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Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution

Case Study Description of Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking


In 2001, Citibank's Cash and Trade Group division transformed itself into an e-business, with the strategic intent of converting traditional money management business into an e-business framework. This case discusses how Citibank is using its traditional assets and integrating Internet initiatives into its e-business strategy to create sustainable competitive advantages. Competition in the cash and trade business is becoming intense and a new breed of competent and aggressive competitors is vying for the market, including technology companies interested in B2B e-payment. Citibank is responding to the competition by continually evolving its e-business strategy--connect, transform, extend. Also looks into the challenges that Citibank e-Business Group is facing in developing a single global web platform for the corporate market. The focus is on how Citibank is developing an e-business product that would serve the highly segmented market and how to encourage these markets to use a global single platform online. At one end of the spectrum are multinationals and top-level domestic corporates that operate sophisticated treasuries, and at the other end are companies and small- and medium-size businesses that are not yet ready to upgrade and transform their systems.

Authors :: Julie Yu, Ali F. Farhoomand, Marissa McCauley, Shamza Khan

Topics :: Strategy & Execution

Tags :: Marketing, SWOT Analysis, SWOT Matrix, TOWS, Weighted SWOT Analysis

Swot Analysis of "Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking" written by Julie Yu, Ali F. Farhoomand, Marissa McCauley, Shamza Khan includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Citibank Citibank's facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Marketing and Strategy & Execution.


Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking casestudy better are - – increasing energy prices, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , there is backlash against globalization, wage bills are increasing, increasing transportation and logistics costs, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, technology disruption, etc



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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking


SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Citibank Citibank's, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Citibank Citibank's 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 Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Citibank Citibank's
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 Citibank Citibank's




Strengths Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of Citibank Citibank's in Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking Harvard Business Review case study are -

Effective Research and Development (R&D)

– Citibank Citibank's 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 Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.

Organizational Resilience of Citibank Citibank's

– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Citibank Citibank's does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.

Training and development

– Citibank Citibank's has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking 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.

High switching costs

– The high switching costs that Citibank Citibank's 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.

Ability to lead change in Strategy & Execution field

– Citibank Citibank's 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 Citibank Citibank's in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.

Operational resilience

– The operational resilience strategy in the Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking 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.

Ability to recruit top talent

– Citibank Citibank's is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.

Strong track record of project management

– Citibank Citibank's is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.

Learning organization

- Citibank Citibank's 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 Citibank Citibank's is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.

Diverse revenue streams

– Citibank Citibank's is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking 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.

Superior customer experience

– The customer experience strategy of Citibank Citibank's in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.

Innovation driven organization

– Citibank Citibank's is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.






Weaknesses Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking are -

No frontier risks strategy

– After analyzing the HBR case study Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking, 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.

Need for greater diversity

– Citibank Citibank's 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.

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 Citibank Citibank's supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Citibank Citibank's vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.

Ability to respond to the competition

– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking, in the dynamic environment Citibank Citibank's has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Citibank Citibank's has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.

Aligning sales with marketing

– It come across in the case study Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking 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 Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Citibank Citibank's is planning to shift buying processes online.

High operating costs

– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking 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 Citibank Citibank's 's lucrative customers.

Increasing silos among functional specialists

– The organizational structure of Citibank Citibank's is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Strategy & Execution segment. Citibank Citibank's needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Citibank Citibank's to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.

Slow decision making process

– As mentioned earlier in the report, Citibank Citibank's 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. Citibank Citibank's 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.

Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy

– From the instances in the HBR case study Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking, it seems that the employees of Citibank Citibank's 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.

Workers concerns about automation

– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Citibank Citibank's 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.

Interest costs

– Compare to the competition, Citibank Citibank's 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.




Opportunities Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking | 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 Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking are -

Lowering marketing communication costs

– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Citibank Citibank's 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.

Loyalty marketing

– Citibank Citibank's 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.

Learning at scale

– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Citibank Citibank's 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.

Better consumer reach

– The expansion of the 5G network will help Citibank Citibank's to increase its market reach. Citibank Citibank's 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.

Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities

– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Citibank Citibank's 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 Citibank Citibank's to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.

Leveraging digital technologies

– Citibank Citibank's 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.

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. Citibank Citibank's can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.

Developing new processes and practices

– Citibank Citibank's 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.

Reforming the budgeting process

- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Citibank Citibank's can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.

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. Citibank Citibank's can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.

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 Citibank Citibank's in the consumer business. Now Citibank Citibank's can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.

Redefining models of collaboration and team work

– As explained in the weaknesses section, Citibank Citibank's is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking 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.

Creating value in data economy

– The success of analytics program of Citibank Citibank's has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Citibank Citibank's to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking case study. Citibank Citibank's can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.




Threats Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis


The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking are -

Stagnating economy with rate increase

– Citibank Citibank's 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.

Regulatory challenges

– Citibank Citibank's 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.

Consumer confidence and its impact on Citibank Citibank's 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.

Aging population

– As the populations of most advanced economies are aging, it will lead to high social security costs, higher savings among population, and lower demand for goods and services in the economy. The household savings in US, France, UK, Germany, and Japan are growing faster than predicted because of uncertainty caused by pandemic.

Shortening product life cycle

– it is one of the major threat that Citibank Citibank's is facing in Strategy & Execution sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.

Increasing wage structure of Citibank Citibank's

– 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 Citibank Citibank's.

Barriers of entry lowering

– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Citibank Citibank's with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.

Trade war between China and United States

– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Citibank Citibank's in the Strategy & Execution industry. The Strategy & Execution industry is already at various protected from local competition in China, with the rise of trade war the protection levels may go up. This presents a clear threat of current business model in Chinese market.

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 Citibank Citibank's.

Environmental challenges

– Citibank Citibank's 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. Citibank Citibank's can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry.

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. Citibank Citibank's can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.

High dependence on third party suppliers

– Citibank Citibank's 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.

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 Citibank Citibank's in the Strategy & Execution sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.




Weighted SWOT Analysis of Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking 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 Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking 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 Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking 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 Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking 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 Citibank's e-Business Strategy for Global Corporate Banking 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 Citibank Citibank's needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.



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