Swot Analysis of "Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B)" written by Joseph L. Badaracco Jr., Susan S. Harmeling includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Levinson Etrade facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Ethics, Gender, Internet, Leadership, Marketing, Sexual orientation and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) casestudy better are - – increasing commodity prices, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, increasing transportation and logistics costs, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, there is backlash against globalization,
competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Levinson Etrade, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Levinson Etrade 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 Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Levinson Etrade
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 Levinson Etrade
Strengths Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Levinson Etrade in Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) Harvard Business Review case study are -
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Levinson Etrade in the sector have low bargaining power. Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Levinson Etrade to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Levinson Etrade 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Levinson Etrade is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Levinson Etrade in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Levinson Etrade is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Training and development
– Levinson Etrade has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Levinson Etrade is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Levinson Etrade has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Levinson Etrade has effective processes in place that helps in exploring new product needs, doing quick pilot testing, and then launching the products quickly using its extensive distribution network.
Analytics focus
– Levinson Etrade 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 Joseph L. Badaracco Jr., Susan S. Harmeling 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Leadership & Managing People industry
– Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Levinson Etrade to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Levinson Etrade to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Organizational Resilience of Levinson Etrade
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Levinson Etrade does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Learning organization
- Levinson Etrade 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 Levinson Etrade is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Weaknesses Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) are -
Lack of clear differentiation of Levinson Etrade products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Levinson Etrade needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Levinson Etrade 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B), 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.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) HBR case study mentions - Levinson Etrade 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B), in the dynamic environment Levinson Etrade has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Levinson Etrade has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Levinson Etrade, firm in the HBR case study Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Levinson Etrade 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 operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) 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 Levinson Etrade 's lucrative customers.
Need for greater diversity
– Levinson Etrade 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.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) 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 Levinson Etrade has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Levinson Etrade 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. Levinson Etrade 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 Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) | 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 Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) are -
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Levinson Etrade 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Levinson Etrade 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, Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B), 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
– Levinson Etrade can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) 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.
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. Levinson Etrade 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. Levinson Etrade 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 Levinson Etrade has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Levinson Etrade to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) case study. Levinson Etrade can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
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. Levinson Etrade can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Levinson Etrade 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 Levinson Etrade to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Levinson Etrade is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) 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
– Levinson Etrade 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 Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Levinson Etrade to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Levinson Etrade 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Levinson Etrade 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Levinson Etrade 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Levinson Etrade can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Threats Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) are -
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.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Levinson Etrade 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Levinson Etrade is facing in Leadership & Managing People sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Levinson Etrade 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.
Increasing wage structure of Levinson Etrade
– 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 Levinson Etrade.
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. Levinson Etrade 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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B), Levinson Etrade 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 .
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 Levinson Etrade business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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. Levinson Etrade needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Levinson Etrade with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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. Levinson Etrade can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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 Levinson Etrade.
Regulatory challenges
– Levinson Etrade 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) 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 Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) 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 Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) 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 Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) 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 Individual and the Corporation: Kathy Levinson and ETRADE (B) 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 Levinson Etrade needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.