The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra
Carmen Segarra, a recently hired bank examiner in the NY Fed's supervisory office for Goldman Sachs, strongly disagrees with her supervisor, Mike Silva, about whether Goldman Sachs has a viable overall conflict-of-interest policy. Silva says "yes," and Segarra says "no." This issue is the latest in which Segarra sees what she considers regulatory capture in the NY Fed/Goldman Sachs's relationship. An independent report had been critical of the NY Fed for being too cozy with the banking institutions it regulated and suggested hiring more aggressive and vocal examiners. Segarra realizes that her aggressive and frank communication style has irritated both Silva and others in their department but is determined to do her job. The tension between Silva and Segarra has reached a breaking point and Segarra must decide what actions she must take to address both the tension and what she considers regulatory capture. A teaching note accompanies this case and details how it is taught in Darden's ethics and leading organizations courses.
Swot Analysis of "The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra" written by Morela Hernandez, Bidhan Parmar, Jenny Mead includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Segarra Silva facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Conflict, Corporate governance, Ethics, Financial management, Human resource management, Leadership, Leading teams, Operations management, Performance measurement, Regulation and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra casestudy better are - – banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, there is backlash against globalization,
increasing energy prices, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Segarra Silva, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Segarra Silva 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 The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Segarra Silva
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 Segarra Silva
Strengths The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Segarra Silva in The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra Harvard Business Review case study are -
Analytics focus
– Segarra Silva 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 Morela Hernandez, Bidhan Parmar, Jenny Mead 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.
Ability to lead change in Leadership & Managing People field
– Segarra Silva 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 Segarra Silva in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Segarra Silva 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 The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Segarra Silva 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 The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Segarra Silva is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra 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 Segarra Silva in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Strong track record of project management
– Segarra Silva 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
– Segarra Silva has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra 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.
Digital Transformation in Leadership & Managing People segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Segarra Silva digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Segarra Silva 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Leadership & Managing People industry
– The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Segarra Silva to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Segarra Silva to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Diverse revenue streams
– Segarra Silva is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra 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
– Segarra Silva has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Segarra Silva to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Weaknesses The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra are -
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra, is just above the industry average. Segarra Silva 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.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Segarra Silva 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.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra 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 Segarra Silva has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra 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 The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Segarra Silva is planning to shift buying processes online.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra, in the dynamic environment Segarra Silva has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Segarra Silva has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Segarra Silva has created an environment where the organization is dominated by functional specialists rather than management generalist. This has resulted into product oriented approach rather than marketing oriented approach or consumers oriented approach.
High dependence on 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 Segarra Silva supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Segarra Silva vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra, 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.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Segarra Silva 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Segarra Silva 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 bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Morela Hernandez, Bidhan Parmar, Jenny Mead suggests that, Segarra Silva 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.
Opportunities The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra | 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 The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra are -
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 Segarra Silva in the consumer business. Now Segarra Silva can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Manufacturing automation
– Segarra Silva 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. Segarra Silva 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. Segarra Silva 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Segarra Silva has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Segarra Silva to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra case study. Segarra Silva 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, Segarra Silva 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Segarra Silva can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Segarra Silva operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Segarra Silva 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Segarra Silva 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 Segarra Silva to conduct training and development for its employees across the world. This will result in not only reducing the cost of training but also help employees in different part of the world to integrate with the headquarter work culture, ethos, and standards.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Segarra Silva to increase its market reach. Segarra Silva 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.
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. Segarra Silva can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
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. Segarra Silva can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Buying journey improvements
– Segarra Silva can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra 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.
Threats The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra are -
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Segarra Silva 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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Segarra Silva 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.
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. Segarra Silva can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Regulatory challenges
– Segarra Silva 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Segarra Silva is facing in Leadership & Managing People sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra, Segarra Silva 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 .
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Segarra Silva with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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. Segarra Silva 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 Segarra Silva in the Leadership & Managing People sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Environmental challenges
– Segarra Silva 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. Segarra Silva can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry.
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 Segarra Silva.
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 Segarra Silva business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra 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 The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra 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 The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra 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 The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra 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 The Federal Reserve and Goldman Sachs: Carmen Segarra 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 Segarra Silva needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
