bp and Corporate Greenwash SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution

Case Study Description of bp and Corporate Greenwash

Bp's green re-branding efforts began officially with the unveiling of its new bp Helios mark, named after the Greek sun god. The new logo did away with 70 years of corporate branding, replacing the bp shield, long associated in consumers' minds with the strength of British imperialism. The Helios mark cost US$7 million to develop and was forecast to cost the company another US$100 million a year to integrate into marketing and operations over the next two years. At the logo's unveiling, the company's chief executive officer directed attention to the company's recent purchase of the solar energy company Solarex, an acquisition that made bp the world's largest solar energy company. The unveiling of the Helios logo was a formalization of a re-branding strategy that had begun to emerge the year before with the CEO's announcement that 200 new bp sites around the world would be powered in part by solar energy, through solar panels placed on the roofs of gas pumps, and his commitment to reducing bp's own carbon dioxide emissions by 10 per cent by the year 2010. From the start, however, environmental groups heaped scorn on bp's green re-branding. Greenpeace gave the company its Greenhouse Greenwash Award, given to the largest "corporate climate culprit" on earth.

Authors :: Michael Sider

Topics :: Global Business

Tags :: Ethics, Human resource management, International business, Marketing, Public relations, Strategy, Sustainability, SWOT Analysis, SWOT Matrix, TOWS, Weighted SWOT Analysis

Swot Analysis of "bp and Corporate Greenwash" written by Michael Sider includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Bp Helios facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in bp and Corporate Greenwash case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Ethics, Human resource management, International business, Marketing, Public relations, Strategy, Sustainability and Global Business.

Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the bp and Corporate Greenwash casestudy better are - – wage bills are increasing, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, geopolitical disruptions, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, there is backlash against globalization, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, technology disruption, increasing energy prices, etc

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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of bp and Corporate Greenwash

SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in bp and Corporate Greenwash case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Bp Helios, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Bp Helios 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.

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SWOT Objectives / Importance of SWOT Analysis and SWOT Matrix

SWOT analysis of bp and Corporate Greenwash can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in bp and Corporate Greenwash case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Bp Helios
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 Bp Helios

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Strengths bp and Corporate Greenwash | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of Bp Helios in bp and Corporate Greenwash Harvard Business Review case study are -

Diverse revenue streams

– Bp Helios is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in bp and Corporate Greenwash 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.

Cross disciplinary teams

– Horizontal connected teams at the Bp Helios 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.

Successful track record of launching new products

– Bp Helios has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Bp Helios 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.

High brand equity

– Bp Helios has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Bp Helios to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.

Learning organization

- Bp Helios 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 Bp Helios is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in bp and Corporate Greenwash Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.

Operational resilience

– The operational resilience strategy in the bp and Corporate Greenwash 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.

High switching costs

– The high switching costs that Bp Helios 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.

Ability to recruit top talent

– Bp Helios is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the bp and Corporate Greenwash are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.

Analytics focus

– Bp Helios 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 Michael Sider 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.

Effective Research and Development (R&D)

– Bp Helios 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 bp and Corporate Greenwash - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.

Low bargaining power of suppliers

– Suppliers of Bp Helios in the sector have low bargaining power. bp and Corporate Greenwash has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Bp Helios to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.

Training and development

– Bp Helios has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in bp and Corporate Greenwash 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.

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Weaknesses bp and Corporate Greenwash | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of bp and Corporate Greenwash are -

Interest costs

– Compare to the competition, Bp Helios has borrowed money from the capital market at higher rates. It needs to restructure the interest payment and costs so that it can compete better and improve profitability.

Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy

– From the instances in the HBR case study bp and Corporate Greenwash, it seems that the employees of Bp Helios 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.

Slow to harness new channels of communication

– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Bp Helios is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study bp and Corporate Greenwash can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.

Lack of clear differentiation of Bp Helios products

– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Bp Helios needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.

Aligning sales with marketing

– It come across in the case study bp and Corporate Greenwash 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 bp and Corporate Greenwash can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Bp Helios is planning to shift buying processes online.

Slow to strategic competitive environment developments

– As bp and Corporate Greenwash HBR case study mentions - Bp Helios 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.

High bargaining power of channel partners

– Because of the regulatory requirements, Michael Sider suggests that, Bp Helios is facing high bargaining power of the channel partners. So far it has not able to streamline the operations to reduce the bargaining power of the value chain partners in the industry.

Need for greater diversity

– Bp Helios 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.

Products dominated business model

– Even though Bp Helios 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 - bp and Corporate Greenwash should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.

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 Bp Helios supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - bp and Corporate Greenwash, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Bp Helios vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.

Compensation and incentives

– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study bp and Corporate Greenwash, is just above the industry average. Bp Helios 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.

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Opportunities bp and Corporate Greenwash | 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 bp and Corporate Greenwash are -

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 Bp Helios 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.

Learning at scale

– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Bp Helios 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.

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. Bp Helios can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.

Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains

– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Bp Helios 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, bp and Corporate Greenwash, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.

Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19

– Consumer behavior has changed in the Global Business industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Bp Helios can take advantage of these changes in consumer behavior to build a far more efficient business model. For example consumer regular ordering of products can reduce both last mile delivery costs and market penetration costs. Bp Helios can further use this consumer data to build better customer loyalty, provide better products and service collection, and improve the value proposition in inflationary times.

Developing new processes and practices

– Bp Helios 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.

Better consumer reach

– The expansion of the 5G network will help Bp Helios to increase its market reach. Bp Helios 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.

Building a culture of innovation

– managers at Bp Helios 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.

Redefining models of collaboration and team work

– As explained in the weaknesses section, Bp Helios is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. bp and Corporate Greenwash 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.

Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities

– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Bp Helios 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 Bp Helios to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.

Lowering marketing communication costs

– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Bp Helios 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.

Creating value in data economy

– The success of analytics program of Bp Helios has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Bp Helios to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the bp and Corporate Greenwash case study. Bp Helios can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.

Loyalty marketing

– Bp Helios 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.

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Threats bp and Corporate Greenwash External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The threats mentioned in the HBR case study bp and Corporate Greenwash 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 Bp Helios.

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. Bp Helios can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.

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.

Barriers of entry lowering

– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Bp Helios with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.

Learning curve for new practices

– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study bp and Corporate Greenwash, Bp Helios 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 .

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 Bp Helios business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.

High dependence on third party suppliers

– Bp Helios 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.

Shortening product life cycle

– it is one of the major threat that Bp Helios is facing in Global Business sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.

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.

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. Bp Helios 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.

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 Bp Helios in the Global Business sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.

Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution

– Bp Helios has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Global Business industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Bp Helios 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.

Stagnating economy with rate increase

– Bp Helios 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.

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Weighted SWOT Analysis of bp and Corporate Greenwash 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 bp and Corporate Greenwash 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 bp and Corporate Greenwash 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 bp and Corporate Greenwash 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 bp and Corporate Greenwash 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 Bp Helios needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.

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