A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
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Case Study Description of A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel)
Supplement to case KS1231. This case traces the sexual assault scandal that rocked the United States Air Force Academy in 2003. Over a period of several months, dozens of current and former female students came forward to the media and government representatives about being sexually assaulted by their male peers on campus. Several victims also implicated the Academy's leadership for not doing enough to address the problem. When the scandal broke, Lieutenant General John Dallager was the Academy Superintendent (equal to President of a civilian university). The Academy's decade-old sexual assault program guaranteed confidentiality for victims of sexual assault. The program also offered a slew of prevention and support services. Many Academy staff regarded the sexual assault program as the "gold standard." But the rising number of allegations shined a harsh light on the Academy's culture and immediately cast doubts on Dallager's leadership. Why had he and other senior officials at the Academy failed to notice the scale of the problem? Or had they willfully ignored it? Case number 2098.1
Swot Analysis of "A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel)" written by Dana Born, Anjani Datla includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Assault Academy facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Leadership, Leadership development, Personnel policies and Global Business.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) casestudy better are - – wage bills are increasing, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, technology disruption, there is backlash against globalization, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google,
geopolitical disruptions, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Assault Academy, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Assault Academy 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 A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Assault Academy
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Global Business field.
4. Making a Global Business topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Assault Academy
Strengths A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Assault Academy in A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) Harvard Business Review case study are -
Training and development
– Assault Academy has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) 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.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) 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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Assault Academy in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Learning organization
- Assault Academy 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 Assault Academy is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Assault Academy 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Assault Academy in the sector have low bargaining power. A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Assault Academy to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
High brand equity
– Assault Academy has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Assault Academy to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Strong track record of project management
– Assault Academy is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Global Business industry
– A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Assault Academy to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Global Business industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Assault Academy to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Assault Academy is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Digital Transformation in Global Business segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Assault Academy digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Assault Academy has successfully integrated the four key components of digital transformation – digital integration in processes, digital integration in marketing and customer relationship management, digital integration into the value chain, and using technology to explore new products and market opportunities.
Ability to lead change in Global Business field
– Assault Academy 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 Assault Academy in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Weaknesses A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) are -
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Assault Academy 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Assault Academy 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Assault Academy 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.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) HBR case study mentions - Assault Academy 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Assault Academy 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 - A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
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 Assault Academy supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel), it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Assault Academy vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Assault Academy is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) 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 Assault Academy has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Assault Academy 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. Assault Academy 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel), it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Global Business 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) 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 A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Assault Academy is planning to shift buying processes online.
Opportunities A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) | 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 A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) are -
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 Assault Academy 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Assault Academy 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Assault Academy 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Assault Academy has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Assault Academy to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) case study. Assault Academy can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Loyalty marketing
– Assault Academy 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.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Global Business industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Assault Academy can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Assault Academy to increase its market reach. Assault Academy will be able to reach out to new customers. Secondly 5G will also provide technology framework to build new tools and products that can help more immersive consumer experience and faster consumer journey.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Assault Academy 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 Assault Academy to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Manufacturing automation
– Assault Academy can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Global Business 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Assault Academy 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, A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel), to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Assault Academy 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Assault Academy can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Assault Academy operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Global Business sector.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Assault Academy in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Global Business segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Threats A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) are -
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Assault Academy 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 A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) .
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Assault Academy 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.
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. Assault Academy needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Global Business industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Global Business field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Assault Academy can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Assault Academy in the Global Business industry. The Global Business 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.
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.
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 Assault Academy.
Environmental challenges
– Assault Academy 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. Assault Academy can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Global Business industry.
Increasing wage structure of Assault Academy
– 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 Assault Academy.
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 Assault Academy in the Global Business sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
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. Assault Academy 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.
Aging population
– As the populations of most advanced economies are aging, it will lead to high social security costs, higher savings among population, and lower demand for goods and services in the economy. The household savings in US, France, UK, Germany, and Japan are growing faster than predicted because of uncertainty caused by pandemic.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Assault Academy is facing in Global Business sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) 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 A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) 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 A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) 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 A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) 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 A Sharper Look at Zero Tolerance: Reports of Sexual Assault Rock the United States Air Force Academy (Sequel) 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 Assault Academy needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
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