India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Finance & Accounting
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans
The case deals with U.S. Financial Service Company (USFSC) and its CEO, John P. Lewis, and their consideration whether or not the company should open operations in India. USFSC would either partner with a local financial service company or invest in a new start-up bank branch or representative office in India. Although Lewis is conducting this analysis in 2012, the case covers the time period from 2005 to 2012 to provide background and to review the economic developments and political policies undertaken by the Indian government to recover from the global financial crisis of 2007-2009. The case requires a performance analysis of the financial ability of USFSC to undertake expansion into India and/or the case also requires an assessment of the economic and political risks of investing in India and how to mitigate those risks
Swot Analysis of "India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans" written by F. John Mathis, Frank Tuzzolino includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Usfsc India facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Financial management, International business, Risk management and Finance & Accounting.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans casestudy better are - – technology disruption, increasing energy prices, there is backlash against globalization, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation,
increasing transportation and logistics costs, geopolitical disruptions, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Usfsc India, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Usfsc India 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 India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Usfsc India
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 Usfsc India
Strengths India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Usfsc India in India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans Harvard Business Review case study are -
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Usfsc India 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.
High brand equity
– Usfsc India has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Usfsc India to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Strong track record of project management
– Usfsc India 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 recruit top talent
– Usfsc India is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Usfsc India in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Usfsc India 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Usfsc India 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 India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Ability to lead change in Finance & Accounting field
– Usfsc India 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 Usfsc India in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Diverse revenue streams
– Usfsc India is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans 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.
Analytics focus
– Usfsc India 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 F. John Mathis, Frank Tuzzolino 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.
Organizational Resilience of Usfsc India
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Usfsc India does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Innovation driven organization
– Usfsc India is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Weaknesses India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans are -
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans 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 Usfsc India has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
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 Usfsc India supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Usfsc India vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Need for greater diversity
– Usfsc India 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Usfsc India is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans, in the dynamic environment Usfsc India has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Usfsc India has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Usfsc India, firm in the HBR case study India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Lack of clear differentiation of Usfsc India products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Usfsc India needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Usfsc India is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Finance & Accounting segment. Usfsc India needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Usfsc India to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, F. John Mathis, Frank Tuzzolino suggests that, Usfsc India 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.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Usfsc India 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 strategic competitive environment developments
– As India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans HBR case study mentions - Usfsc India takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the industry in last five years.
Opportunities India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans | 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 India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans are -
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Usfsc India to conduct training and development for its employees across the world. This will result in not only reducing the cost of training but also help employees in different part of the world to integrate with the headquarter work culture, ethos, and standards.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Usfsc India can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Usfsc India operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Finance & Accounting sector.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Usfsc India 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, India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
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. Usfsc India can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Buying journey improvements
– Usfsc India can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Usfsc India 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 Usfsc India to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Developing new processes and practices
– Usfsc India 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Usfsc India 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Usfsc India 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.
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 Usfsc India in the consumer business. Now Usfsc India can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
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 Usfsc India 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Usfsc India to increase its market reach. Usfsc India 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Usfsc India 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.
Threats India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans are -
Regulatory challenges
– Usfsc India 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.
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. Usfsc India can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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 Usfsc India business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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 Usfsc India in the Finance & Accounting sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Usfsc India 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Usfsc India is facing in Finance & Accounting sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans, Usfsc India 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 .
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 Usfsc India with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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 Usfsc India.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Usfsc India 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.
Increasing wage structure of Usfsc India
– 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 Usfsc India.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Usfsc India has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Finance & Accounting industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Usfsc India 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 India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans 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 India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans 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 India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans 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 India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans 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 India Faces a Power Failure: U.S. Financial Service Company Expansion Plans 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 Usfsc India needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
