Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis
In June 2003, the U.S. Supreme Court announced its decision in Grutter v. Bollinger, upholding the principle of affirmative action in university admissions, which had been challenged as a violation of the U.S. Constitution's Fourteenth Amendment. This case includes excerpts from the amicus curiae briefs filed by General Motors and by the United States.
Swot Analysis of "Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis" written by Lynn Sharp Paine includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Grutter Bollinger facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Diversity, Ethics, Personnel policies, Regulation, Social responsibility, Strategic planning and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis casestudy better are - – geopolitical disruptions, wage bills are increasing, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation,
increasing transportation and logistics costs, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Grutter Bollinger, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Grutter Bollinger 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 Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Grutter Bollinger
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 Grutter Bollinger
Strengths Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Grutter Bollinger in Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis Harvard Business Review case study are -
Successful track record of launching new products
– Grutter Bollinger has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Grutter Bollinger 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Grutter Bollinger is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Digital Transformation in Leadership & Managing People segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Grutter Bollinger digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Grutter Bollinger 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.
Diverse revenue streams
– Grutter Bollinger is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Grutter Bollinger 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 Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis 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 Grutter Bollinger in the sector have low bargaining power. Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Grutter Bollinger to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Learning organization
- Grutter Bollinger 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 Grutter Bollinger is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Strong track record of project management
– Grutter Bollinger 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
– Grutter Bollinger has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis 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.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Grutter Bollinger 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.
Organizational Resilience of Grutter Bollinger
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Grutter Bollinger does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Leadership & Managing People industry
– Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Grutter Bollinger to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Grutter Bollinger to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Weaknesses Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis are -
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Grutter Bollinger is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Lack of clear differentiation of Grutter Bollinger products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Grutter Bollinger needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Lynn Sharp Paine suggests that, Grutter Bollinger 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.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Grutter Bollinger 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. Grutter Bollinger 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis, in the dynamic environment Grutter Bollinger has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Grutter Bollinger has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis, is just above the industry average. Grutter Bollinger 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Grutter Bollinger is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Leadership & Managing People segment. Grutter Bollinger needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Grutter Bollinger 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, Grutter Bollinger 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.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Grutter Bollinger 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Grutter Bollinger 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 - Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis, 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.
Opportunities Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis | 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 Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis are -
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Grutter Bollinger 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 Leadership & Managing People segment.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Grutter Bollinger 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 Grutter Bollinger to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Grutter Bollinger can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Grutter Bollinger operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Grutter Bollinger has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Grutter Bollinger to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis case study. Grutter Bollinger can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Grutter Bollinger 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Grutter Bollinger 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Grutter Bollinger 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.
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 Grutter Bollinger 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Grutter Bollinger is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis case study suggests that firm can utilize new technology to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Grutter Bollinger to increase its market reach. Grutter Bollinger 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.
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. Grutter Bollinger can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Grutter Bollinger 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Grutter Bollinger 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.
Threats Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis are -
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 Grutter Bollinger in the Leadership & Managing People sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Grutter Bollinger 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 Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis .
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. Grutter Bollinger needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Grutter Bollinger can face lack of demand in the market place because of Fed actions to reduce inflation. This can lead to sluggish growth in the economy, lower demands, lower investments, higher borrowing costs, and consolidation in the field.
Technology 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Grutter Bollinger 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
– Grutter Bollinger has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Grutter Bollinger 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Grutter Bollinger 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 Grutter Bollinger with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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 Grutter Bollinger.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Grutter Bollinger 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.
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 Grutter Bollinger business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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. Grutter Bollinger 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 Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis 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 Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis 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 Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis 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 Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis 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 Grutter v. Bollinger: A Synopsis 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 Grutter Bollinger needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.