Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A. SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A.
Yara Branco has just joined Tarbes S.A. as their new chief executive officer (CEO). She sees a crisis on the horizon and needs to find a way to communicate that change is necessary at Tarbes, one of Brazil's most well-known technology firms. She has to overcome several issues including the fact that she is an outsider and there are many insiders who will not support the change effort. Branco is thinking about how to develop an appropriate communications strategy to kick off her term as CEO.
Swot Analysis of "Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A." written by Ken Mark, Mary Weil includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Branco Tarbes facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A. case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Communication, International business, Leadership, Organizational culture and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A. casestudy better are - – central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, increasing commodity prices, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, there is increasing trade war between United States & China,
challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, geopolitical disruptions, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A.
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A. case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Branco Tarbes, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Branco Tarbes 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 Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A. can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A. case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Branco Tarbes
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 Branco Tarbes
Strengths Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A. | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Branco Tarbes in Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A. Harvard Business Review case study are -
Ability to lead change in Leadership & Managing People field
– Branco Tarbes 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 Branco Tarbes in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Diverse revenue streams
– Branco Tarbes is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A. 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Branco Tarbes 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 Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.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.
Strong track record of project management
– Branco Tarbes is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Innovation driven organization
– Branco Tarbes is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A. 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 Branco Tarbes digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Branco Tarbes 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.
Training and development
– Branco Tarbes has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Leadership & Managing People industry
– Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A. firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Branco Tarbes to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Branco Tarbes to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Branco Tarbes 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 Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A. HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Branco Tarbes 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.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Branco Tarbes is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Branco Tarbes in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Weaknesses Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A. | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A. are -
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A. HBR case study mentions - Branco Tarbes 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Branco Tarbes 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 - Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A. should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A. 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 Branco Tarbes 's lucrative customers.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A., it seems that the employees of Branco Tarbes 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.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Ken Mark, Mary Weil suggests that, Branco Tarbes 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Branco Tarbes 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.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A. 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 Branco Tarbes 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 Branco Tarbes supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A., it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Branco Tarbes vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Branco Tarbes 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Branco Tarbes is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A. can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Branco Tarbes 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. Branco Tarbes 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.
Opportunities Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.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 Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A. are -
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Branco Tarbes can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Branco Tarbes 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Branco Tarbes has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Branco Tarbes to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A. case study. Branco Tarbes can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Branco Tarbes 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 Branco Tarbes in the consumer business. Now Branco Tarbes can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Branco Tarbes 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 Branco Tarbes to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Branco Tarbes 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, Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Branco Tarbes 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 Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A. - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Branco Tarbes to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Branco Tarbes 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Branco Tarbes can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Branco Tarbes operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.
Developing new processes and practices
– Branco Tarbes 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Branco Tarbes can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.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.
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. Branco Tarbes can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Threats Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A. External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A. are -
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. Branco Tarbes 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.
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 Branco Tarbes in the Leadership & Managing People sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
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 Branco Tarbes.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Branco Tarbes is facing in Leadership & Managing People sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Environmental challenges
– Branco Tarbes 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. Branco Tarbes can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry.
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. Branco Tarbes needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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. Branco Tarbes 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 Branco Tarbes business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Regulatory challenges
– Branco Tarbes 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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A., Branco Tarbes 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 .
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Branco Tarbes 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 Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.A. .
Increasing wage structure of Branco Tarbes
– 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 Branco Tarbes.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Branco Tarbes 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.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 Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.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 Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.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 Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.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 Turning Around an National Icon: Yara Branco at Tarbes S.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 Branco Tarbes needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
