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Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution

Case Study Description of Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World


This case considers the entrepreneurial career of Olivia Lum, who founded the Singaporean water company Hyflux in 1989. An orphan born in Malaysia, Lum provides a rare case of an entrepreneurial success in a country whose economic success has primarily rested on state-owned and foreign firms. The case describes the formidable challenges she initially faced, her subsequent breakthrough in China, and the subsequent growth as a global water treatment company employing membrane technology. In 2004 the company entered the large Middle Eastern market for water treatment but soon encountered problems, including political turbulence. The case ends with demonstrations and an emergent crisis in Libya in 2011, a country in which Hyflux had recently invested. The case offers opportunities to explore the nature of entrepreneurship in Southeast Asia, the business importance of relationships between overseas Chinese and mainland China, and the challenges faced by female entrepreneurs. More broadly, it serves as vehicle for teaching students about the global water crisis and the role of business in helping to resolve it.

Authors :: Geoffrey G. Jones, Essie Alamsyah

Topics :: Leadership & Managing People

Tags :: Competition, Entrepreneurship, Globalization, Operations management, Sustainability, SWOT Analysis, SWOT Matrix, TOWS, Weighted SWOT Analysis

Swot Analysis of "Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World" written by Geoffrey G. Jones, Essie Alamsyah includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Lum Hyflux facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Competition, Entrepreneurship, Globalization, Operations management, Sustainability and Leadership & Managing People.


Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World casestudy better are - – increasing transportation and logistics costs, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, geopolitical disruptions, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, increasing energy prices, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, etc



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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World


SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Lum Hyflux, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Lum Hyflux 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 Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Lum Hyflux
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 Lum Hyflux




Strengths Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of Lum Hyflux in Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World Harvard Business Review case study are -

Organizational Resilience of Lum Hyflux

– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Lum Hyflux does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.

Analytics focus

– Lum Hyflux is putting a lot of focus on utilizing the power of analytics in business decision making. This has put it among the leading players in the industry. The technology infrastructure suggested by Geoffrey G. Jones, Essie Alamsyah can also help it to harness the power of analytics for – marketing optimization, demand forecasting, customer relationship management, inventory management, information sharing across the value chain etc.

Digital Transformation in Leadership & Managing People segment

- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Lum Hyflux digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Lum Hyflux 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.

Superior customer experience

– The customer experience strategy of Lum Hyflux in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.

Innovation driven organization

– Lum Hyflux is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.

Sustainable margins compare to other players in Leadership & Managing People industry

– Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Lum Hyflux to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Lum Hyflux to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.

Ability to recruit top talent

– Lum Hyflux is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.

Highly skilled collaborators

– Lum Hyflux 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 Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.

High switching costs

– The high switching costs that Lum Hyflux 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.

Low bargaining power of suppliers

– Suppliers of Lum Hyflux in the sector have low bargaining power. Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Lum Hyflux to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.

Training and development

– Lum Hyflux has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World 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.

Learning organization

- Lum Hyflux 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 Lum Hyflux is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.






Weaknesses Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World are -

Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy

– From the instances in the HBR case study Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World, it seems that the employees of Lum Hyflux 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 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 Lum Hyflux supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Lum Hyflux vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.

Interest costs

– Compare to the competition, Lum Hyflux 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, Lum Hyflux is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.

High operating costs

– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World 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 Lum Hyflux 's lucrative customers.

High bargaining power of channel partners

– Because of the regulatory requirements, Geoffrey G. Jones, Essie Alamsyah suggests that, Lum Hyflux 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.

Ability to respond to the competition

– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World, in the dynamic environment Lum Hyflux has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Lum Hyflux has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.

Capital Spending Reduction

– Even during the low interest decade, Lum Hyflux 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.

Need for greater diversity

– Lum Hyflux 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.

Low market penetration in new markets

– Outside its home market of Lum Hyflux, firm in the HBR case study Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.

No frontier risks strategy

– After analyzing the HBR case study Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World, 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 Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World | 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 Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World are -

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 Lum Hyflux 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.

Increase in government spending

– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Lum Hyflux can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Lum Hyflux operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.

Building a culture of innovation

– managers at Lum Hyflux 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.

Creating value in data economy

– The success of analytics program of Lum Hyflux has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Lum Hyflux to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World case study. Lum Hyflux can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.

Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities

– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Lum Hyflux 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 Lum Hyflux to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.

Manufacturing automation

– Lum Hyflux 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.

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. Lum Hyflux 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. Lum Hyflux 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.

Redefining models of collaboration and team work

– As explained in the weaknesses section, Lum Hyflux is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World 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.

Using analytics as competitive advantage

– Lum Hyflux 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 Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Lum Hyflux 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, Lum Hyflux 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, Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.

Buying journey improvements

– Lum Hyflux can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World 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.

Loyalty marketing

– Lum Hyflux 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.

Low interest rates

– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Lum Hyflux 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.




Threats Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis


The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World are -

Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution

– Lum Hyflux has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Lum Hyflux 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.

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

– Lum Hyflux 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.

Consumer confidence and its impact on Lum Hyflux 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.

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 Lum Hyflux 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 Lum Hyflux 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 Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World, Lum Hyflux 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

– Lum Hyflux 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. Lum Hyflux 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. Lum Hyflux needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.

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 Lum Hyflux.

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 dependence on third party suppliers

– Lum Hyflux 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 Lum Hyflux

– 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 Lum Hyflux.




Weighted SWOT Analysis of Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World 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 Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World 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 Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World 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 Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World 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 Olivia Lum: Wanting to Save the World 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 Lum Hyflux needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.



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