Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution

Case Study Description of Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring

The (B) case describes the actions taken by Royal Dutch Shell's CEO and his management team to maintain their commitment to diversity and inclusion (D&I), as introduced in the (A) case, during a major restructuring of the whole organization.

Authors :: Sandra J. Sucher, Daniela Beyersdorfer

Topics :: Technology & Operations

Tags :: Diversity, International business, Leadership, Leading teams, Reorganization, SWOT Analysis, SWOT Matrix, TOWS, Weighted SWOT Analysis

Swot Analysis of "Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring" written by Sandra J. Sucher, Daniela Beyersdorfer includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Inclusion Dutch facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Diversity, International business, Leadership, Leading teams, Reorganization and Technology & Operations.

Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring casestudy better are - – digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, geopolitical disruptions, wage bills are increasing, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, etc

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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring

SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Inclusion Dutch, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Inclusion Dutch 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.

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SWOT Objectives / Importance of SWOT Analysis and SWOT Matrix

SWOT analysis of Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Inclusion Dutch
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 Inclusion Dutch

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Strengths Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of Inclusion Dutch in Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring Harvard Business Review case study are -

Cross disciplinary teams

– Horizontal connected teams at the Inclusion Dutch 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.

Analytics focus

– Inclusion Dutch 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 Sandra J. Sucher, Daniela Beyersdorfer 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.

Low bargaining power of suppliers

– Suppliers of Inclusion Dutch in the sector have low bargaining power. Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Inclusion Dutch to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.

Learning organization

- Inclusion Dutch 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 Inclusion Dutch is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.

Innovation driven organization

– Inclusion Dutch is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.

Sustainable margins compare to other players in Technology & Operations industry

– Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Inclusion Dutch to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Technology & Operations industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Inclusion Dutch to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.

Superior customer experience

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

High switching costs

– The high switching costs that Inclusion Dutch 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.

Successful track record of launching new products

– Inclusion Dutch has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Inclusion Dutch 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

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

Ability to lead change in Technology & Operations field

– Inclusion Dutch 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 Inclusion Dutch in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.

Ability to recruit top talent

– Inclusion Dutch is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.

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Weaknesses Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring are -

High dependence on star products

– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring 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 Inclusion Dutch has relatively successful track record of launching new products.

Skills based hiring

– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Inclusion Dutch has created an environment where the organization is dominated by functional specialists rather than management generalist. This has resulted into product oriented approach rather than marketing oriented approach or consumers oriented approach.

Increasing silos among functional specialists

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

Need for greater diversity

– Inclusion Dutch 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 bargaining power of channel partners

– Because of the regulatory requirements, Sandra J. Sucher, Daniela Beyersdorfer suggests that, Inclusion Dutch 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 Inclusion Dutch 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 - Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.

Slow to strategic competitive environment developments

– As Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring HBR case study mentions - Inclusion Dutch takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the industry in last five years.

Lack of clear differentiation of Inclusion Dutch products

– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Inclusion Dutch needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.

High cash cycle compare to competitors

Inclusion Dutch 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.

No frontier risks strategy

– After analyzing the HBR case study Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring, 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.

Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy

– From the instances in the HBR case study Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring, it seems that the employees of Inclusion Dutch 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.

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Opportunities Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring | 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 Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring are -

Better consumer reach

– The expansion of the 5G network will help Inclusion Dutch to increase its market reach. Inclusion Dutch 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 Technology & Operations industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Inclusion Dutch 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. Inclusion Dutch can further use this consumer data to build better customer loyalty, provide better products and service collection, and improve the value proposition in inflationary times.

Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains

– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Inclusion Dutch 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, Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.

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 Inclusion Dutch 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.

Redefining models of collaboration and team work

– As explained in the weaknesses section, Inclusion Dutch is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring 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.

Developing new processes and practices

– Inclusion Dutch can develop new processes and procedures in Technology & Operations 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.

Using analytics as competitive advantage

– Inclusion Dutch 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 Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Inclusion Dutch to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.

Leveraging digital technologies

– Inclusion Dutch 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. Inclusion Dutch can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.

Loyalty marketing

– Inclusion Dutch 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 Inclusion Dutch 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.

Lowering marketing communication costs

– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Inclusion Dutch in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Technology & Operations segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.

Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities

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

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Threats Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring are -

Stagnating economy with rate increase

– Inclusion Dutch 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.

Consumer confidence and its impact on Inclusion Dutch 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.

Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins

– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Inclusion Dutch 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 Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring .

Shortening product life cycle

– it is one of the major threat that Inclusion Dutch is facing in Technology & Operations sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.

High level of anxiety and lack of motivation

– the Great Resignation in United States is the sign of broader dissatisfaction among the workforce in United States. Inclusion Dutch needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Technology & Operations industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.

Barriers of entry lowering

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

Environmental challenges

– Inclusion Dutch 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. Inclusion Dutch can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Technology & Operations industry.

Increasing wage structure of Inclusion Dutch

– 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 Inclusion Dutch.

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.

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. Inclusion Dutch 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

– Inclusion Dutch 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.

Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution

– Inclusion Dutch has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Technology & Operations industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Inclusion Dutch 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.

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.

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Weighted SWOT Analysis of Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring 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 Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring 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 Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring 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 Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring 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 Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell (B): The Impact of Restructuring 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 Inclusion Dutch needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.

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