Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
The federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is the agency charged with investigation of non-criminal complaints of civil rights-related violations in the U.S. workplace, including racial and gender discrimination. This case describes the agency's efforts to reform its internal procedures do as to deal with a staggering backlog of complaints--nearly 100,000--and up to 19-month waits for resolution. It focuses on key strategic decisions which must set the stage for greater efficiency--particularly the issue of whether every complaint must be processed in the same manner, of whether the agency should find ways to concentrate its effort on complaints judged somehow to be more significant. HKS Case Number 1562.0
Authors :: Steve Kelman, Kirsten Lundberg, Carol Chetkovich, David Lazer
Swot Analysis of "Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission" written by Steve Kelman, Kirsten Lundberg, Carol Chetkovich, David Lazer includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Complaints Backlog facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Demographics, Economy, Government, Leadership, Project management, Strategic planning and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission casestudy better are - – wage bills are increasing, increasing energy prices, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, increasing commodity prices, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, there is backlash against globalization,
there is increasing trade war between United States & China, technology disruption, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Complaints Backlog, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Complaints Backlog 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 Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Complaints Backlog
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 Complaints Backlog
Strengths Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Complaints Backlog in Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Harvard Business Review case study are -
Organizational Resilience of Complaints Backlog
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Complaints Backlog does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Complaints Backlog is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission 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
– Complaints Backlog is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Complaints Backlog is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Ability to lead change in Leadership & Managing People field
– Complaints Backlog 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 Complaints Backlog in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Learning organization
- Complaints Backlog 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 Complaints Backlog is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Innovation driven organization
– Complaints Backlog is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Complaints Backlog 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Complaints Backlog 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 Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Analytics focus
– Complaints Backlog 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 Steve Kelman, Kirsten Lundberg, Carol Chetkovich, David Lazer 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
– Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Complaints Backlog to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Complaints Backlog to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission 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.
Weaknesses Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission are -
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Complaints Backlog has created an environment where the organization is dominated by functional specialists rather than management generalist. This has resulted into product oriented approach rather than marketing oriented approach or consumers oriented approach.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission 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 Complaints Backlog has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Lack of clear differentiation of Complaints Backlog products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Complaints Backlog needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission 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 Complaints Backlog 's lucrative customers.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Complaints Backlog has not been able to do capital spending to the tune of the competition. This has resulted into fewer innovations and company facing stiff competition from both existing competitors and new entrants who are disrupting the industry using digital technology.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Complaints Backlog has a high cash cycle compare to other players in the industry. It needs to shorten the cash cycle by 12% to be more competitive in the marketplace, reduce inventory costs, and be more profitable.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Complaints Backlog 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.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Complaints Backlog 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 - Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Aligning sales with marketing
– It come across in the case study Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission 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 Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Complaints Backlog is planning to shift buying processes online.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission HBR case study mentions - Complaints Backlog 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.
Opportunities Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission | 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 Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission are -
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Complaints Backlog 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, Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Complaints Backlog is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission 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.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Complaints Backlog to increase its market reach. Complaints Backlog 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Complaints Backlog 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Complaints Backlog 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Complaints Backlog 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.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Complaints Backlog 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 Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Complaints Backlog to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Loyalty marketing
– Complaints Backlog 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Complaints Backlog can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
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. Complaints Backlog can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
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. Complaints Backlog 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. Complaints Backlog 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.
Manufacturing automation
– Complaints Backlog 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.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Complaints Backlog 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.
Threats Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission are -
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Complaints Backlog 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.
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.
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 Complaints Backlog business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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. Complaints Backlog 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.
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. Complaints Backlog needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
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. Complaints Backlog can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Complaints Backlog may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Leadership & Managing People .
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Complaints Backlog with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Complaints Backlog 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.
Regulatory challenges
– Complaints Backlog 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.
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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Complaints Backlog is facing in Leadership & Managing People sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Increasing wage structure of Complaints Backlog
– 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 Complaints Backlog.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission 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 Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission 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 Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission 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 Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission 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 Reducing the Complaints Backlog at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission 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 Complaints Backlog needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.