Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Finance & Accounting
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund
This case is available in only hard copy format (HBP does not have digital distribution rights to the content). As a result, a digital Educator Copy of the case is not available through this web site.The Global Conservation Fund is an international nonprofit organization with a $100 million endowment and an exclusive focus on land preservation. The fund and its director must decide which projects to fund over the next year and what financing mechanism to use. Describes the fund's efforts to develop a rating system for projects and various financing options used by conservation organizations, including debt-for-nature swaps, carbon credits, and conservation trust funds. Teaching purpose: To evaluate alternative projects in a nonprofit setting and to consider alternative financial instruments to advance biodiversity conservation.
Swot Analysis of "Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund" written by Mihir A. Desai, Julia D. Stevens includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Conservation Biodiversity facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Emerging markets, Financial management, Government, Project management, Social enterprise, Social responsibility, Sustainability and Finance & Accounting.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund casestudy better are - – technology disruption, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, increasing transportation and logistics costs, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, increasing household debt because of falling income levels,
wage bills are increasing, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Conservation Biodiversity, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Conservation Biodiversity 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 Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Conservation Biodiversity
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Finance & Accounting field.
4. Making a Finance & Accounting topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Conservation Biodiversity
Strengths Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Conservation Biodiversity in Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund Harvard Business Review case study are -
Ability to recruit top talent
– Conservation Biodiversity is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Learning organization
- Conservation Biodiversity 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 Conservation Biodiversity is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Diverse revenue streams
– Conservation Biodiversity is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund 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.
Innovation driven organization
– Conservation Biodiversity is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Conservation Biodiversity in the sector have low bargaining power. Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Conservation Biodiversity to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Conservation Biodiversity 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 Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Ability to lead change in Finance & Accounting field
– Conservation Biodiversity 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 Conservation Biodiversity in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Organizational Resilience of Conservation Biodiversity
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Conservation Biodiversity 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
– Conservation Biodiversity has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Conservation Biodiversity 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.
Strong track record of project management
– Conservation Biodiversity 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 Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Conservation Biodiversity has innovation driven culture where significant part of the revenues are spent on the research and development activities. This has resulted in, as mentioned in case study Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Weaknesses Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund are -
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund 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 Conservation Biodiversity has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Finance & Accounting 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.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the segment, Conservation Biodiversity 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Conservation Biodiversity is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Finance & Accounting segment. Conservation Biodiversity needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Conservation Biodiversity to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Lack of clear differentiation of Conservation Biodiversity products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Conservation Biodiversity needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Conservation Biodiversity, firm in the HBR case study Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund, in the dynamic environment Conservation Biodiversity has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Conservation Biodiversity has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Conservation Biodiversity 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Conservation Biodiversity has taken concrete steps on diversity, equity, and inclusion. But the efforts so far has resulted in limited success. It needs to expand the recruitment and selection process to hire more people from the minorities and underprivileged background.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund 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 Conservation Biodiversity 's lucrative customers.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Mihir A. Desai, Julia D. Stevens suggests that, Conservation Biodiversity 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.
Opportunities Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund | 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 Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund are -
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Finance & Accounting industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Conservation Biodiversity 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. Conservation Biodiversity 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.
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. Conservation Biodiversity can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Conservation Biodiversity is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Conservation Biodiversity 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Conservation Biodiversity has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Conservation Biodiversity to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund case study. Conservation Biodiversity can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Conservation Biodiversity 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Conservation Biodiversity can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Manufacturing automation
– Conservation Biodiversity can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Finance & Accounting 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 Conservation Biodiversity to increase its market reach. Conservation Biodiversity 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Conservation Biodiversity 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, Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Loyalty marketing
– Conservation Biodiversity 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Conservation Biodiversity in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Finance & Accounting segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Conservation Biodiversity can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Conservation Biodiversity operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Finance & Accounting sector.
Threats Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund are -
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund, Conservation Biodiversity may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Finance & Accounting .
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Finance & Accounting field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Conservation Biodiversity can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Conservation Biodiversity has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Finance & Accounting industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Conservation Biodiversity needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Finance & Accounting 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.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Conservation Biodiversity 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Conservation Biodiversity 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.
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 Conservation Biodiversity.
Increasing wage structure of Conservation Biodiversity
– 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 Conservation Biodiversity.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Conservation Biodiversity is facing in Finance & Accounting sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
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 Conservation Biodiversity business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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.
Environmental challenges
– Conservation Biodiversity 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. Conservation Biodiversity can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Finance & Accounting industry.
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. Conservation Biodiversity 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. Conservation Biodiversity needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Finance & Accounting industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund 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 Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund 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 Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund 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 Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund 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 Financing Biodiversity Conservation by the Global Conservation Fund 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 Conservation Biodiversity needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.