Case Study Description of Cardosa's Quest for Certification
In organizations, learning and the associated changes it brings cannot be forced. Individuals who act as "learning champions" within an organization need to be convinced of the benefits of the learning initiative themselves so that they can take the "positive" message to their teams and become key facilitators and enablers within the organization. Otherwise, their negativity can influence their team members, especially if the team members are not sold on the initiative in the first place.
Swot Analysis of "Cardosa's Quest for Certification" written by Amber Gul Rashid includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Learning Cardosa's facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Cardosa's Quest for Certification case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Communication, Organizational culture and Technology & Operations.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Cardosa's Quest for Certification casestudy better are - – increasing commodity prices, increasing transportation and logistics costs, technology disruption, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, increasing household debt because of falling income levels,
increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Cardosa's Quest for Certification
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Cardosa's Quest for Certification case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Learning Cardosa's, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Learning Cardosa'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 Cardosa's Quest for Certification can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Cardosa's Quest for Certification case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Learning Cardosa's
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Technology & Operations field.
4. Making a Technology & Operations topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Learning Cardosa's
Strengths Cardosa's Quest for Certification | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Learning Cardosa's in Cardosa's Quest for Certification Harvard Business Review case study are -
Diverse revenue streams
– Learning Cardosa's is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Cardosa's Quest for Certification 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.
Training and development
– Learning Cardosa's has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Cardosa's Quest for Certification 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Learning Cardosa's 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Technology & Operations industry
– Cardosa's Quest for Certification firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Learning Cardosa's to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Technology & Operations industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Learning Cardosa's to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Analytics focus
– Learning Cardosa's 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 Amber Gul Rashid 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Learning Cardosa's is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Cardosa's Quest for Certification Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Organizational Resilience of Learning Cardosa's
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Learning Cardosa's does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Learning Cardosa's has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Learning Cardosa's 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Learning Cardosa'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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Learning Cardosa's 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 Learning Cardosa's in the sector have low bargaining power. Cardosa's Quest for Certification has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Learning Cardosa's to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Learning Cardosa'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 Cardosa's Quest for Certification - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Weaknesses Cardosa's Quest for Certification | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Cardosa's Quest for Certification are -
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Cardosa's Quest for Certification, it seems that the employees of Learning Cardosa'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.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Cardosa's Quest for Certification 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 Learning Cardosa's has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Cardosa's Quest for Certification 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 Cardosa's Quest for Certification can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Learning Cardosa's is planning to shift buying processes online.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Learning Cardosa'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. Learning Cardosa'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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Learning Cardosa's products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Learning Cardosa's needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Cardosa's Quest for Certification 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 Learning Cardosa's 's lucrative customers.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Amber Gul Rashid suggests that, Learning Cardosa's 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Learning Cardosa'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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Cardosa's Quest for Certification, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Technology & Operations 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Learning Cardosa's is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Technology & Operations segment. Learning Cardosa's needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Learning Cardosa's to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Need for greater diversity
– Learning Cardosa'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.
Opportunities Cardosa's Quest for Certification | 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 Cardosa's Quest for Certification are -
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Learning Cardosa'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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Learning Cardosa's is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Cardosa's Quest for Certification 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Learning Cardosa's can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Learning Cardosa's operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Technology & Operations sector.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Learning Cardosa'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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Learning Cardosa'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 Learning Cardosa's to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Learning Cardosa's 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Learning Cardosa's 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 Cardosa's Quest for Certification - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Learning Cardosa's to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
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. Learning Cardosa's can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Learning Cardosa's has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Learning Cardosa's to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Cardosa's Quest for Certification case study. Learning Cardosa's can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Learning Cardosa's to increase its market reach. Learning Cardosa'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.
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 Learning Cardosa's 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
– Learning Cardosa's can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Technology & Operations 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Learning Cardosa's can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Cardosa's Quest for Certification 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.
Threats Cardosa's Quest for Certification External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Cardosa's Quest for Certification are -
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Technology & Operations field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Learning Cardosa's can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
New competition
– After the dotcom bust of 2001, financial crisis of 2008-09, the business formation in US economy had declined. But in 2020 alone, there are more than 1.5 million new business applications in United States. This can lead to greater competition for Learning Cardosa's in the Technology & Operations sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Cardosa's Quest for Certification, Learning Cardosa's may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Technology & Operations .
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Learning Cardosa's 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 Cardosa's Quest for Certification .
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Learning Cardosa'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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Learning Cardosa'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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Learning Cardosa's with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Learning Cardosa's has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Technology & Operations industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Learning Cardosa's needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Technology & Operations 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.
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. Learning Cardosa's needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Technology & Operations industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Learning Cardosa'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.
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. Learning Cardosa's 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Learning Cardosa'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 Technology & Operations industry regulations.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Cardosa's Quest for Certification 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 Cardosa's Quest for Certification 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 Cardosa's Quest for Certification 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 Cardosa's Quest for Certification 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 Cardosa's Quest for Certification 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 Learning Cardosa's needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
