Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund (GSBD) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / MBA Resources
Misc. Financial Services
Strategy / MBA Resources
Introduction to SWOT Analysis
SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix for Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund (United States)
Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – increasing energy prices, geopolitical disruptions, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, increasing household debt because of falling income levels, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models,
banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, increasing commodity prices, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University, we believe that Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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 Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning of Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund
2. Improving business portfolio management of Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in United States
4. Making a Misc. Financial Services sector specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund
Strengths of Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund are -
Digital Transformation in Misc. Financial Services industry
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund has successfully integrated the four key components of digital transformation – digital integration in processes, digital integration in marketing and customer relationship management, digital integration into the value chain, and using technology to explore new products and market opportunities.
Organizational Resilience of Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
High brand equity
– Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund in the Financial sector have low bargaining power. Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Cross disciplinary teams
– Horizontal connected teams at the Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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.
Analytics focus
– Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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 United States 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.
Ability to lead change in Misc. Financial Services
– Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund is one of the leading players in the Misc. Financial Services industry in United States. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in the Misc. Financial Services industry in United States but also across the existing markets. The ability to lead change has enabled Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund has innovation driven culture where significant part of the revenues are spent on the research and development activities. This has resulted in – Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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 Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Misc. Financial Services industry
– Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Misc. Financial Services industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Learning organization
- Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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 Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders at Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund is one of the leading players in the Misc. Financial Services industry in United States. It is in a position to attract the best talent available in United States. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Weaknesses of Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund are -
Skills based hiring in Misc. Financial Services industry
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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. Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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.
Aligning sales with marketing
– From the outside it seems that Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund needs to have more collaboration between its sales team and marketing team. Sales professionals in the Misc. Financial Services industry have deep experience in developing customer relationships. Marketing department at Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund is planning to shift buying processes online.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of United States, Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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 Misc. Financial Services industry using digital technology.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund has some of the most successful models in the Misc. Financial Services industry, this business model has made each new product launch extremely critical for continuous financial growth of the organization. Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
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 Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes, Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Workers concerns about automation
– As automation is fast increasing in the Misc. Financial Services industry, Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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.
Employees’ less understanding of Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund strategy
– From the outside it seems that the employees of Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Misc. Financial Services industry, but Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund to focus more on services in the Misc. Financial Services industry rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund Opportunities | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The opportunities of Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund are -
Using analytics as competitive advantage
– Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund has spent a significant amount of money and effort to integrate analytics and machine learning into its operations in Misc. Financial Services sector. This continuous investment in analytics has enabled Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund to build faster Go To Market strategies, better consumer insights, developing relevant product features, and building a highly efficient supply chain.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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 Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Loyalty marketing
– Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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
– Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in Misc. Financial Services industry. This can help Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund to build a more holistic ecosystem for Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund products in the Misc. Financial Services industry by providing – data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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.
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 Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund in the Misc. Financial Services industry. Now Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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.
Harnessing reconfiguration of the global supply chains
– As the trade war between US and China heats up in the coming years, Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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 Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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 Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Misc. Financial Services industry, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Manufacturing automation
– Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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.
Threats Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats of Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund are -
Regulatory challenges
– Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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.
Increasing wage structure of Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund
– 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 Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Misc. Financial Services sector.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry to Misc. Financial Services industry are lowering. It can presents Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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.
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 Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
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. Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Misc. Financial Services industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Trade war between China and United States
– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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.
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 Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund in the Misc. Financial Services sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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.
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 Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund.
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.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund Template, Example
Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers at Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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 Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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 Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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 Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund 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 Goldman Sachs BDC Closed End Fund needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
