From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Innovation & Entrepreneurship
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem
In June 2016, Benjamin (Bibi) Netanyahu, Prime Minister of Israel, wrestled with how to sustain Israel's strong innovation track record and the country's reputation as the 'startup nation.' Despite the economic miracle the country had wrought since its founding, he knew he could not be complacent. On the one hand, in 2015 Israeli start-ups raised record-breaking amounts of venture capital, and exits for the year totaled over $8 Billion. On the other hand, government expenditure on R&D had decreased and Israel's position in the Global Innovation Index had fallen. Several other indicators, such as achievement tests among elementary school students in math and science, painted a grim picture. Furthermore, in spite of the wealth created by many high-tech Israeli firms, socioeconomic gaps in the country had widened. A two-tier economy had formed. The long-term sustainability of the "innovation economy" was in doubt, as the sector faced increased competition from foreign innovation hubs, was being reshaped by the growth of Multinational Corporations (MNCs) locating R&D centers in Israel, and had to contend with a vexing shortage of human capital and low labor force participation among some groups. Netanyahu had to assess whether it was time to sound the alarm, and whether drastic and immediate measures were needed to right the innovation economy ship. Bibi mulled over which policies or interventions would best curb the erosion of Israel's competitive position as an innovation powerhouse and how best to promote social equality. He pondered whether public policy could make a difference or whether the market and societal currents, responsible for these trends, were too strong for him and his government to try to contend with. Several prominent figures, including the Governor of the Central Bank of Israel, Knesset members, Israel's Chief Scientist, prominent business leaders, academics, and journalists weigh in on the formation of the Israeli entrepreneurial and innovation ecosystem, the challenges it faces going forward, and what approaches might help it continue to thrive.
Authors :: Elie Ofek, Margot Eiran
Topics :: Innovation & Entrepreneurship
Tags :: Economy, Global strategy, Globalization, Government, Research & development, Venture capital, SWOT Analysis, SWOT Matrix, TOWS, Weighted SWOT Analysis
Swot Analysis of "From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem" written by Elie Ofek, Margot Eiran includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Israel's Israeli facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Economy, Global strategy, Globalization, Government, Research & development, Venture capital and Innovation & Entrepreneurship.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem casestudy better are - – customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, increasing commodity prices, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, increasing energy prices,
wage bills are increasing, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Israel's Israeli, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Israel's Israeli 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 From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Israel's Israeli
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 Israel's Israeli
Strengths From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Israel's Israeli in From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem Harvard Business Review case study are -
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Israel's Israeli 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Israel's Israeli 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Israel's Israeli is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Innovation driven organization
– Israel's Israeli is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Diverse revenue streams
– Israel's Israeli is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem 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.
Learning organization
- Israel's Israeli 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 Israel's Israeli is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Israel's Israeli in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Digital Transformation in Innovation & Entrepreneurship segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Israel's Israeli digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Israel's Israeli 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.
Training and development
– Israel's Israeli has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem 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.
Ability to lead change in Innovation & Entrepreneurship field
– Israel's Israeli 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 Israel's Israeli in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Israel's Israeli has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Israel's Israeli 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.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Israel's Israeli is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Weaknesses From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem are -
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem 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 From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Israel's Israeli is planning to shift buying processes online.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Israel's Israeli 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 - From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Israel's Israeli has a high cash cycle compare to other players in the industry. It needs to shorten the cash cycle by 12% to be more competitive in the marketplace, reduce inventory costs, and be more profitable.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Israel's Israeli 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. Israel's Israeli 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Israel's Israeli is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Israel's Israeli 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Innovation & Entrepreneurship strategy. But it has very little resources allocation to manage the risks emerging from events such as natural disasters, climate change, melting of permafrost, tacking the rise of artificial intelligence, opportunities and threats emerging from commercialization of space etc.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Israel's Israeli 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Israel's Israeli 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Israel's Israeli is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship segment. Israel's Israeli needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Israel's Israeli to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem, it seems that the employees of Israel's Israeli 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.
Opportunities From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem | 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 From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem are -
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Israel's Israeli can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Israel's Israeli 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Israel's Israeli is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Israel's Israeli to increase its market reach. Israel's Israeli 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
– Israel's Israeli 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Israel's Israeli 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.
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. Israel's Israeli 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. Israel's Israeli 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Israel's Israeli 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.
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. Israel's Israeli can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Israel's Israeli can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Israel's Israeli 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Israel's Israeli 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 Israel's Israeli to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Israel's Israeli has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Israel's Israeli to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem case study. Israel's Israeli can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Threats From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem are -
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Israel's Israeli 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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Israel's Israeli has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Israel's Israeli needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship 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.
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. Israel's Israeli needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Increasing wage structure of Israel's Israeli
– 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 Israel's Israeli.
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 Israel's Israeli business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Israel's Israeli in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. The Innovation & Entrepreneurship 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.
Environmental challenges
– Israel's Israeli needs to have a robust strategy against the disruptions arising from climate change and energy requirements. EU has identified it as key priority area and spending 30% of its 880 billion Euros European post Covid-19 recovery funds on green technology. Israel's Israeli can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry.
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.
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. Israel's Israeli 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.
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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem, Israel's Israeli 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 .
Regulatory challenges
– Israel's Israeli 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Israel's Israeli 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 From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem 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 From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem 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 From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem 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 From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem 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 From Start-Up to Grown-Up Nation: The Future of the Israeli Innovation Ecosystem 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 Israel's Israeli needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.