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Julian Bond: Common Cause SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution

Case Study Description of Julian Bond: Common Cause


This is a Darden case study.Throughout this case, students will learn Julian Bond's views on leadership, and the views of such seasoned leaders, as Julius Chambers, Mary Futrell, Earl Graves, Oliver Hill, Elaine Jones, and Henry Marsh who provide answers to the questions: how do we find leaders, how do different leaders connect with others in their organizations, where is their power derived from, and are leadership skills natural or learned? Although their stories take place in different arenas like business, education, politics, and the law, these historic figures represent a common cause and successful leadership. Leadership-exhibited through the actions of several powerful African-American leaders.

Authors :: Gerry Yemen, Martin N. Davidson

Topics :: Leadership & Managing People

Tags :: Diversity, Leadership, Psychology, Race, Risk management, SWOT Analysis, SWOT Matrix, TOWS, Weighted SWOT Analysis

Swot Analysis of "Julian Bond: Common Cause" written by Gerry Yemen, Martin N. Davidson includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Julian Leaders facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Julian Bond: Common Cause case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Diversity, Leadership, Psychology, Race, Risk management and Leadership & Managing People.


Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Julian Bond: Common Cause casestudy better are - – supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, technology disruption, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, increasing transportation and logistics costs, there is backlash against globalization, geopolitical disruptions, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, etc



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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Julian Bond: Common Cause


SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Julian Bond: Common Cause case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Julian Leaders, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Julian Leaders 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 Julian Bond: Common Cause can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Julian Bond: Common Cause case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Julian Leaders
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 Julian Leaders




Strengths Julian Bond: Common Cause | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of Julian Leaders in Julian Bond: Common Cause Harvard Business Review case study are -

Analytics focus

– Julian Leaders 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 Gerry Yemen, 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.

Cross disciplinary teams

– Horizontal connected teams at the Julian Leaders 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.

Strong track record of project management

– Julian Leaders 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 Julian Bond: Common Cause 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.

Learning organization

- Julian Leaders 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 Julian Leaders is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in Julian Bond: Common Cause Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.

Highly skilled collaborators

– Julian Leaders 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 Julian Bond: Common Cause HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.

Successful track record of launching new products

– Julian Leaders has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Julian Leaders 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.

High brand equity

– Julian Leaders has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Julian Leaders to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.

Sustainable margins compare to other players in Leadership & Managing People industry

– Julian Bond: Common Cause firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Julian Leaders to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Julian Leaders to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.

Innovation driven organization

– Julian Leaders is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Julian Bond: Common Cause Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.

High switching costs

– The high switching costs that Julian Leaders 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.

Ability to recruit top talent

– Julian Leaders is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Julian Bond: Common Cause are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.






Weaknesses Julian Bond: Common Cause | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of Julian Bond: Common Cause are -

Products dominated business model

– Even though Julian Leaders 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 - Julian Bond: Common Cause should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.

Slow to harness new channels of communication

– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Julian Leaders is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Julian Bond: Common Cause can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.

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 Julian Leaders supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - Julian Bond: Common Cause, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Julian Leaders vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.

Need for greater diversity

– Julian Leaders 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.

No frontier risks strategy

– After analyzing the HBR case study Julian Bond: Common Cause, 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.

High bargaining power of channel partners

– Because of the regulatory requirements, Gerry Yemen, Martin N. Davidson suggests that, Julian Leaders 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.

Interest costs

– Compare to the competition, Julian Leaders 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.

Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy

– From the instances in the HBR case study Julian Bond: Common Cause, it seems that the employees of Julian Leaders 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.

Skills based hiring

– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Julian Leaders 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 Julian Bond: Common Cause, in the dynamic environment Julian Leaders has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Julian Leaders has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.

Slow to strategic competitive environment developments

– As Julian Bond: Common Cause HBR case study mentions - Julian Leaders 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 Julian Bond: Common Cause | 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 Julian Bond: Common Cause are -

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. Julian Leaders can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.

Developing new processes and practices

– Julian Leaders 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.

Increase in government spending

– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Julian Leaders can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Julian Leaders operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.

Lowering marketing communication costs

– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Julian Leaders 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.

Using analytics as competitive advantage

– Julian Leaders 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 Julian Bond: Common Cause - to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Julian Leaders to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.

Leveraging digital technologies

– Julian Leaders 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.

Creating value in data economy

– The success of analytics program of Julian Leaders has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Julian Leaders to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Julian Bond: Common Cause case study. Julian Leaders can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.

Low interest rates

– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Julian Leaders 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.

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. Julian Leaders can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.

Redefining models of collaboration and team work

– As explained in the weaknesses section, Julian Leaders is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Julian Bond: Common Cause 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.

Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains

– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Julian Leaders 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, Julian Bond: Common Cause, to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.

Building a culture of innovation

– managers at Julian Leaders 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.

Reforming the budgeting process

- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Julian Leaders can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.




Threats Julian Bond: Common Cause External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis


The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Julian Bond: Common Cause are -

Consumer confidence and its impact on Julian Leaders 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.

Regulatory challenges

– Julian Leaders 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.

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. Julian Leaders needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.

Shortening product life cycle

– it is one of the major threat that Julian Leaders is facing in Leadership & Managing People sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.

Stagnating economy with rate increase

– Julian Leaders 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.

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. Julian Leaders 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.

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 Julian Leaders in the Leadership & Managing People sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.

Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins

– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Julian Leaders can face downward pressure on margins from increasing competition from international players. The international players have stable revenue in their home market and can use those resources to penetrate prominent markets illustrated in HBR case study Julian Bond: Common Cause .

Barriers of entry lowering

– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Julian Leaders with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.

Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution

– Julian Leaders has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Julian Leaders needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Leadership & Managing People sector. According to Mckinsey study top managers believe that the adoption of technology in operations, communications is 20-25 times faster than what they planned in the beginning of 2019.

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.

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 Julian Leaders.

Environmental challenges

– Julian Leaders 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. Julian Leaders can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry.




Weighted SWOT Analysis of Julian Bond: Common Cause 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 Julian Bond: Common Cause 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 Julian Bond: Common Cause 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 Julian Bond: Common Cause 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 Julian Bond: Common Cause 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 Julian Leaders needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.



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