulations.
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. Directors Governance 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.
Increasing wage structure of Directors Governance
– 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 Directors Governance.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Directors Governance 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.
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 Directors Governance.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun, Directors Governance may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Strategy & Execution .
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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Directors Governance is facing in Strategy & Execution sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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 Directors Governance in the Strategy & Execution sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun 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 Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun 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 Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun 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 Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun 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 Governance Reform: It's Only Just Begun 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 Directors Governance needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
