University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Finance & Accounting
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007
This case involves the decision to move investment funds to a new fund manager. The new fund has high percentage of its assets in nontraditional assets such as hedge funds and private equity. The learning objectives of the case are to provide background on the different types of assets available for investment by large endowment portfolios. The case also provides an opportunity to discuss market efficiency and the risk return trades involved with nontraditional assets.
Swot Analysis of "University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007" written by Robert M. Conroy includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Assets Nontraditional facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, and Finance & Accounting.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 casestudy better are - – wage bills are increasing, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, geopolitical disruptions, increasing household debt because of falling income levels,
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%, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Assets Nontraditional, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Assets Nontraditional 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 University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Assets Nontraditional
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 Assets Nontraditional
Strengths University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Assets Nontraditional in University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 Harvard Business Review case study are -
Strong track record of project management
– Assets Nontraditional is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Ability to lead change in Finance & Accounting field
– Assets Nontraditional 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 Assets Nontraditional in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Assets Nontraditional 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 University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Digital Transformation in Finance & Accounting segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Assets Nontraditional digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Assets Nontraditional 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Assets Nontraditional 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 University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Organizational Resilience of Assets Nontraditional
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Assets Nontraditional does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Assets Nontraditional has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Assets Nontraditional has effective processes in place that helps in exploring new product needs, doing quick pilot testing, and then launching the products quickly using its extensive distribution network.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Assets Nontraditional 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.
Analytics focus
– Assets Nontraditional 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 Robert M. Conroy 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Assets Nontraditional in the sector have low bargaining power. University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Assets Nontraditional to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Learning organization
- Assets Nontraditional 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 Assets Nontraditional is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Weaknesses University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 are -
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007, 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Assets Nontraditional, firm in the HBR case study University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 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 Assets Nontraditional has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007, it seems that the employees of Assets Nontraditional 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.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Assets Nontraditional 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007, is just above the industry average. Assets Nontraditional needs to redesign the compensation structure and incentives to increase the revenue per employees. Some of the steps that it can take are – hiring more specialists on project basis, etc.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Assets Nontraditional has not been able to do capital spending to the tune of the competition. This has resulted into fewer innovations and company facing stiff competition from both existing competitors and new entrants who are disrupting the industry using digital technology.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Robert M. Conroy suggests that, Assets Nontraditional 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Assets Nontraditional 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 - University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Assets Nontraditional is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Finance & Accounting segment. Assets Nontraditional needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Assets Nontraditional to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Assets Nontraditional 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.
Opportunities University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 | 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 University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 are -
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Assets Nontraditional can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Assets Nontraditional 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.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Finance & Accounting industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Assets Nontraditional can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Assets Nontraditional 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.
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 Assets Nontraditional 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.
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. Assets Nontraditional can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Assets Nontraditional 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 Assets Nontraditional to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
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 Assets Nontraditional in the consumer business. Now Assets Nontraditional can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Assets Nontraditional has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Assets Nontraditional to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 case study. Assets Nontraditional can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Developing new processes and practices
– Assets Nontraditional can develop new processes and procedures in Finance & Accounting 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Assets Nontraditional can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 suggest that firm can provide automated chats to help consumers solve their own problems, provide online suggestions to get maximum out of the products and services, and help consumers to build a community where they can interact with each other to develop new features and uses.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Assets Nontraditional to increase its market reach. Assets Nontraditional 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Assets Nontraditional 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.
Threats University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 are -
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 Assets Nontraditional.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007, Assets Nontraditional 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 .
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Assets Nontraditional with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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. Assets Nontraditional can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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.
Environmental challenges
– Assets Nontraditional 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. Assets Nontraditional can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Finance & Accounting industry.
Increasing wage structure of Assets Nontraditional
– 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 Assets Nontraditional.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Assets Nontraditional 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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Assets Nontraditional has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Finance & Accounting industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Assets Nontraditional 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.
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. Assets Nontraditional 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Assets Nontraditional 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.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Assets Nontraditional 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.
Backlash against dominant players
– US Congress and other legislative arms of the government are getting tough on big business especially technology companies. The digital arm of Assets Nontraditional business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 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 University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 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 University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 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 University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 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 University of Virginia Investment Management Company (UVIMCO)-2007 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 Assets Nontraditional needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.