Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot!
Describes the ways in which Washington Mutual preserved and reinforced its brand through two phases of expansion, the first based on acquisition and the second on organic growth. The Washington Mutual brand is shown to be grounded in a well designed customer experience. This experience was the result of careful attention by Washington Mutual to hiring policies for its staff, incentives that encouraged entrepreneurship, empowerment of both "store" managers and "sales associates," and a strong culture that valued the community, innovation, fairness in treatment of customers, care for its employees, and high-speed implementation.
Swot Analysis of "Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot!" written by Robert D. Dewar, Hayagreeva Rao includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Washington Mutual facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Compensation, Customer service, Human resource management, Organizational culture, Strategy and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! casestudy better are - – increasing household debt because of falling income levels, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, increasing energy prices, geopolitical disruptions, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation,
technology disruption, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot!
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Washington Mutual, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Washington Mutual 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 Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Washington Mutual
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 Washington Mutual
Strengths Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Washington Mutual in Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! Harvard Business Review case study are -
Strong track record of project management
– Washington Mutual is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Leadership & Managing People industry
– Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Washington Mutual to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Washington Mutual to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Washington Mutual is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Washington Mutual 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.
Diverse revenue streams
– Washington Mutual is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Washington Mutual 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.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! 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.
High brand equity
– Washington Mutual has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Washington Mutual to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Innovation driven organization
– Washington Mutual is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Washington Mutual 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 Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Washington Mutual in the sector have low bargaining power. Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Washington Mutual to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Training and development
– Washington Mutual has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! 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.
Weaknesses Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! are -
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Washington Mutual is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Need for greater diversity
– Washington Mutual 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot!, 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Washington Mutual 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.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Washington Mutual 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 dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! 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 Washington Mutual has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
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 Washington Mutual supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot!, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Washington Mutual vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! 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 Washington Mutual 's lucrative customers.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Washington Mutual 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 - Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Washington Mutual 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.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot!, is just above the industry average. Washington Mutual needs to redesign the compensation structure and incentives to increase the revenue per employees. Some of the steps that it can take are – hiring more specialists on project basis, etc.
Opportunities Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! | 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 Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! are -
Manufacturing automation
– Washington Mutual can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Leadership & Managing People 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Washington Mutual 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Washington Mutual 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 Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Washington Mutual to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Washington Mutual 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, Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot!, 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 Washington Mutual in the consumer business. Now Washington Mutual can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Washington Mutual 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Washington Mutual to increase its market reach. Washington Mutual 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
– Washington Mutual can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Washington Mutual is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Washington Mutual can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Washington Mutual operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.
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 Washington Mutual 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.
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. Washington Mutual 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. Washington Mutual 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Washington Mutual 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 Washington Mutual to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Threats Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! are -
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Washington Mutual is facing in Leadership & Managing People sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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 Washington Mutual.
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.
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. Washington Mutual needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot!, Washington Mutual 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 .
Consumer confidence and its impact on Washington Mutual 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Washington Mutual 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 Leadership & Managing People industry regulations.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Washington Mutual has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Washington Mutual 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.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Washington Mutual 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.
Increasing wage structure of Washington Mutual
– 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 Washington Mutual.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Washington Mutual with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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. Washington Mutual can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Backlash against dominant players
– US Congress and other legislative arms of the government are getting tough on big business especially technology companies. The digital arm of Washington Mutual business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! 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 Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! 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 Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! 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 Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! 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 Washington Mutual (A): A Very Old Bank Can Grow-A Lot! 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 Washington Mutual needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.