Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , Anglo African Agriculture PLC is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – technology disruption, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing commodity prices, customer relationship management is fast transforming because of increasing concerns over data privacy, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google,
increasing household debt because of falling income levels, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Anglo African Agriculture PLC
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University, we believe that Anglo African Agriculture PLC can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Anglo African Agriculture PLC, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Anglo African Agriculture PLC 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 Anglo African Agriculture PLC can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning of Anglo African Agriculture PLC
2. Improving business portfolio management of Anglo African Agriculture PLC
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in United Kingdom
4. Making a Crops sector specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Anglo African Agriculture PLC
Strengths of Anglo African Agriculture PLC | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Anglo African Agriculture PLC are -
Strong track record of project management in the Crops industry
– Anglo African Agriculture PLC is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Learning organization
- Anglo African Agriculture PLC 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 Anglo African Agriculture PLC is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders at Anglo African Agriculture PLC emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Anglo African Agriculture PLC has innovation driven culture where significant part of the revenues are spent on the research and development activities. This has resulted in – Anglo African Agriculture PLC staying ahead in the Crops industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Organizational Resilience of Anglo African Agriculture PLC
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing Anglo African Agriculture PLC does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Anglo African Agriculture PLC in the Consumer/Non-Cyclical sector have low bargaining power. Anglo African Agriculture PLC has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Anglo African Agriculture PLC to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
High brand equity
– Anglo African Agriculture PLC has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Anglo African Agriculture PLC to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Anglo African Agriculture PLC in Crops industry is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Innovation driven organization
– Anglo African Agriculture PLC is one of the most innovative firm in Crops sector.
Analytics focus
– Anglo African Agriculture PLC 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 Crops industry. The technology infrastructure of United Kingdom is also helping it to harness the power of analytics for – marketing optimization, demand forecasting, customer relationship management, inventory management, information sharing across the value chain etc.
Diverse revenue streams
– Anglo African Agriculture PLC is present in almost all the verticals within the Crops industry. This has provided Anglo African Agriculture PLC 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 Crops industry
– Anglo African Agriculture PLC has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Anglo African Agriculture PLC to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Crops industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Anglo African Agriculture PLC to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Anglo African Agriculture PLC has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Anglo African Agriculture PLC 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.
Weaknesses of Anglo African Agriculture PLC | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Anglo African Agriculture PLC are -
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 Anglo African Agriculture PLC supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes, Anglo African Agriculture PLC is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Anglo African Agriculture PLC vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Aligning sales with marketing
– From the outside it seems that Anglo African Agriculture PLC needs to have more collaboration between its sales team and marketing team. Sales professionals in the Crops industry have deep experience in developing customer relationships. Marketing department at Anglo African Agriculture PLC can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Anglo African Agriculture PLC is planning to shift buying processes online.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Anglo African Agriculture PLC has some of the most successful models in the Crops industry, this business model has made each new product launch extremely critical for continuous financial growth of the organization. Anglo African Agriculture PLC should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Anglo African Agriculture PLC is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Crops industry, but Anglo African Agriculture PLC needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Anglo African Agriculture PLC to focus more on services in the Crops industry rather than just following the product oriented approach.
High bargaining power of channel partners in Crops industry
– because of the regulatory requirements in United Kingdom, Anglo African Agriculture PLC 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 Crops industry.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the Crops industry, Anglo African Agriculture PLC 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.
Skills based hiring in Crops industry
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Anglo African Agriculture PLC 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.
No frontier risks strategy
– From the 10K / annual statement of Anglo African Agriculture PLC, it seems that company is thinking out the frontier risks that can impact Crops industry. 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 operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, Anglo African Agriculture PLC has high operating costs in the Crops industry. This can be harder to sustain given the new emerging competition from nimble players who are using technology to attract Anglo African Agriculture PLC lucrative customers.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Anglo African Agriculture PLC has not been able to do capital spending to the tune of the competition. This has resulted into fewer innovations and company facing stiff competition from both existing competitors and new entrants who are disrupting the Crops industry using digital technology.
Need for greater diversity
– Anglo African Agriculture PLC 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.
Anglo African Agriculture PLC Opportunities | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The opportunities of Anglo African Agriculture PLC are -
Manufacturing automation
– Anglo African Agriculture PLC can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Crops sector. 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, Anglo African Agriculture PLC can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Anglo African Agriculture PLC operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Crops sector.
Use of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies for transactions in Crops industry
– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for Anglo African Agriculture PLC in the Crops industry. Now Anglo African Agriculture PLC can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Buying journey improvements
– Anglo African Agriculture PLC can improve the customer journey of consumers in the Crops industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. It 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.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Anglo African Agriculture PLC can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Anglo African Agriculture PLC has spent a significant amount of money and effort to integrate analytics and machine learning into its operations in Crops sector. This continuous investment in analytics has enabled Anglo African Agriculture PLC to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Anglo African Agriculture PLC 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, Anglo African Agriculture PLC 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 Crops industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Anglo African Agriculture PLC 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, Anglo African Agriculture PLC is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Anglo African Agriculture PLC can utilize new technology in the field of Crops industry 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, Anglo African Agriculture PLC 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 Anglo African Agriculture PLC to buy more products closer to the markets, and it can leverage its size and influence to get better deal from the local markets.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Anglo African Agriculture PLC in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Crops industry, 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 Anglo African Agriculture PLC 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 Anglo African Agriculture PLC to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Developing new processes and practices
– Anglo African Agriculture PLC can develop new processes and procedures in Crops 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.
Threats Anglo African Agriculture PLC External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats of Anglo African Agriculture PLC are -
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. Anglo African Agriculture PLC needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Crops industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Increasing wage structure of Anglo African Agriculture PLC
– 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 Anglo African Agriculture PLC.
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.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, Anglo African Agriculture PLC may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Crops sector.
Environmental challenges
– Anglo African Agriculture PLC 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. Anglo African Agriculture PLC can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Crops industry.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Anglo African Agriculture PLC has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Crops industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Anglo African Agriculture PLC needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Crops 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.
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. Anglo African Agriculture PLC 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 dependence on third party suppliers
– Anglo African Agriculture PLC 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.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Anglo African Agriculture PLC 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 Anglo African Agriculture PLC prominent markets.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Anglo African Agriculture PLC in Crops industry. The Crops 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.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Anglo African Agriculture PLC is facing in Crops sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Regulatory challenges
– Anglo African Agriculture PLC 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 Crops industry regulations.
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 Anglo African Agriculture PLC business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Anglo African Agriculture PLC Template, Example
Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers at Anglo African Agriculture PLC 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 Anglo African Agriculture PLC 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 Anglo African Agriculture PLC 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 Anglo African Agriculture PLC 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 Anglo African Agriculture PLC needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
