Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Global Business
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS
Describes how major pharmaceutical firms changed their strategy and pricing policies in the years 2000 to 2002 to respond to the growing AIDS epidemic in Africa.
Authors :: Nicholas Bartlett, Debora L. Spar
Topics :: Global Business
Tags :: Intellectual property, International business, Social responsibility, SWOT Analysis, SWOT Matrix, TOWS, Weighted SWOT Analysis
Swot Analysis of "Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS" written by Nicholas Bartlett, Debora L. Spar includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Aids Pharmaceutical facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Intellectual property, International business, Social responsibility and Global Business.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS casestudy better are - – wage bills are increasing, geopolitical disruptions, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%,
technology disruption, increasing transportation and logistics costs, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Aids Pharmaceutical, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Aids Pharmaceutical 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 Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Aids Pharmaceutical
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 Aids Pharmaceutical
Strengths Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Aids Pharmaceutical in Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS Harvard Business Review case study are -
Analytics focus
– Aids Pharmaceutical 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 Nicholas Bartlett, Debora L. Spar 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 Aids Pharmaceutical in the sector have low bargaining power. Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Aids Pharmaceutical to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Training and development
– Aids Pharmaceutical has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS 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.
Organizational Resilience of Aids Pharmaceutical
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Aids Pharmaceutical does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Ability to lead change in Global Business field
– Aids Pharmaceutical 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 Aids Pharmaceutical in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Aids Pharmaceutical 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Aids Pharmaceutical 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 Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Aids Pharmaceutical is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
High brand equity
– Aids Pharmaceutical has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Aids Pharmaceutical to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Strong track record of project management
– Aids Pharmaceutical is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Diverse revenue streams
– Aids Pharmaceutical is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Aids Pharmaceutical is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Weaknesses Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS are -
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Aids Pharmaceutical 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.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS HBR case study mentions - Aids Pharmaceutical 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS, is just above the industry average. Aids Pharmaceutical 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Aids Pharmaceutical, firm in the HBR case study Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Aids Pharmaceutical is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Global Business segment. Aids Pharmaceutical needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Aids Pharmaceutical to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Aids Pharmaceutical 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Aids Pharmaceutical is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS 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 Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS, in the dynamic environment Aids Pharmaceutical has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Aids Pharmaceutical has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS 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 Aids Pharmaceutical has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Aids Pharmaceutical 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 - Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Aids Pharmaceutical 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.
Opportunities Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS | 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 Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS are -
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Aids Pharmaceutical 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, Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Buying journey improvements
– Aids Pharmaceutical can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS 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.
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. Aids Pharmaceutical can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Aids Pharmaceutical has spent a significant amount of money and effort to integrate analytics and machine learning into its operations in the sector. This continuous investment in analytics has enabled, as illustrated in the Harvard case study Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Aids Pharmaceutical to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Aids Pharmaceutical is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Aids Pharmaceutical can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Aids Pharmaceutical 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 Aids Pharmaceutical to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Manufacturing automation
– Aids Pharmaceutical 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Aids Pharmaceutical 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.
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. Aids Pharmaceutical 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. Aids Pharmaceutical 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Aids Pharmaceutical can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Aids Pharmaceutical operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Global Business sector.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Aids Pharmaceutical 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Aids Pharmaceutical has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Aids Pharmaceutical to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS case study. Aids Pharmaceutical can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Threats Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS are -
Consumer confidence and its impact on Aids Pharmaceutical 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.
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. Aids Pharmaceutical needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Global Business industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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 Aids Pharmaceutical.
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. Aids Pharmaceutical 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.
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 Aids Pharmaceutical business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Aids Pharmaceutical with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Aids Pharmaceutical 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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS, Aids Pharmaceutical 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 .
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Aids Pharmaceutical has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Global Business industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Aids Pharmaceutical 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.
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.
Increasing wage structure of Aids Pharmaceutical
– 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 Aids Pharmaceutical.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Aids Pharmaceutical in the Global Business industry. The Global Business 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS 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 Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS 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 Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS 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 Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS 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 Phase Two: The Pharmaceutical Industry Responds to AIDS 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 Aids Pharmaceutical needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.