Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar
This case looks at the Ambatovy mining project in Madagascar, which involves exploring and exploiting a giant nickel and cobalt mine near Moramanga, on Madagascar's east coast. The project could bring important economic and social development to Madagascar, one of the poorest countries in the world but requires a high level of commitment to environmental protection along with the support of local communities. The company is developing programs to compensate for its ecological footprint and to achieve the goal of "no net loss" of biodiversity. The case gives a history of the project, the main actions taken, and the results delivered by the company while attempting to engage in "sustainable exploration and exploitation" and to be a "responsible" corporate citizen. The company's perspective of the social, economic, and environmental issues surrounding the project is compared with that of two other stakeholders: the government and local communities.
Swot Analysis of "Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar" written by Maryne Drouet, Luciano Barin-Cruz includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Madagascar Ambatovy facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Corporate governance, Ethics, Manufacturing, Social responsibility, Sustainability and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar casestudy better are - – digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , geopolitical disruptions, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, wage bills are increasing,
increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Madagascar Ambatovy, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Madagascar Ambatovy 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 Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Madagascar Ambatovy
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 Madagascar Ambatovy
Strengths Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Madagascar Ambatovy in Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar Harvard Business Review case study are -
Highly skilled collaborators
– Madagascar Ambatovy 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 Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Digital Transformation in Leadership & Managing People segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Madagascar Ambatovy digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Madagascar Ambatovy 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Madagascar Ambatovy in the sector have low bargaining power. Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Madagascar Ambatovy to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Madagascar Ambatovy 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 Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Ability to lead change in Leadership & Managing People field
– Madagascar Ambatovy 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 Madagascar Ambatovy in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Madagascar Ambatovy is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Organizational Resilience of Madagascar Ambatovy
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Madagascar Ambatovy does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Diverse revenue streams
– Madagascar Ambatovy is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar 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.
High brand equity
– Madagascar Ambatovy has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Madagascar Ambatovy to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Training and development
– Madagascar Ambatovy has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Madagascar Ambatovy 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.
Weaknesses Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar are -
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Madagascar Ambatovy 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. Madagascar Ambatovy 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.
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 Madagascar Ambatovy supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Madagascar Ambatovy vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Madagascar Ambatovy 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Madagascar Ambatovy is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Madagascar Ambatovy 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.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar 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 Madagascar Ambatovy 's lucrative customers.
Lack of clear differentiation of Madagascar Ambatovy products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Madagascar Ambatovy 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, Maryne Drouet, Luciano Barin-Cruz suggests that, Madagascar Ambatovy 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Madagascar Ambatovy 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 - Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Madagascar Ambatovy 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar 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 Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Madagascar Ambatovy is planning to shift buying processes online.
Opportunities Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar | 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 Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar are -
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Madagascar Ambatovy 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Madagascar Ambatovy 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Madagascar Ambatovy 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Madagascar Ambatovy can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar 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.
Identify volunteer opportunities
– Covid-19 has impacted working population in two ways – it has led to people soul searching about their professional choices, resulting in mass resignation. Secondly it has encouraged people to do things that they are passionate about. This has opened opportunities for businesses to build volunteer oriented socially driven projects. Madagascar Ambatovy can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Madagascar Ambatovy to increase its market reach. Madagascar Ambatovy 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.
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 Madagascar Ambatovy 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Madagascar Ambatovy 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 Madagascar Ambatovy to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Loyalty marketing
– Madagascar Ambatovy has focused on building a highly responsive customer relationship management platform. This platform is built on in-house data and driven by analytics and artificial intelligence. The customer analytics can help the organization to fine tune its loyalty marketing efforts, increase the wallet share of the organization, reduce wastage on mainstream advertising spending, build better pricing strategies using personalization, etc.
Manufacturing automation
– Madagascar Ambatovy 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Madagascar Ambatovy 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, Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
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. Madagascar Ambatovy can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Madagascar Ambatovy is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar 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.
Threats Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar are -
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 Madagascar Ambatovy.
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 Madagascar Ambatovy business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Madagascar Ambatovy in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The Leadership & Managing People industry is already at various protected from local competition in China, with the rise of trade war the protection levels may go up. This presents a clear threat of current business model in Chinese market.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar, Madagascar Ambatovy 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
– Madagascar Ambatovy 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. Madagascar Ambatovy can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Madagascar Ambatovy 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 Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar .
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.
Regulatory challenges
– Madagascar Ambatovy 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.
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. Madagascar Ambatovy can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Madagascar Ambatovy 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Madagascar Ambatovy 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 Madagascar Ambatovy with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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. Madagascar Ambatovy needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar 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 Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar 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 Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar 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 Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar 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 Corporate Citizenship in Mining Projects: The Case of the Ambatovy Project in Madagascar 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 Madagascar Ambatovy needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
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