Silvrcst As (SAMG) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / MBA Resources
Investment Services
Strategy / MBA Resources
Introduction to SWOT Analysis
SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix for Silvrcst As (United States)
Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , Silvrcst As is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – increasing commodity prices, there is increasing trade war between United States & China, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, geopolitical disruptions, increasing transportation and logistics costs, there is backlash against globalization,
digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, etc
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University, we believe that Silvrcst As can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Silvrcst As, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Silvrcst As 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 Silvrcst As can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning of Silvrcst As
2. Improving business portfolio management of Silvrcst As
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in United States
4. Making a Investment Services sector specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Silvrcst As
Strengths of Silvrcst As | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Silvrcst As are -
Digital Transformation in Investment Services industry
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Silvrcst As digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Silvrcst As 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.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Silvrcst As in the Financial sector have low bargaining power. Silvrcst As has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Silvrcst As to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Training and development
– Silvrcst As 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 switching costs
– The high switching costs that Silvrcst As 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.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Silvrcst As has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Silvrcst As 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.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Silvrcst As has innovation driven culture where significant part of the revenues are spent on the research and development activities. This has resulted in – Silvrcst As staying ahead in the Investment Services industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy of Silvrcst As comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the Investment Services 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.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Silvrcst As in Investment Services industry is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Strong track record of project management in the Investment Services industry
– Silvrcst As is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Investment Services industry
– Silvrcst As has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Silvrcst As to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Investment Services industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Silvrcst As to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Silvrcst As is one of the leading players in the Investment 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.
Ability to lead change in Investment Services
– Silvrcst As is one of the leading players in the Investment Services industry in United States. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in the Investment Services industry in United States but also across the existing markets. The ability to lead change has enabled Silvrcst As in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Weaknesses of Silvrcst As | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Silvrcst As are -
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, Silvrcst As has high operating costs in the Investment Services industry. This can be harder to sustain given the new emerging competition from nimble players who are using technology to attract Silvrcst As lucrative 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 Silvrcst As supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes, Silvrcst As is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Silvrcst As vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Silvrcst As is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Investment Services industry, but Silvrcst As needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Silvrcst As to focus more on services in the Investment Services industry rather than just following the product oriented approach.
High dependence on Silvrcst As ‘s star products
– The top 2 products and services of Silvrcst As still accounts for major business revenue. This dependence on star products in Investment Services industry has resulted into insufficient focus on developing new products, even though Silvrcst As has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Lack of clear differentiation of Silvrcst As products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Silvrcst As needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Silvrcst As has a very deliberative decision making approach. This approach has resulted in prudent decisions, but it has also resulted in missing opportunities in the Investment Services industry over the last five years. Silvrcst As 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.
Skills based hiring in Investment Services industry
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Silvrcst As 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.
Need for greater diversity
– Silvrcst As 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.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Silvrcst As is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication can help Silvrcst As to provide better information regarding Investment Services products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
High bargaining power of channel partners in Investment Services industry
– because of the regulatory requirements in United States, Silvrcst As 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 Investment Services industry.
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Silvrcst As is one of the leading players in the Investment Services industry, it takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the Investment Services industry in last five years.
Silvrcst As Opportunities | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The opportunities of Silvrcst As are -
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Silvrcst As can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Silvrcst As operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Investment Services sector.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Silvrcst As 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 Silvrcst As to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Silvrcst As 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 Investment Services industry.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Silvrcst As can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Developing new processes and practices
– Silvrcst As can develop new processes and procedures in Investment 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.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Silvrcst As in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Investment Services industry, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Silvrcst As 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.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Silvrcst As is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Silvrcst As can utilize new technology in the field of Investment Services industry to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Silvrcst As to increase its market reach. Silvrcst As 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.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Silvrcst As 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.
Use of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies for transactions in Investment Services industry
– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for Silvrcst As in the Investment Services industry. Now Silvrcst As can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Loyalty marketing
– Silvrcst As 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.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Silvrcst As has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in Investment Services industry. This can help Silvrcst As to build a more holistic ecosystem for Silvrcst As products in the Investment Services industry by providing – data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Threats Silvrcst As External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats of Silvrcst As are -
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry to Investment Services industry are lowering. It can presents Silvrcst As with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the Investment Services sector.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Silvrcst As has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Investment Services industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Silvrcst As needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Investment 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.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Silvrcst As 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 Investment Services industry.
Increasing wage structure of Silvrcst As
– 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 Silvrcst As.
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 Silvrcst As in the Investment Services sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Investment Services industry will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Silvrcst As can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
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 Silvrcst As business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Silvrcst As 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 Investment Services industry and other sectors.
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 Silvrcst As.
Regulatory challenges
– Silvrcst As 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 Investment Services industry regulations.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Silvrcst As 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 Silvrcst As prominent markets.
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. Silvrcst As needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Investment Services industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Environmental challenges
– Silvrcst As 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. Silvrcst As can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Investment Services industry.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Silvrcst As Template, Example
Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers at Silvrcst As 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 Silvrcst As 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 Silvrcst As 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 Silvrcst As 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 Silvrcst As needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.