United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Finance & Accounting
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans
In 2013, United Bank of India (UBI), predominantly present in the eastern and northeastern parts of India, faces considerable difficulty in managing its swelling amounts of bad debt. A forensic enquiry by an external agency has identified some serious problems in the bank's credit appraisal process, loan disbursement procedures, and non-performing assets (NPA) detection system. With the bank's year-over-year growth of NPAs surpassing the growth of its credit, the management team faces the urgent task of developing an effective turnaround strategy to bring the bank back into a profit position. Debasish Maitra is affiliated with Institute of Management Technology. Pradip Banerjee is affiliated with Indian Institute of Management Indore.
Swot Analysis of "United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans" written by Debasish Maitra, Pradip Banerjee includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Bank's Enquiry facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Budgeting, Financial analysis and Finance & Accounting.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans casestudy better are - – competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, geopolitical disruptions, there is backlash against globalization, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs,
technology disruption, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Bank's Enquiry, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Bank's Enquiry 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 United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Bank's Enquiry
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 Bank's Enquiry
Strengths United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Bank's Enquiry in United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans Harvard Business Review case study are -
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Bank's Enquiry 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 United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Strong track record of project management
– Bank's Enquiry is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Bank's Enquiry are driving operational speed, building greater agility, and keeping the organization nimble to compete with new competitors. It helps are organization to ideate new ideas, and execute them swiftly in the marketplace.
Learning organization
- Bank's Enquiry 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 Bank's Enquiry is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Bank's Enquiry in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Diverse revenue streams
– Bank's Enquiry is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans 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.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Bank's Enquiry is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Bank's Enquiry 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Bank's Enquiry is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Training and development
– Bank's Enquiry has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Bank's Enquiry in the sector have low bargaining power. United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Bank's Enquiry to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Weaknesses United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans are -
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans, it seems that the employees of Bank's Enquiry 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Bank's Enquiry 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans, in the dynamic environment Bank's Enquiry has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Bank's Enquiry 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 Bank's Enquiry is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Finance & Accounting segment. Bank's Enquiry needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Bank's Enquiry to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Bank's Enquiry 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.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Bank's Enquiry 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.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Bank's Enquiry 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.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Bank's Enquiry 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. Bank's Enquiry 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Bank's Enquiry has not been able to do capital spending to the tune of the competition. This has resulted into fewer innovations and company facing stiff competition from both existing competitors and new entrants who are disrupting the industry using digital technology.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans 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 United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Bank's Enquiry is planning to shift buying processes online.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Bank's Enquiry is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Opportunities United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans | 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 United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans are -
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Bank's Enquiry 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, United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Bank's Enquiry 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 United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Bank's Enquiry to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Bank's Enquiry can make experimentation a productive activity and build a culture of innovation using approaches such as – mining transaction data, A/B testing of websites and selling platforms, engaging potential customers over various needs, and building on small ideas in the Finance & Accounting segment.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Bank's Enquiry 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Bank's Enquiry can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
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 Bank's Enquiry 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Bank's Enquiry can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Finance & Accounting segment. It can use CAD and 3D printing to build a quick prototype and pilot testing products. It can leverage automation using machine learning and artificial intelligence to do faster production at lowers costs, and it can leverage the growth in satellite and tracking technologies to improve inventory management, transportation, and shipping.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Bank's Enquiry to increase its market reach. Bank's Enquiry 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Bank's Enquiry is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans 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 Bank's Enquiry has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Bank's Enquiry to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans case study. Bank's Enquiry can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Finance & Accounting industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Bank's Enquiry can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Bank's Enquiry 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Bank's Enquiry 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.
Threats United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans are -
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 Bank's Enquiry business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Bank's Enquiry 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 Bank's Enquiry in the Finance & Accounting sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Bank's Enquiry 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.
Environmental challenges
– Bank's Enquiry 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. Bank's Enquiry can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Finance & Accounting industry.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Finance & Accounting field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Bank's Enquiry can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Bank's Enquiry 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 United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans .
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 Bank's Enquiry.
Increasing wage structure of Bank's Enquiry
– 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 Bank's Enquiry.
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 Bank's Enquiry is facing in Finance & Accounting sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Bank's Enquiry 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.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Bank's Enquiry in the Finance & Accounting industry. The Finance & Accounting 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans 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 United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans 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 United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans 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 United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans 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 United Bank of India: Present Fiasco and Future Plans 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 Bank's Enquiry needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
