A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Innovation & Entrepreneurship
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale
The founder and executive director of E+Co faces the challenge of ten-fold growth and reviews the core parts of the company's innovative business model, the changes in the energy markets around the world, and the rationale for local solutions to energy scarcity and inefficiency. Also presented is a set of entrepreneurial growth strategies that preserve the core of the model - i.e., simultaneously tackling energy poverty and energy waste, and bringing people up the energy ladder with locally suitable and affordable solutions. These strategies help consolidate and leverage E+Co's 12 years of experience and strong local presence through an innovative combination of complementary wedges.
Swot Analysis of "A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale" written by Oana Branzei, Kevin McKague includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Energy Co's facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Entrepreneurial management, Growth strategy, Social responsibility, Sustainability and Innovation & Entrepreneurship.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale casestudy better are - – increasing household debt because of falling income levels, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, increasing energy prices, increasing transportation and logistics costs, increasing commodity prices, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google,
there is increasing trade war between United States & China, technology disruption, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Energy Co's, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Energy Co'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 A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Energy Co's
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 Energy Co's
Strengths A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Energy Co's in A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale Harvard Business Review case study are -
Training and development
– Energy Co's has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale 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 recruit top talent
– Energy Co's is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Diverse revenue streams
– Energy Co's is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale 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.
Ability to lead change in Innovation & Entrepreneurship field
– Energy Co'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 Energy Co's in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Energy Co'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 A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Energy Co's in the sector have low bargaining power. A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Energy Co's to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Innovation driven organization
– Energy Co's is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Energy Co's has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Energy Co'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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry
– A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Energy Co's to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Energy Co's to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale 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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Energy Co's 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 Energy Co's digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Energy Co'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.
Weaknesses A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale are -
Lack of clear differentiation of Energy Co's products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Energy Co's needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale 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 Energy Co's has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Energy Co's 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.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Energy Co'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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Energy Co'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 - A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Energy Co's, firm in the HBR case study A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale 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 A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale, it seems that the employees of Energy Co'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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Energy Co's is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale 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 Energy Co'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.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale has high operating costs in the. This can be harder to sustain given the new emerging competition from nimble players who are using technology to attract Energy Co's 's lucrative customers.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Energy Co'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.
Opportunities A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale | 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 A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale are -
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Energy Co's can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Energy Co's operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Innovation & Entrepreneurship sector.
Developing new processes and practices
– Energy Co's 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Energy Co's is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Energy Co'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 Innovation & Entrepreneurship segment.
Manufacturing automation
– Energy Co's 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.
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 Energy Co'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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Energy Co'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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Energy Co'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.
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 Energy Co's in the consumer business. Now Energy Co's can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Energy Co'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 A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Energy Co's to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Loyalty marketing
– Energy Co's 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Energy Co's to increase its market reach. Energy Co's 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Energy Co's can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale 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.
Threats A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale are -
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale, Energy Co'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 Innovation & Entrepreneurship .
Regulatory challenges
– Energy Co'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 Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry regulations.
Increasing wage structure of Energy Co'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 Energy Co's.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Energy Co'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.
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. Energy Co's can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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 Energy Co's in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
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 Energy Co's business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Energy Co's is facing in Innovation & Entrepreneurship sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Energy Co's with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Energy Co's has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Innovation & Entrepreneurship industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Energy Co's 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Energy Co'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 A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale .
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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale 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 A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale 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 A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale 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 A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale 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 A Model of Clean Energy Entrepreneurship in Africa: E+Co's Path to Scale 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 Energy Co's needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
