The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
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Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978
The case documents the growth strategy that the IMF wanted to orchestrate after the first oil crisis and as the world economy did not return to the growth rates of the 1960s. The case illustrates the pinnacle of Keynesian thinking that prevailed at the time: a view of the international economy as an almost hydraulic system that could be manipulated by government policies at will to reach desirable aggregate targets. The failure of the strategy, among other things, emphasizes the importance of inflationary expectations. The case is also a nice opportunity to discuss the Phillips curve as well as the current global imbalances and what can be done about them.
Swot Analysis of "The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978" written by Peter Debaere includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Keynesian Imf's facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, International business and Global Business.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 casestudy better are - – digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, increasing transportation and logistics costs,
there is backlash against globalization, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Keynesian Imf's, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Keynesian Imf's 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 The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Keynesian Imf's
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 Keynesian Imf's
Strengths The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Keynesian Imf's in The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 Harvard Business Review case study are -
Ability to recruit top talent
– Keynesian Imf's is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Keynesian Imf's 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 The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Global Business industry
– The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Keynesian Imf's to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Global Business industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Keynesian Imf's to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Learning organization
- Keynesian Imf's 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 Keynesian Imf's is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Strong track record of project management
– Keynesian Imf's is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Training and development
– Keynesian Imf's has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Keynesian Imf's has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Keynesian Imf's 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.
Organizational Resilience of Keynesian Imf's
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Keynesian Imf's does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Analytics focus
– Keynesian Imf's 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 Peter Debaere 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.
Ability to lead change in Global Business field
– Keynesian Imf's 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 Keynesian Imf's 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 Keynesian Imf's digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Keynesian Imf's 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Keynesian Imf's in the sector have low bargaining power. The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Keynesian Imf's to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Weaknesses The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 are -
Lack of clear differentiation of Keynesian Imf's products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Keynesian Imf's needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Keynesian Imf's needs to come up with a strategy to reduce the workers concern regarding automation. Without a clear strategy, it could lead to disruption and uncertainty within the organization.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Keynesian Imf's 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978, in the dynamic environment Keynesian Imf's has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Keynesian Imf's has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Keynesian Imf's is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Global Business segment. Keynesian Imf's needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Keynesian Imf's to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Keynesian Imf's 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 - The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Keynesian Imf's has a very deliberative decision making approach. This approach has resulted in prudent decisions, but it has also resulted in missing opportunities in the industry over the last five years. Keynesian Imf's even though has strong showing on digital transformation primary two stages, it has struggled to capitalize the power of digital transformation in marketing efforts and new venture efforts.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Keynesian Imf's 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Keynesian Imf's, firm in the HBR case study The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978, it seems that the employees of Keynesian Imf's don’t have comprehensive understanding of the firm’s strategy. This is reflected in number of promotional campaigns over the last few years that had mixed messaging and competing priorities. Some of the strategic activities and services promoted in the promotional campaigns were not consistent with the organization’s strategy.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Keynesian Imf's 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.
Opportunities The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 | 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 The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 are -
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Keynesian Imf's 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Keynesian Imf's 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 The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Keynesian Imf's to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Keynesian Imf's 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Keynesian Imf's has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Keynesian Imf's to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 case study. Keynesian Imf's can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, 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, Keynesian Imf's can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Keynesian Imf's 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, Keynesian Imf's 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Keynesian Imf's 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, The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Keynesian Imf's 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.
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. Keynesian Imf's 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. Keynesian Imf's 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Keynesian Imf's can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 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.
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 Keynesian Imf's in the consumer business. Now Keynesian Imf's can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Identify volunteer opportunities
– Covid-19 has impacted working population in two ways – it has led to people soul searching about their professional choices, resulting in mass resignation. Secondly it has encouraged people to do things that they are passionate about. This has opened opportunities for businesses to build volunteer oriented socially driven projects. Keynesian Imf's can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Keynesian Imf's can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Threats The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 are -
Increasing wage structure of Keynesian Imf's
– 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 Keynesian Imf's.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Keynesian Imf's is facing in Global Business sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Keynesian Imf's 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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Keynesian Imf's 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.
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 Keynesian Imf's in the Global Business sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
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. Keynesian Imf's 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 Keynesian Imf's business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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. Keynesian Imf's 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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Keynesian Imf's has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Global Business industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Keynesian Imf's 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.
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 Keynesian Imf's.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Keynesian Imf's can face downward pressure on margins from increasing competition from international players. The international players have stable revenue in their home market and can use those resources to penetrate prominent markets illustrated in HBR case study The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 .
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 Keynesian Imf's with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 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 The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 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 The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 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 The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 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 The IMF's Coordinated Growth Strategy of 1977/1978 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 Keynesian Imf's needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.