IBKS No.7 Special (276920) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / MBA Resources
Misc. Financial Services
Strategy / MBA Resources
Introduction to SWOT Analysis
SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix for IBKS No.7 Special (South Korea)
Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , IBKS No.7 Special is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – increasing commodity prices, there is backlash against globalization, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, increasing transportation and logistics costs, wage bills are increasing, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion,
increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, technology disruption, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of IBKS No.7 Special
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University, we believe that IBKS No.7 Special can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the IBKS No.7 Special, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which IBKS No.7 Special 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 IBKS No.7 Special can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning of IBKS No.7 Special
2. Improving business portfolio management of IBKS No.7 Special
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in South Korea
4. Making a Misc. Financial Services sector specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of IBKS No.7 Special
Strengths of IBKS No.7 Special | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of IBKS No.7 Special are -
Innovation driven organization
– IBKS No.7 Special is one of the most innovative firm in Misc. Financial Services sector.
Highly skilled collaborators
– IBKS No.7 Special has highly efficient outsourcing and offshoring strategy. It has resulted in greater operational flexibility and bringing down the costs in highly price sensitive Misc. Financial Services industry. Secondly the value chain collaborators of IBKS No.7 Special have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– IBKS No.7 Special has innovation driven culture where significant part of the revenues are spent on the research and development activities. This has resulted in – IBKS No.7 Special staying ahead in the Misc. Financial Services industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of IBKS No.7 Special in the Financial sector have low bargaining power. IBKS No.7 Special has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps IBKS No.7 Special to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Misc. Financial Services industry
– IBKS No.7 Special has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled IBKS No.7 Special to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Misc. Financial Services industry. The sustainable margins have also helped IBKS No.7 Special to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Ability to lead change in Misc. Financial Services
– IBKS No.7 Special is one of the leading players in the Misc. Financial Services industry in South Korea. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in the Misc. Financial Services industry in South Korea but also across the existing markets. The ability to lead change has enabled IBKS No.7 Special in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of IBKS No.7 Special in Misc. Financial Services industry is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Organizational Resilience of IBKS No.7 Special
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing IBKS No.7 Special does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Strong track record of project management in the Misc. Financial Services industry
– IBKS No.7 Special 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
– IBKS No.7 Special 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 Misc. Financial Services industry. The technology infrastructure of South Korea 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.
Training and development
– IBKS No.7 Special has one of the best training and development program in Financial industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in – employees retention, in-house promotion, loyalty, new venture initiation, lack of conflict, and high level of both employees and customer engagement.
High brand equity
– IBKS No.7 Special has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled IBKS No.7 Special to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Weaknesses of IBKS No.7 Special | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of IBKS No.7 Special are -
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As IBKS No.7 Special is one of the leading players in the Misc. Financial Services industry, it takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the Misc. Financial Services industry in last five years.
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 IBKS No.7 Special supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes, IBKS No.7 Special is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left IBKS No.7 Special vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of IBKS No.7 Special is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Misc. Financial Services industry, but IBKS No.7 Special needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help IBKS No.7 Special to focus more on services in the Misc. Financial Services industry rather than just following the product oriented approach.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, IBKS No.7 Special has high operating costs in the Misc. Financial Services industry. This can be harder to sustain given the new emerging competition from nimble players who are using technology to attract IBKS No.7 Special lucrative customers.
High bargaining power of channel partners in Misc. Financial Services industry
– because of the regulatory requirements in South Korea, IBKS No.7 Special 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 Misc. Financial Services industry.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, IBKS No.7 Special 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.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, IBKS No.7 Special has a very deliberative decision making approach. This approach has resulted in prudent decisions, but it has also resulted in missing opportunities in the Misc. Financial Services industry over the last five years. IBKS No.7 Special 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.
Lack of clear differentiation of IBKS No.7 Special products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, IBKS No.7 Special needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of South Korea, IBKS No.7 Special needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Skills based hiring in Misc. Financial Services industry
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at IBKS No.7 Special 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.
High dependence on IBKS No.7 Special ‘s star products
– The top 2 products and services of IBKS No.7 Special still accounts for major business revenue. This dependence on star products in Misc. Financial Services industry has resulted into insufficient focus on developing new products, even though IBKS No.7 Special has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
IBKS No.7 Special Opportunities | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The opportunities of IBKS No.7 Special are -
Loyalty marketing
– IBKS No.7 Special 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.
Developing new processes and practices
– IBKS No.7 Special can develop new processes and procedures in Misc. Financial Services 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
– IBKS No.7 Special can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Misc. Financial Services 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, IBKS No.7 Special can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that IBKS No.7 Special operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Misc. Financial Services sector.
Buying journey improvements
– IBKS No.7 Special can improve the customer journey of consumers in the Misc. Financial Services 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.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for IBKS No.7 Special 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 IBKS No.7 Special to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Use of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies for transactions in Misc. Financial Services industry
– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for IBKS No.7 Special in the Misc. Financial Services industry. Now IBKS No.7 Special can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help IBKS No.7 Special to increase its market reach. IBKS No.7 Special 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, IBKS No.7 Special is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. IBKS No.7 Special can utilize new technology in the field of Misc. Financial Services industry to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of IBKS No.7 Special has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in Misc. Financial Services industry. This can help IBKS No.7 Special to build a more holistic ecosystem for IBKS No.7 Special products in the Misc. Financial Services industry by providing – data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Finding new ways to collaborate
– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Misc. Financial Services industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. IBKS No.7 Special can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.
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. IBKS No.7 Special can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
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 IBKS No.7 Special 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.
Threats IBKS No.7 Special External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats of IBKS No.7 Special 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. IBKS No.7 Special needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Misc. Financial Services industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Misc. Financial Services industry will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. IBKS No.7 Special can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– IBKS No.7 Special has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Misc. Financial Services industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, IBKS No.7 Special needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Misc. Financial Services 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.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for IBKS No.7 Special in Misc. Financial Services industry. The Misc. Financial Services 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.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry to Misc. Financial Services industry are lowering. It can presents IBKS No.7 Special with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the Misc. Financial Services sector.
Consumer confidence and its impact on IBKS No.7 Special 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 Misc. Financial Services industry and other sectors.
Regulatory challenges
– IBKS No.7 Special 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 Misc. Financial Services 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 IBKS No.7 Special.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– IBKS No.7 Special 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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– IBKS No.7 Special 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 Misc. Financial Services industry.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that IBKS No.7 Special is facing in Misc. Financial Services sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
Technology disruption because of hacks, piracy etc
– The colonial pipeline illustrated, how vulnerable modern organization are to international hackers, miscreants, and disruptors. The cyber security interruption, data leaks, etc can seriously jeopardize the future growth of the organization.
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 IBKS No.7 Special business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of IBKS No.7 Special Template, Example
Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers at IBKS No.7 Special 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 IBKS No.7 Special 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 IBKS No.7 Special 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 IBKS No.7 Special 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 IBKS No.7 Special needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.