Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI)
A veteran of the freight forwarding industry, Issa Baluch wanted to transform the education space in Africa by introducing hands-on practical teaching in agriculture and agribusiness. In the summer of 2015 his vision of a practical learning institute for African agriculture workers had finally found its footing as the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI). Several African countries were interested in having AKILI branches; however, Baluch and his team were still working hard to design a concrete model for AKILI and figure out the best possible expansion strategy.
Swot Analysis of "Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI)" written by Rosabeth Moss Kanter, Renee Vuillaume includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Akili Baluch facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Financial management, Generational issues, Innovation, Knowledge management, Leadership, Strategy, Sustainability and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) casestudy better are - – cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, geopolitical disruptions, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy,
increasing energy prices, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Akili Baluch, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Akili Baluch 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 Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Akili Baluch
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 Akili Baluch
Strengths Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Akili Baluch in Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) Harvard Business Review case study are -
Ability to recruit top talent
– Akili Baluch is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Akili Baluch 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 Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Akili Baluch 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 switching costs
– The high switching costs that Akili Baluch has built up over years in its products and services combo offer has resulted in high retention of customers, lower marketing costs, and greater ability of the firm to focus on its customers.
Diverse revenue streams
– Akili Baluch is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) 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.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Leadership & Managing People industry
– Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Akili Baluch to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Akili Baluch to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Akili Baluch 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 Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Innovation driven organization
– Akili Baluch is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Strong track record of project management
– Akili Baluch is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Analytics focus
– Akili Baluch 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 Rosabeth Moss Kanter, Renee Vuillaume 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.
Ability to lead change in Leadership & Managing People field
– Akili Baluch 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 Akili Baluch in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Akili Baluch in the sector have low bargaining power. Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Akili Baluch to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Weaknesses Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) are -
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Akili Baluch 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.
Ability to respond to the competition
– As the decision making is very deliberative, highlighted in the case study Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI), in the dynamic environment Akili Baluch has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Akili Baluch has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) 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 Akili Baluch 's lucrative customers.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) HBR case study mentions - Akili Baluch 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of Akili Baluch products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Akili Baluch needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI), is just above the industry average. Akili Baluch needs to redesign the compensation structure and incentives to increase the revenue per employees. Some of the steps that it can take are – hiring more specialists on project basis, etc.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Akili Baluch 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 - Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) 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 Akili Baluch has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Need for greater diversity
– Akili Baluch 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Akili Baluch 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Akili Baluch is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Leadership & Managing People segment. Akili Baluch needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Akili Baluch to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Opportunities Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) | 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 Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) are -
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Akili Baluch 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Akili Baluch 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 Akili Baluch to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Akili Baluch to increase its market reach. Akili Baluch 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Akili Baluch has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Akili Baluch to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) case study. Akili Baluch can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Akili Baluch 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.
Buying journey improvements
– Akili Baluch can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) 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.
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 Akili Baluch in the consumer business. Now Akili Baluch can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Akili Baluch 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 Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Akili Baluch to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Akili Baluch 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– Akili Baluch can develop new processes and procedures in Leadership & Managing People industry using technology such as automation using artificial intelligence, real time transportation and products tracking, 3D modeling for concept development and new products pilot testing etc.
Manufacturing automation
– Akili Baluch 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.
Loyalty marketing
– Akili Baluch 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 Akili Baluch can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Threats Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) are -
Regulatory challenges
– Akili Baluch 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.
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 Akili Baluch.
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. Akili Baluch 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.
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. Akili Baluch needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Akili Baluch 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Akili Baluch with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Akili Baluch 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.
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 Akili Baluch in the Leadership & Managing People sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Akili Baluch is facing in Leadership & Managing People 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 Akili Baluch business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI), Akili Baluch 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 .
Increasing wage structure of Akili Baluch
– 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 Akili Baluch.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) 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 Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) 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 Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) 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 Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) 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 Issa Baluch and the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative (AKILI) 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 Akili Baluch needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
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