PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A)
In 2003, PNC Financial focused its corporate citizenship and philanthropic resources on a ten-year, $100 million investment in early childhood education called PNC Grow Up Great. The case tracks the origination of Grow Up Great, how it was developed and implemented within PNC, and some of the key challenges and successes of the program during its first 5 years of operation. Key elements of the case are the process by which PNC decided to focus on Grow Up Great as its signature program, and how the program was designed to provide extensive volunteering opportunities for employees. The case also explores how PNC leadership has engaged in extensive advocacy on the issue of early childhood education. The branding and marketing issues associated with Grow Up Great and how it fits in PNC's organizational structure are also highlighted in the case. =
Authors :: Christopher Marquis, V. Kasturi Rangan, Alison Comings
Topics :: Leadership & Managing People
Tags :: Leadership, Organizational structure, Public relations, Social responsibility, SWOT Analysis, SWOT Matrix, TOWS, Weighted SWOT Analysis
Swot Analysis of "PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A)" written by Christopher Marquis, V. Kasturi Rangan, Alison Comings includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Pnc Grow facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Leadership, Organizational structure, Public relations, Social responsibility and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) casestudy better are - – increasing energy prices, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, increasing commodity prices, wage bills are increasing, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, there is backlash against globalization,
there is increasing trade war between United States & China, geopolitical disruptions, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Pnc Grow, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Pnc Grow 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 PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Pnc Grow
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Leadership & Managing People field.
4. Making a Leadership & Managing People topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Pnc Grow
Strengths PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Pnc Grow in PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) Harvard Business Review case study are -
Innovation driven organization
– Pnc Grow is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
High brand equity
– Pnc Grow has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Pnc Grow to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Leadership & Managing People industry
– PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Pnc Grow to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Pnc Grow to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Learning organization
- Pnc Grow 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 Pnc Grow is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Pnc Grow 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 PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Pnc Grow 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 PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Organizational Resilience of Pnc Grow
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Pnc Grow does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) 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.
Training and development
– Pnc Grow has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Pnc Grow is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Pnc Grow is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Pnc Grow in the sector have low bargaining power. PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Pnc Grow to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Weaknesses PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) are -
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) 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 PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Pnc Grow is planning to shift buying processes online.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Christopher Marquis, V. Kasturi Rangan, Alison Comings suggests that, Pnc Grow 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.
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 Pnc Grow supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A), it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Pnc Grow vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Lack of clear differentiation of Pnc Grow products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Pnc Grow needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Pnc Grow is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Leadership & Managing People segment. Pnc Grow needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Pnc Grow to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Pnc Grow 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.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) HBR case study mentions - Pnc Grow 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.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Pnc Grow, firm in the HBR case study PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A), it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Leadership & Managing People 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.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A), it seems that the employees of Pnc Grow 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, Pnc Grow 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 PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) | 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 PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) are -
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Pnc Grow 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Pnc Grow can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Pnc Grow operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Pnc Grow in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Leadership & Managing People segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Buying journey improvements
– Pnc Grow can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) 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.
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 Pnc Grow 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.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Leadership & Managing People industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Pnc Grow can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
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 Pnc Grow in the consumer business. Now Pnc Grow can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Pnc Grow 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, PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A), to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Pnc Grow is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Pnc Grow has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Pnc Grow to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) case study. Pnc Grow can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Leadership & Managing People industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Pnc Grow 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. Pnc Grow 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Pnc Grow can develop new processes and procedures in Leadership & Managing People 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Pnc Grow can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Threats PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) are -
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. Pnc Grow needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Pnc Grow 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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Pnc Grow 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.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Leadership & Managing People field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Pnc Grow can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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 Pnc Grow.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A), Pnc Grow may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Leadership & Managing People .
Environmental challenges
– Pnc Grow 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. Pnc Grow can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry.
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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Pnc Grow has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Pnc Grow needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Leadership & Managing People 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Pnc Grow with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Pnc Grow 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.
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. Pnc Grow 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) 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 PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) 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 PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) 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 PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) 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 PNC Financial: Grow Up Great (A) 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 Pnc Grow needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.