Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Organizational Development
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B)
Supplement to case 418055. In September 2008, Robert Steel presided over the sale of Wachovia, a top U.S. bank, less than three months after becoming its CEO. Wachovia's exposure to risky home loans led depositors and creditors to flee the bank on Friday, September 26, after the FDIC seized and sold a smaller bank with similar exposure, whose collapse nonetheless made it the biggest bank failure in U.S. history. Faced with Wachovia's impending bankruptcy, the FDIC intervened again, voting on Monday, September 29 to sell Wachovia's retail bank to Citigroup for $1 a share. Three days later, Wells Fargo offered $7 a share for all of Wachovia. Steel needed to decide whether to honor the terms of the deal and exclusivity agreement already sketched out with Citigroup or to approve a definitive merger agreement with Wells Fargo.
Authors :: Gautam Mukunda, Nien-he Hsieh, David Lane
Swot Analysis of "Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B)" written by Gautam Mukunda, Nien-he Hsieh, David Lane includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Wachovia's Wachovia facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Ethics, Financial management, Leadership, Mergers & acquisitions, Recession and Organizational Development.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) casestudy better are - – technology disruption, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, geopolitical disruptions, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, there is backlash against globalization, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies,
increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, increasing commodity prices, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Wachovia's Wachovia, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Wachovia's Wachovia 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 Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Wachovia's Wachovia
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 Wachovia's Wachovia
Strengths Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Wachovia's Wachovia in Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) Harvard Business Review case study are -
Ability to lead change in Organizational Development field
– Wachovia's Wachovia 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 Wachovia's Wachovia in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Wachovia's Wachovia 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 Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Wachovia's Wachovia in the sector have low bargaining power. Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Wachovia's Wachovia to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Diverse revenue streams
– Wachovia's Wachovia is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) 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.
Organizational Resilience of Wachovia's Wachovia
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Wachovia's Wachovia does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Innovation driven organization
– Wachovia's Wachovia is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
High brand equity
– Wachovia's Wachovia has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Wachovia's Wachovia to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Learning organization
- Wachovia's Wachovia 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 Wachovia's Wachovia is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Wachovia's Wachovia 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Wachovia's Wachovia is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Training and development
– Wachovia's Wachovia has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Wachovia's Wachovia 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 Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Weaknesses Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) are -
Lack of clear differentiation of Wachovia's Wachovia products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Wachovia's Wachovia needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) 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 Wachovia's Wachovia 's lucrative customers.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) 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 Wachovia's Wachovia has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Wachovia's Wachovia, firm in the HBR case study Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Wachovia's Wachovia 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 - Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Wachovia's Wachovia 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B), 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) 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 Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Wachovia's Wachovia is planning to shift buying processes online.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Wachovia's Wachovia is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Organizational Development segment. Wachovia's Wachovia needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Wachovia's Wachovia to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Wachovia's Wachovia 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Wachovia's Wachovia 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.
Opportunities Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) | 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 Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) are -
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Wachovia's Wachovia 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, Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B), to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Wachovia's Wachovia 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 Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Wachovia's Wachovia to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
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. Wachovia's Wachovia can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Wachovia's Wachovia can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Developing new processes and practices
– Wachovia's Wachovia 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Wachovia's Wachovia is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Wachovia's Wachovia in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Organizational Development segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Wachovia's Wachovia 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 Wachovia's Wachovia to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Wachovia's Wachovia has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Wachovia's Wachovia to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) case study. Wachovia's Wachovia can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Wachovia's Wachovia 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Wachovia's Wachovia 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.
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. Wachovia's Wachovia can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
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 Wachovia's Wachovia in the consumer business. Now Wachovia's Wachovia can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Threats Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) are -
Consumer confidence and its impact on Wachovia's Wachovia 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Wachovia's Wachovia is facing in Organizational Development sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Wachovia's Wachovia 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 Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) .
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. Wachovia's Wachovia can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Wachovia's Wachovia 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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B), Wachovia's Wachovia may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Organizational Development .
Regulatory challenges
– Wachovia's Wachovia 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 Organizational Development industry regulations.
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 Wachovia's Wachovia.
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. Wachovia's Wachovia needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Organizational Development industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Wachovia's Wachovia 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Wachovia's Wachovia with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Environmental challenges
– Wachovia's Wachovia 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. Wachovia's Wachovia can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Organizational Development industry.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) 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 Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) 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 Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) 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 Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) 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 Robert K. Steel at Wachovia (B) 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 Wachovia's Wachovia needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.