Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Global Business
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A)
Working with Shell's country manager for Nigeria, the company's Committee of Managing Directors must decide how to respond to the Nigerian government's decision to impose the death sentence on Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight other leaders of a movement for the rights of the Ogoni (one of Nigeria's 240 ethnic groups). As the case opens, Saro-Wiwa and his codefendants have just been found guilty of inciting murder in a trial that international observers have criticized as deeply flawed. Saro-Wiwa, an environmentalist, writer, businessman, television producer, and human rights activist, has been a vocal critic of not only the Nigerian government but also Shell. Provides background on Shell, on its business in Nigeria, and on environmental and human rights issues in the Niger Delta. Recommended for use with [399129], [300039], [300040], and [310038]. Supplemented by [399127].
Swot Analysis of "Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A)" written by Lynn Sharp Paine, Mihnea C. Moldoveanu includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Saro Wiwa facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Ethics, Government, Social responsibility, Sustainability and Global Business.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A) casestudy better are - – customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, geopolitical disruptions, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, increasing commodity prices, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, increasing transportation and logistics costs, there is backlash against globalization,
central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Saro Wiwa, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Saro Wiwa 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 Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Saro Wiwa
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Global Business field.
4. Making a Global Business topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Saro Wiwa
Strengths Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Saro Wiwa in Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A) Harvard Business Review case study are -
Innovation driven organization
– Saro Wiwa is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A) Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Saro Wiwa in the sector have low bargaining power. Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A) has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Saro Wiwa to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Saro Wiwa 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 Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (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.
Ability to lead change in Global Business field
– Saro Wiwa 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 Saro Wiwa in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Digital Transformation in Global Business segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Saro Wiwa digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Saro Wiwa 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
– Saro Wiwa 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 Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A) HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Learning organization
- Saro Wiwa 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 Saro Wiwa is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A) Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Saro Wiwa 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Global Business industry
– Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A) firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Saro Wiwa to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Global Business industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Saro Wiwa to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Saro Wiwa in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Saro Wiwa is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A) are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Saro Wiwa has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Saro Wiwa 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.
Weaknesses Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A) are -
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Saro Wiwa 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Saro Wiwa 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Saro Wiwa is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Global Business segment. Saro Wiwa needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Saro Wiwa to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Saro Wiwa 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Saro Wiwa, firm in the HBR case study Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A) needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A) 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 Saro Wiwa 's lucrative customers.
Need for greater diversity
– Saro Wiwa 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A), in the dynamic environment Saro Wiwa has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Saro Wiwa has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A) HBR case study mentions - Saro Wiwa 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A), it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Global Business 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Saro Wiwa 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 - Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A) should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Opportunities Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (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 Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A) are -
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Global Business industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Saro Wiwa can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Saro Wiwa is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A) case study suggests that firm can utilize new technology to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.
Developing new processes and practices
– Saro Wiwa can develop new processes and procedures in Global Business 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Saro Wiwa can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Saro Wiwa operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Global Business sector.
Manufacturing automation
– Saro Wiwa can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Global Business 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Saro Wiwa in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Global Business segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
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 Saro Wiwa 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Saro Wiwa can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A) 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Saro Wiwa has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Saro Wiwa to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A) case study. Saro Wiwa can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Saro Wiwa 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 Global Business segment.
Loyalty marketing
– Saro Wiwa 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Saro Wiwa 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
– Saro Wiwa 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.
Threats Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A) are -
Regulatory challenges
– Saro Wiwa 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 Global Business industry regulations.
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.
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 Saro Wiwa.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Saro Wiwa 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.
Environmental challenges
– Saro Wiwa 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. Saro Wiwa can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Global Business industry.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (A), Saro Wiwa may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Global Business .
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.
Increasing wage structure of Saro Wiwa
– 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 Saro Wiwa.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Global Business field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Saro Wiwa can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Saro Wiwa with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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. Saro Wiwa needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Global Business industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Saro Wiwa has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Global Business industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Saro Wiwa needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Global Business 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. Saro Wiwa 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (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 Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (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 Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (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 Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (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 Royal Dutch/Shell in Nigeria (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 Saro Wiwa needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.