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Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution

Case Study Description of Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing


This is an MIT Sloan Management Review article. How does a company operating outside the major technology talent centers gain access to the most innovative data scientists that money can buy? Assuming you can't recruit the right data analysts to join your team full time, how do you tap into contractors with the knowledge and creativity you need outside your technical core? This was the predicament Syngenta AG, a Basel, Switzerland-based agrochemical and seed company formed by the merger of the agribusiness units of Novartis and AstraZeneca, faced in 2008.For centuries, plant breeding has been a labor-intensive process that depended largely on trial and error. To find the most successful variety of corn, for example, a breeder might pollinate hundreds or even thousands of plants by hand to see what happened. Syngenta had been involved in a large-scale version of trial-and-error research and development, conducting field tests on hundreds of thousands of plants each year in more than 150 locations around the world. But given that the results of experiments are often shaped by quirks and idiosyncrasies, it was sometimes difficult to draw meaningful conclusions. Syngenta's idea was to use data analytics to study a wide range of plant and seed varieties so it could identify the most desirable plants early and make optimal use of resources (everything from capital to labor to land to time). Rather than investing time and resources on more and more testing, its aim was to make decisions about plant portfolios using hard data and science. The vision, write authors Joseph Byrum and Alpheus Bingham, "was to create a suite of software tools that would replace intuition in plant breeding with data-backed science." The authors describe how open innovation can help companies tackle complex business problems that they can't solve on their own. They also discuss lessons Syngenta learned as the company turned to several online crowdsourcing platforms to find talent that could help it increase its R&D efficiency. The effort paid off: Within eight years, Syngenta tripled the average annual improvement rate of its soybean portfolio. In April 2015, an independent panel of academic and business experts in operations research validated the company's efforts and their applicability beyond agriculture, awarding Syngenta the 2015 Franz Edelman Award for Achievement in Operations Research and the Management Sciences.

Authors :: Joseph Byrum, Alpheus Bingham

Topics :: Leadership & Managing People

Tags :: , SWOT Analysis, SWOT Matrix, TOWS, Weighted SWOT Analysis

Swot Analysis of "Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing" written by Joseph Byrum, Alpheus Bingham includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Syngenta Breeding facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, and Leadership & Managing People.


Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing casestudy better are - – increasing transportation and logistics costs, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, increasing energy prices, technology disruption, there is backlash against globalization, wage bills are increasing, etc



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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing


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




Strengths Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of Syngenta Breeding in Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing Harvard Business Review case study are -

Training and development

– Syngenta Breeding has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing 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.

Ability to recruit top talent

– Syngenta Breeding is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.

High switching costs

– The high switching costs that Syngenta Breeding 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

– Syngenta Breeding is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.

High brand equity

– Syngenta Breeding has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Syngenta Breeding to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.

Superior customer experience

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

Cross disciplinary teams

– Horizontal connected teams at the Syngenta Breeding 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.

Successful track record of launching new products

– Syngenta Breeding has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Syngenta Breeding 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.

Learning organization

- Syngenta Breeding 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 Syngenta Breeding is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.

Ability to lead change in Leadership & Managing People field

– Syngenta Breeding 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 Syngenta Breeding in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.

Highly skilled collaborators

– Syngenta Breeding 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 Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.

Analytics focus

– Syngenta Breeding 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 Byrum, Alpheus Bingham 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.






Weaknesses Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing are -

Low market penetration in new markets

– Outside its home market of Syngenta Breeding, firm in the HBR case study Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.

Compensation and incentives

– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing, is just above the industry average. Syngenta Breeding 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.

Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy

– From the instances in the HBR case study Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing, it seems that the employees of Syngenta Breeding 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.

Interest costs

– Compare to the competition, Syngenta Breeding 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 decision making process

– As mentioned earlier in the report, Syngenta Breeding 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. Syngenta Breeding 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.

No frontier risks strategy

– After analyzing the HBR case study Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing, 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.

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 Syngenta Breeding supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Syngenta Breeding vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.

High bargaining power of channel partners

– Because of the regulatory requirements, Joseph Byrum, Alpheus Bingham suggests that, Syngenta Breeding 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 Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing, in the dynamic environment Syngenta Breeding has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Syngenta Breeding has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.

Products dominated business model

– Even though Syngenta Breeding 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 - Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing 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, Syngenta Breeding 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.




Opportunities Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing | 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 Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing are -

Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains

– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Syngenta Breeding 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, Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing, 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. Syngenta Breeding can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.

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 Syngenta Breeding 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.

Leveraging digital technologies

– Syngenta Breeding can leverage digital technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning to automate the production process, customer analytics to get better insights into consumer behavior, realtime digital dashboards to get better sales tracking, logistics and transportation, product tracking, etc.

Developing new processes and practices

– Syngenta Breeding 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.

Manufacturing automation

– Syngenta Breeding 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.

Better consumer reach

– The expansion of the 5G network will help Syngenta Breeding to increase its market reach. Syngenta Breeding 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.

Low interest rates

– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Syngenta Breeding 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.

Loyalty marketing

– Syngenta Breeding 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.

Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities

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

Buying journey improvements

– Syngenta Breeding can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing 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. Syngenta Breeding can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.

Reforming the budgeting process

- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Syngenta Breeding can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.




Threats Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis


The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing are -

Consumer confidence and its impact on Syngenta Breeding 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 Syngenta Breeding

– 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 Syngenta Breeding.

Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins

– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Syngenta Breeding 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 Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing .

Regulatory challenges

– Syngenta Breeding 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.

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

Environmental challenges

– Syngenta Breeding 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. Syngenta Breeding can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry.

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 Syngenta Breeding in the Leadership & Managing People sector and impact the bottomline 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. Syngenta Breeding can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.

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. Syngenta Breeding 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.

Barriers of entry lowering

– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Syngenta Breeding with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.

High dependence on third party suppliers

– Syngenta Breeding 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.

Trade war between China and United States

– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Syngenta Breeding 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.




Weighted SWOT Analysis of Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing 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 Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing 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 Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing 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 Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing 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 Improving Analytics Capabilities Through Crowdsourcing 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 Syngenta Breeding needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.



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