Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership
This is a Darden case study.This technical note explains how group membership affects who a person thinks she or he is and how that person behaves in organizations. Hofstedes's levels of identity model are introduced and a simple description of Social Identity Theory is laid out. This note is a helpful tool for discussions about group differences because it argues that identification as a group member is not inconsistent with also being a unique individual. The note was written for use in Interpersonal Behavior and can be useful in a range of organizational behavior courses.
Swot Analysis of "Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership" written by Martin N. Davidson includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Identity Membership facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Communication, Diversity, Leadership, Leading teams, Motivating people and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership casestudy better are - – central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, increasing energy prices, geopolitical disruptions, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic ,
cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Identity Membership, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Identity Membership 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 Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Identity Membership
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 Identity Membership
Strengths Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Identity Membership in Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership Harvard Business Review case study are -
Analytics focus
– Identity Membership 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 Martin N. Davidson 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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Identity Membership in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Training and development
– Identity Membership has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership Harvard Business Review case study by analyzing – employees retention, in-house promotion, loyalty, new venture initiation, lack of conflict, and high level of both employees and customer engagement.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Leadership & Managing People industry
– Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Identity Membership to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Identity Membership to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Strong track record of project management
– Identity Membership is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
High brand equity
– Identity Membership has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Identity Membership to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Learning organization
- Identity Membership 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 Identity Membership is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Identity Membership 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 Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership - 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
– Identity Membership is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Diverse revenue streams
– Identity Membership is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership 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
– Identity Membership 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 Identity Membership in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Identity Membership 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 Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Weaknesses Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership are -
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership 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 Identity Membership has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership, it seems that the employees of Identity Membership 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.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Identity Membership 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.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership 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 Identity Membership 's lucrative customers.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership, is just above the industry average. Identity Membership 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Identity Membership 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Identity Membership is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Leadership & Managing People segment. Identity Membership needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Identity Membership to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Identity Membership 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 - Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Identity Membership has a very deliberative decision making approach. This approach has resulted in prudent decisions, but it has also resulted in missing opportunities in the industry over the last five years. Identity Membership even though has strong showing on digital transformation primary two stages, it has struggled to capitalize the power of digital transformation in marketing efforts and new venture efforts.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Martin N. Davidson suggests that, Identity Membership 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.
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 Identity Membership supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Identity Membership vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Opportunities Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership | 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 Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership are -
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Identity Membership 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Identity Membership has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Identity Membership to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership case study. Identity Membership can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Identity Membership 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 Identity Membership to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Identity Membership 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. Identity Membership can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Identity Membership to increase its market reach. Identity Membership 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.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Identity Membership 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Identity Membership 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.
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 Identity Membership in the consumer business. Now Identity Membership can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Buying journey improvements
– Identity Membership can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership 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.
Reconfiguring business model
– The expansion of digital payment system, the bringing down of international transactions costs using Bitcoin and other blockchain based currencies, etc can help Identity Membership to reconfigure its entire business model. For example it can used blockchain based technologies to reduce piracy of its products in the big markets such as China. Secondly it can use the popularity of e-commerce in various developing markets to build a Direct to Customer business model rather than the current Channel Heavy distribution network.
Manufacturing automation
– Identity Membership 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.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Identity Membership can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Identity Membership operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.
Threats Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership are -
Increasing wage structure of Identity Membership
– 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 Identity Membership.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Identity Membership 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.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Identity Membership 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.
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. Identity Membership can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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 Identity Membership in the Leadership & Managing People sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership, Identity Membership 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 .
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Identity Membership 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.
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.
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 Identity Membership business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Regulatory challenges
– Identity Membership 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.
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. Identity Membership 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.
Environmental challenges
– Identity Membership 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. Identity Membership can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership 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 Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership 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 Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership 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 Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership 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 Primer on Social Identity: Understanding Group Membership 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 Identity Membership needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.