Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Finance & Accounting
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy?
The Bank of Japan's (BOJ) policy board convened for a two-day meeting starting March 8, 2006. It was expected the BOJ's Policy Board would decided to end its five-year, super-loose monetary stance, mainly because a set of predetermined conditions for terminating the quantitative easing had been met--including steady year-on-year growth in the core CPI (consumer price index). Under the quantitative easing approach, the BOJ had flooded the market with far greater amounts of liquidity than needed. A decision to end the policy meant Japan was returning to a normal monetary stance targeting interest rates after five years of pursuing an unorthodox policy designed to combat persistent deflation. The BOJ's decision was not easy. Although the law established the BOJ's independence, there was considerable opposition from the government, including Prime Minister Koizumi in particular, to an early dropping of the quantitative monetary easing. Because no major central bank had ever had such a loose-money policy, no one knew for sure how to end it smoothly.
Swot Analysis of "Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy?" written by Mitsuru Misawa includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Easing Boj's facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Financial management, Policy and Finance & Accounting.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? casestudy better are - – there is backlash against globalization, technology disruption, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, wage bills are increasing, increasing transportation and logistics costs, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google,
competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy?
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Easing Boj's, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Easing Boj'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 Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Easing Boj's
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Finance & Accounting field.
4. Making a Finance & Accounting topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Easing Boj's
Strengths Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Easing Boj's in Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? Harvard Business Review case study are -
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Finance & Accounting industry
– Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Easing Boj's to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Finance & Accounting industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Easing Boj's to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Ability to lead change in Finance & Accounting field
– Easing Boj'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 Easing Boj's in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Easing Boj's are driving operational speed, building greater agility, and keeping the organization nimble to compete with new competitors. It helps are organization to ideate new ideas, and execute them swiftly in the marketplace.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Easing Boj's has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Easing Boj'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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Easing Boj's 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 Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Organizational Resilience of Easing Boj's
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Easing Boj's does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Learning organization
- Easing Boj'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 Easing Boj's is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Innovation driven organization
– Easing Boj's is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Easing Boj's in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Strong track record of project management
– Easing Boj'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
– Easing Boj's has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? 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.
Diverse revenue streams
– Easing Boj's is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? 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.
Weaknesses Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? are -
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy?, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Finance & Accounting 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Easing Boj's, firm in the HBR case study Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Need for greater diversity
– Easing Boj's has taken concrete steps on diversity, equity, and inclusion. But the efforts so far has resulted in limited success. It needs to expand the recruitment and selection process to hire more people from the minorities and underprivileged background.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy?, in the dynamic environment Easing Boj's has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Easing Boj's has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Easing Boj's is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy?, it seems that the employees of Easing Boj'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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Easing Boj'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.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? HBR case study mentions - Easing Boj's 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.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Easing Boj'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. Easing Boj'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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Easing Boj's products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Easing Boj's needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Easing Boj'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.
Opportunities Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? | 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 Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? are -
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Easing Boj'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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Easing Boj's has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Easing Boj's to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? case study. Easing Boj's can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Manufacturing automation
– Easing Boj's can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Finance & Accounting 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Easing Boj's can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
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 Easing Boj's 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Easing Boj'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 Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Easing Boj's to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Developing new processes and practices
– Easing Boj's can develop new processes and procedures in Finance & Accounting 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.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Finance & Accounting industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Easing Boj'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. Easing Boj'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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Easing Boj'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, Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy?, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
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 Easing Boj's in the consumer business. Now Easing Boj's can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Easing Boj's 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 Easing Boj's to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Easing Boj's 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 Finance & Accounting segment.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Easing Boj's can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Easing Boj's operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Finance & Accounting sector.
Threats Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? are -
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.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Easing Boj's in the Finance & Accounting industry. The Finance & Accounting 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Easing Boj's 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 Finance & Accounting industry regulations.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Easing Boj's 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Easing Boj's with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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.
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. Easing Boj's needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Finance & Accounting industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Easing Boj's has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Finance & Accounting industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Easing Boj's needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Finance & Accounting 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 dependence on third party suppliers
– Easing Boj'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
– Easing Boj'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.
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 Easing Boj's business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Increasing wage structure of Easing Boj'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 Easing Boj's.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy?, Easing Boj's may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Finance & Accounting .
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? 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 Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? 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 Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? 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 Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? 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 Bank of Japan's Meeting in March 2006: An End to the Quantitative Easing Policy? 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 Easing Boj's needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
