Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options
An Amazon stockholder wants to decide the long/short positions for several put options that would result in the lowest risk at the best possible return on her stocks. In particular, she is looking to generate as much return as the status quo strategy where no put options are used.
Swot Analysis of "Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options" written by Hubert Pun, Siddharth Aiyar includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Options Reka facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Financial markets and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options casestudy better are - – increasing commodity prices, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, there is backlash against globalization, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings,
customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Options Reka, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Options Reka 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 Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Options Reka
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 Options Reka
Strengths Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Options Reka in Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options Harvard Business Review case study are -
Digital Transformation in Leadership & Managing People segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Options Reka digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Options Reka has successfully integrated the four key components of digital transformation – digital integration in processes, digital integration in marketing and customer relationship management, digital integration into the value chain, and using technology to explore new products and market opportunities.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Options Reka in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Diverse revenue streams
– Options Reka is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options 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.
Ability to lead change in Leadership & Managing People field
– Options Reka 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 Options Reka in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Options Reka is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Strong track record of project management
– Options Reka is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options 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.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Options Reka 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.
High brand equity
– Options Reka has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Options Reka to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Innovation driven organization
– Options Reka is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options 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
– Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Options Reka to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Options Reka to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Analytics focus
– Options Reka 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 Hubert Pun, Siddharth Aiyar 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 Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options are -
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Options Reka is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Leadership & Managing People segment. Options Reka needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Options Reka to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Hubert Pun, Siddharth Aiyar suggests that, Options Reka 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Options Reka is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options, it seems that the employees of Options Reka 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.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Options Reka 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 Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options 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 Options Reka has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Need for greater diversity
– Options Reka 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options 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 Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Options Reka is planning to shift buying processes online.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Options Reka 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 - Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Options Reka, firm in the HBR case study Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
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 Options Reka supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Options Reka vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Opportunities Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options | 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 Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options are -
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Options Reka can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Options Reka operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Options Reka is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options 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.
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. Options Reka can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Options Reka 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, Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Options Reka can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Buying journey improvements
– Options Reka can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Options Reka to increase its market reach. Options Reka 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Options Reka 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. Options Reka can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Options Reka 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 Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Options Reka to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Options Reka 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 Options Reka to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Options Reka 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Options Reka 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.
Threats Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options are -
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Options Reka 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.
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 Options Reka in the Leadership & Managing People sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Options Reka 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.
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 Options Reka.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Options Reka 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 Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options .
Increasing wage structure of Options Reka
– 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 Options Reka.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Options Reka has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Options Reka 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.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Options Reka 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.
Environmental challenges
– Options Reka 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. Options Reka can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options, Options Reka 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 .
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. Options Reka 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 Options Reka with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options 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 Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options 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 Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options 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 Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options 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 Julia Reka: Analyzing Put Options 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 Options Reka needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
