Case Study Description of Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis
In late 2012, the owner of the Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard considered whether or not to purchase information from a climatology firm regarding the probability of unseasonable rains that could have damaged some or all of his family's mango harvest. The owner needed to decide whether or not he should lease the orchard to a fruit merchant or keep the orchard for his family to harvest, despite the possibility of rain. Would the climatology firm have provided helpful information, or should he have made an independent decision? Regardless of whether he purchased information from the climatology firm, what was the best informed decision he could have made?
Swot Analysis of "Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis" written by Debdatta Pal includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Orchard Climatology facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Entrepreneurship, International business, Managing uncertainty, Risk management and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis casestudy better are - – supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, there is backlash against globalization, increasing transportation and logistics costs, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies,
increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Orchard Climatology, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Orchard Climatology 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 Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Orchard Climatology
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 Orchard Climatology
Strengths Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Orchard Climatology in Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis Harvard Business Review case study are -
Organizational Resilience of Orchard Climatology
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Orchard Climatology does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Orchard Climatology has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Orchard Climatology 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Orchard Climatology is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis 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
– Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Orchard Climatology to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Orchard Climatology to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Orchard Climatology is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Diverse revenue streams
– Orchard Climatology is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis 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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Orchard Climatology in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Orchard Climatology in the sector have low bargaining power. Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Orchard Climatology to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Orchard Climatology 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 Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis Harvard Business Review case study comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the industry, building diversified operations across different geographies so that disruption in one part of the world doesn’t impact the overall performance of the firm, and integrating the various business operations and processes through its digital transformation drive.
Learning organization
- Orchard Climatology 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 Orchard Climatology is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Analytics focus
– Orchard Climatology 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 Debdatta Pal 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 Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis are -
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 Orchard Climatology supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Orchard Climatology vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Orchard Climatology, firm in the HBR case study Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Orchard Climatology 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 operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis 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 Orchard Climatology 's lucrative customers.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Orchard Climatology is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Leadership & Managing People segment. Orchard Climatology needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Orchard Climatology to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Orchard Climatology 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. Orchard Climatology 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis 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 Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Orchard Climatology is planning to shift buying processes online.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Orchard Climatology 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.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis 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 Orchard Climatology has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Orchard Climatology 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Orchard Climatology 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.
Opportunities Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis | 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 Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis 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 Orchard Climatology in the consumer business. Now Orchard Climatology can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Orchard Climatology can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Orchard Climatology 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 Orchard Climatology 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Orchard Climatology can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Orchard Climatology 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.
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 Orchard Climatology 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Orchard Climatology has focused on building a highly responsive customer relationship management platform. This platform is built on in-house data and driven by analytics and artificial intelligence. The customer analytics can help the organization to fine tune its loyalty marketing efforts, increase the wallet share of the organization, reduce wastage on mainstream advertising spending, build better pricing strategies using personalization, etc.
Manufacturing automation
– Orchard Climatology can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Leadership & Managing People segment. It can use CAD and 3D printing to build a quick prototype and pilot testing products. It can leverage automation using machine learning and artificial intelligence to do faster production at lowers costs, and it can leverage the growth in satellite and tracking technologies to improve inventory management, transportation, and shipping.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Orchard Climatology 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, Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Orchard Climatology to increase its market reach. Orchard Climatology 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Orchard Climatology 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 Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Orchard Climatology to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Developing new processes and practices
– Orchard Climatology 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.
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. Orchard Climatology can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Threats Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis are -
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Orchard Climatology 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.
Increasing wage structure of Orchard Climatology
– 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 Orchard Climatology.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Orchard Climatology 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 Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis .
Environmental challenges
– Orchard Climatology 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. Orchard Climatology can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry.
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. Orchard Climatology can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Orchard Climatology with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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 Orchard Climatology in the Leadership & Managing People sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Orchard Climatology 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.
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 Orchard Climatology business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Orchard Climatology 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.
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. Orchard Climatology 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.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Orchard Climatology has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Orchard Climatology 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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis 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 Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis 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 Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis 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 Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis 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 Ratnagiri Alphonso Orchard: Bayesian Decision Analysis 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 Orchard Climatology needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.