The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Innovation & Entrepreneurship
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far?
The Nature Centre was a non-profit organization created in 1972 to manage public outreach and access in the Gault reserve on the Mt St-Hilaire mountain, 40 km south of Montreal. Beyond conservation and recreation, the 2001 new mission included the promotion of the conservation of the region's natural environment. The inclusion of this new regional focus led to the recruitment of Marc-AndrA? Guertin and the creation of the Conservation Team. The case introduced the challenge faced in early 2006 by Marc-AndrA? Guertin, Project Coordinator of the Conservation Team at the Nature Centre when he received a contract proposal for a biodiversity assessment to be conducted in a regional municipal county located 58 km away, i.e., far out of the Nature Centre's usual scope of action. He was considering this decision based on (1) the broader context of the organization's mission, (2) the management of his team, (3) the scientific value of this assessment for his team, and last, (4) the financial dimension of this assessment on his team's tight resources
Swot Analysis of "The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far?" written by Emmanuel ER Raufflet, Maria MT Tengo includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Conservation Guertin facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Sustainability and Innovation & Entrepreneurship.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? casestudy better are - – cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, geopolitical disruptions, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, increasing commodity prices,
increasing household debt because of falling income levels, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far?
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Conservation Guertin, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Conservation Guertin 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 Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Conservation Guertin
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Innovation & Entrepreneurship field.
4. Making a Innovation & Entrepreneurship topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Conservation Guertin
Strengths The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Conservation Guertin in The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? Harvard Business Review case study are -
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? 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.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Conservation Guertin is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Conservation Guertin 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 The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Diverse revenue streams
– Conservation Guertin is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? 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.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Conservation Guertin 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Conservation Guertin in the sector have low bargaining power. The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Conservation Guertin to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Analytics focus
– Conservation Guertin 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 Emmanuel ER Raufflet, Maria MT Tengo 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)
– Conservation Guertin 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 Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Conservation Guertin has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Conservation Guertin 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 Conservation Guertin
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Conservation Guertin does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Strong track record of project management
– Conservation Guertin is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry
– The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Conservation Guertin to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Conservation Guertin to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Weaknesses The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? are -
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? 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 Conservation Guertin has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Emmanuel ER Raufflet, Maria MT Tengo suggests that, Conservation Guertin 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Conservation Guertin is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Conservation Guertin 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.
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 Conservation Guertin supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far?, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Conservation Guertin vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far?, is just above the industry average. Conservation Guertin 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Conservation Guertin 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 Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far?, it seems that the employees of Conservation Guertin 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 Conservation Guertin 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Conservation Guertin is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship segment. Conservation Guertin needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Conservation Guertin to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far?, in the dynamic environment Conservation Guertin has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Conservation Guertin has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Opportunities The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? | 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 Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? are -
Leveraging digital technologies
– Conservation Guertin 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Conservation Guertin 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 Innovation & Entrepreneurship segment.
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 Conservation Guertin 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Conservation Guertin 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 Conservation Guertin to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Conservation Guertin 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.
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. Conservation Guertin can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
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 Conservation Guertin in the consumer business. Now Conservation Guertin can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Conservation Guertin 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. Conservation Guertin 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
– Conservation Guertin can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Conservation Guertin can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Innovation & Entrepreneurship 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Conservation Guertin to increase its market reach. Conservation Guertin 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Conservation Guertin can develop new processes and procedures in Innovation & Entrepreneurship 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Conservation Guertin 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 Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far?, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Threats The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? are -
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.
Regulatory challenges
– Conservation Guertin 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 Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry regulations.
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 Conservation Guertin in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Conservation Guertin 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.
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. Conservation Guertin 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Conservation Guertin 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.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Innovation & Entrepreneurship field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Conservation Guertin 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 Conservation Guertin business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Conservation Guertin is facing in Innovation & Entrepreneurship sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far?, Conservation Guertin may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Innovation & Entrepreneurship .
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 international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Conservation Guertin 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 Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? .
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 Conservation Guertin.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of The Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? 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 Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? 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 Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? 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 Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? 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 Nature Centre at Mont Saint-Hilaire: How Far? 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 Conservation Guertin needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
