The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Finance & Accounting
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A)
The chief compliance officer at NYR Financial Services (NYR) faces a decision-making dilemma regarding whether or not to increase a settlement offer to a client. This particular client has lodged a complaint against the investment firm, alleging that his money was inappropriately invested, given the risk tolerance level of his portfolio. The client believes that as a result of this mismanagement, he has lost over $100,000. The complaint has been reviewed by several panels of finance experts, including the Ombudsman for Banking Services and Investments (OBSI), with the latter concluding that NYR owes the client a settlement of $40,000. NYR's compliance officer must now decide between two options: meet the client somewhere in the middle, or inform the OBSI that NYR will not be following the panel's recommendation. If NYR chooses the latter option, OBSI will go public with NYR's refusal to abide by the ombudsman's advice.
Swot Analysis of "The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A)" written by Chuck Grace includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Nyr Obsi facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Risk management and Finance & Accounting.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) casestudy better are - – central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, there is backlash against globalization, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, wage bills are increasing,
cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Nyr Obsi, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Nyr Obsi 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 The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Nyr Obsi
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Finance & Accounting field.
4. Making a Finance & Accounting topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Nyr Obsi
Strengths The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Nyr Obsi in The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) Harvard Business Review case study are -
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Nyr Obsi 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Nyr Obsi is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Nyr Obsi 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 The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) 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 Nyr Obsi in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Organizational Resilience of Nyr Obsi
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Nyr Obsi does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Diverse revenue streams
– Nyr Obsi is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Finance & Accounting industry
– The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Nyr Obsi to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Finance & Accounting industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Nyr Obsi to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Nyr Obsi in the sector have low bargaining power. The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Nyr Obsi to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Learning organization
- Nyr Obsi 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 Nyr Obsi is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
High brand equity
– Nyr Obsi has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Nyr Obsi to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Digital Transformation in Finance & Accounting segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Nyr Obsi digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Nyr Obsi 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.
Weaknesses The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) are -
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Nyr Obsi 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Nyr Obsi is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Nyr Obsi is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Finance & Accounting segment. Nyr Obsi needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Nyr Obsi to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A), in the dynamic environment Nyr Obsi has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Nyr Obsi has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A), it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Finance & Accounting 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.
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 Nyr Obsi supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A), it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Nyr Obsi vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Nyr Obsi, firm in the HBR case study The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Nyr Obsi 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 bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Chuck Grace suggests that, Nyr Obsi 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Nyr Obsi 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) 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 The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Nyr Obsi is planning to shift buying processes online.
Opportunities The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) | 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 The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) are -
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Nyr Obsi 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Nyr Obsi 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Nyr Obsi 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, The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A), to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Nyr Obsi 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Nyr Obsi can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Nyr Obsi operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Finance & Accounting sector.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Nyr Obsi 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 Finance & Accounting segment.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Nyr Obsi has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Nyr Obsi to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) case study. Nyr Obsi can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Manufacturing automation
– Nyr Obsi can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Finance & Accounting 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Nyr Obsi 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 The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Nyr Obsi to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Nyr Obsi to increase its market reach. Nyr Obsi 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.
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. Nyr Obsi can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
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 Nyr Obsi 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.
Use of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies for transactions
– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for Nyr Obsi in the consumer business. Now Nyr Obsi can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Threats The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) are -
Consumer confidence and its impact on Nyr Obsi demand
– There is a high probability of declining consumer confidence, given – high inflammation rate, rise of gig economy, lower job stability, increasing cost of living, higher interest rates, and aging demography. All the factors contribute to people saving higher rate of their income, resulting in lower consumer demand in the industry and other sectors.
Instability in the European markets
– European Union markets are facing three big challenges post Covid – expanded balance sheets, Brexit related business disruption, and aggressive Russia looking to distract the existing security mechanism. Nyr Obsi 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Nyr Obsi 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 The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) .
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Finance & Accounting field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Nyr Obsi can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A), Nyr Obsi may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Finance & Accounting .
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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Nyr Obsi 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 dependence on third party suppliers
– Nyr Obsi high dependence on third party suppliers can disrupt its processes and delivery mechanism. For example -the current troubles of car makers because of chip shortage is because the chip companies started producing chips for electronic companies rather than car manufacturers.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Nyr Obsi in the Finance & Accounting industry. The Finance & Accounting 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.
Environmental challenges
– Nyr Obsi 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. Nyr Obsi can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Finance & Accounting industry.
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 Nyr Obsi.
Regulatory challenges
– Nyr Obsi 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 Finance & Accounting industry regulations.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Nyr Obsi has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Finance & Accounting industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Nyr Obsi needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Finance & Accounting 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) 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 The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) 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 The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) 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 The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) 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 The Ombudsman: Examining Portfolio Risk in Troubled Times (A) 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 Nyr Obsi needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
