'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Organizational Development
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market
Modern organizations continue to play a key role in perpetuating economic inequality in society. Despite the proliferation of equal opportunity and diversity initiatives, discrimination on the basis of race remains particularly pervasive in North American labour markets. The authors show that even companies that publicly espouse an inclusive environment continue to discriminate against candidates who appear to be from non-white backgrounds. Worse yet, many non-white job candidates are proactively 'whitening' their resumes in order to hide their racial identity.
Authors :: Sonia Kang, Katherine DeCelles, Andras Tilcsik, Sora Jun
Swot Analysis of "'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market" written by Sonia Kang, Katherine DeCelles, Andras Tilcsik, Sora Jun includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Whitening Labour facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Hiring, Personnel policies, Talent management and Organizational Development.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market casestudy better are - – banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, wage bills are increasing, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, increasing transportation and logistics costs, increasing energy prices,
there is increasing trade war between United States & China, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Whitening Labour, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Whitening Labour 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 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Whitening Labour
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Organizational Development field.
4. Making a Organizational Development topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Whitening Labour
Strengths 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Whitening Labour in 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market Harvard Business Review case study are -
Learning organization
- Whitening Labour 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 Whitening Labour is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Training and development
– Whitening Labour has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market 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.
High brand equity
– Whitening Labour has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Whitening Labour to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Whitening Labour is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market 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 Organizational Development segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Whitening Labour digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Whitening Labour 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.
Analytics focus
– Whitening Labour 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 Sonia Kang, Katherine DeCelles, Andras Tilcsik, Sora Jun 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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Whitening Labour in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Whitening Labour 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.
Organizational Resilience of Whitening Labour
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Whitening Labour does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Diverse revenue streams
– Whitening Labour is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market 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
– Whitening Labour 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 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Organizational Development industry
– 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Whitening Labour to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Organizational Development industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Whitening Labour to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Weaknesses 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market are -
Need for greater diversity
– Whitening Labour 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.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Whitening Labour 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.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Sonia Kang, Katherine DeCelles, Andras Tilcsik, Sora Jun suggests that, Whitening Labour 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market, in the dynamic environment Whitening Labour has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Whitening Labour has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
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 Whitening Labour supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Whitening Labour vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market, it seems that the employees of Whitening Labour 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Whitening Labour is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Organizational Development segment. Whitening Labour needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Whitening Labour to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Organizational Development 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Whitening Labour has borrowed money from the capital market at higher rates. It needs to restructure the interest payment and costs so that it can compete better and improve profitability.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market 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 Whitening Labour 's lucrative customers.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Whitening Labour 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 - 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Opportunities 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market | 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 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market are -
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Whitening Labour can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Whitening Labour operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Organizational Development sector.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Organizational Development industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Whitening Labour 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. Whitening Labour 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Whitening Labour has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Whitening Labour to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market case study. Whitening Labour can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Organizational Development industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Whitening Labour can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Whitening Labour is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market 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
– Whitening Labour can develop new processes and procedures in Organizational Development 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Whitening Labour 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, 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Whitening Labour can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Whitening Labour 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 Organizational Development segment.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Whitening Labour 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 Whitening Labour to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Whitening Labour 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 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Whitening Labour to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Whitening Labour 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Whitening Labour 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.
Threats 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market are -
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. Whitening Labour 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.
Environmental challenges
– Whitening Labour 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. Whitening Labour can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Organizational Development industry.
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.
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 Whitening Labour in the Organizational Development sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
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. Whitening Labour needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Organizational Development industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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 Whitening Labour.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Whitening Labour is facing in Organizational Development sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Organizational Development field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Whitening Labour can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Whitening Labour has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Organizational Development industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Whitening Labour needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Organizational Development 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Whitening Labour 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, Whitening Labour 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 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market .
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Whitening Labour in the Organizational Development industry. The Organizational Development 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.
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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market 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 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market 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 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market 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 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market 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 'Whitening' and Self-Presentation in the Labour Market 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 Whitening Labour needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.