Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Strategy & Execution
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak
The case depicts the first few weeks of the 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa and describes how two organizations, the World Health Organization and Doctors Without Borders, assessed the seriousness of the outbreak. Both organizations have expertise and experience in containing epidemics, and past Ebola outbreaks in particular. These organizations nonetheless reached radically opposite conclusions. The case explores the possible reasons for these differences in predicting the outbreak's evolution.
Swot Analysis of "Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak" written by Francis de Vericourt includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Ebola Outbreak facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Decision making, Organizational culture, Strategy and Strategy & Execution.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak casestudy better are - – increasing commodity prices, increasing transportation and logistics costs, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, increasing energy prices, there is backlash against globalization, geopolitical disruptions,
customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, technology disruption, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Ebola Outbreak, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Ebola Outbreak 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 Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Ebola Outbreak
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 Ebola Outbreak
Strengths Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Ebola Outbreak in Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak Harvard Business Review case study are -
Analytics focus
– Ebola Outbreak 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 Francis de Vericourt 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.
Learning organization
- Ebola Outbreak 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 Ebola Outbreak is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Ebola Outbreak has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Ebola Outbreak 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.
Ability to lead change in Strategy & Execution field
– Ebola Outbreak 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 Ebola Outbreak in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Diverse revenue streams
– Ebola Outbreak is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Ebola Outbreak 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 Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
High brand equity
– Ebola Outbreak has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Ebola Outbreak to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Ebola Outbreak 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 Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Ebola Outbreak 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Strategy & Execution industry
– Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Ebola Outbreak to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Strategy & Execution industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Ebola Outbreak to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Strong track record of project management
– Ebola Outbreak is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Organizational Resilience of Ebola Outbreak
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Ebola Outbreak does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Weaknesses Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak are -
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Ebola Outbreak 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Ebola Outbreak products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Ebola Outbreak needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak, it seems that the employees of Ebola Outbreak 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak, in the dynamic environment Ebola Outbreak has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Ebola Outbreak has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Ebola Outbreak 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.
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 Ebola Outbreak supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Ebola Outbreak vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Ebola Outbreak, firm in the HBR case study Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak 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 Ebola Outbreak 's lucrative customers.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Ebola Outbreak 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.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak 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 Ebola Outbreak has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Ebola Outbreak 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.
Opportunities Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak | 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 Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak are -
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Ebola Outbreak can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Ebola Outbreak 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 Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Ebola Outbreak to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Ebola Outbreak 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.
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 Ebola Outbreak 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Ebola Outbreak 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.
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. Ebola Outbreak can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
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. Ebola Outbreak can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Manufacturing automation
– Ebola Outbreak can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Strategy & Execution 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Ebola Outbreak has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Ebola Outbreak to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak case study. Ebola Outbreak can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Ebola Outbreak 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, Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Ebola Outbreak 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 Ebola Outbreak to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Ebola Outbreak can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Ebola Outbreak operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Strategy & Execution sector.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Ebola Outbreak 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 Strategy & Execution segment.
Threats Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak are -
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.
Regulatory challenges
– Ebola Outbreak 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.
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 Ebola Outbreak business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak, Ebola Outbreak may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Strategy & Execution .
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Ebola Outbreak 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 Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak .
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 Ebola Outbreak in the Strategy & Execution sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Ebola Outbreak 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.
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. Ebola Outbreak can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Ebola Outbreak with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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. Ebola Outbreak needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Strategy & Execution industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Increasing wage structure of Ebola Outbreak
– 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 Ebola Outbreak.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Ebola Outbreak is facing in Strategy & Execution sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Ebola Outbreak 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak 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 Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak 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 Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak 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 Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak 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 Ebola: The Onset of a Deadly Outbreak 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 Ebola Outbreak needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.