Zhaojin Mining Industry (1818) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / MBA Resources

Introduction to SWOT Analysis

SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix for Zhaojin Mining Industry (Hong Kong)

Based on various researches at Oak Spring University , Zhaojin Mining Industry is operating in a macro-environment that has been destablized by – technology disruption, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , increasing energy prices, banking and financial system is disrupted by Bitcoin and other crypto currencies, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, geopolitical disruptions, increasing transportation and logistics costs, etc

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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Zhaojin Mining Industry

SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University, we believe that Zhaojin Mining Industry can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Zhaojin Mining Industry, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Zhaojin Mining Industry 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.

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SWOT Objectives / Importance of SWOT Analysis and SWOT Matrix

SWOT analysis of Zhaojin Mining Industry can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning of Zhaojin Mining Industry
2. Improving business portfolio management of Zhaojin Mining Industry
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Hong Kong
4. Making a Gold & Silver sector specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Zhaojin Mining Industry

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Strengths of Zhaojin Mining Industry | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of Zhaojin Mining Industry are -

High switching costs

– The high switching costs that Zhaojin Mining Industry 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

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

Learning organization

- Zhaojin Mining Industry 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 Zhaojin Mining Industry is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders at Zhaojin Mining Industry emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.

Ability to recruit top talent

– Zhaojin Mining Industry is one of the leading players in the Gold & Silver industry in Hong Kong. It is in a position to attract the best talent available in Hong Kong. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.

Low bargaining power of suppliers

– Suppliers of Zhaojin Mining Industry in the Basic Materials sector have low bargaining power. Zhaojin Mining Industry has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Zhaojin Mining Industry to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.

Highly skilled collaborators

– Zhaojin Mining Industry has highly efficient outsourcing and offshoring strategy. It has resulted in greater operational flexibility and bringing down the costs in highly price sensitive Gold & Silver industry. Secondly the value chain collaborators of Zhaojin Mining Industry have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.

Sustainable margins compare to other players in Gold & Silver industry

– Zhaojin Mining Industry has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Zhaojin Mining Industry to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Gold & Silver industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Zhaojin Mining Industry to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.

Diverse revenue streams

– Zhaojin Mining Industry is present in almost all the verticals within the Gold & Silver industry. This has provided Zhaojin Mining Industry 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.

Ability to lead change in Gold & Silver

– Zhaojin Mining Industry is one of the leading players in the Gold & Silver industry in Hong Kong. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in the Gold & Silver industry in Hong Kong but also across the existing markets. The ability to lead change has enabled Zhaojin Mining Industry in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.

Organizational Resilience of Zhaojin Mining Industry

– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing Zhaojin Mining Industry does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.

High brand equity

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

Innovation driven organization

– Zhaojin Mining Industry is one of the most innovative firm in Gold & Silver sector.

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Weaknesses of Zhaojin Mining Industry | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of Zhaojin Mining Industry are -

Increasing silos among functional specialists

– The organizational structure of Zhaojin Mining Industry is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Gold & Silver industry, but Zhaojin Mining Industry needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Zhaojin Mining Industry to focus more on services in the Gold & Silver industry rather than just following the product oriented approach.

Low market penetration in new markets

– Outside its home market of Hong Kong, Zhaojin Mining Industry needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.

Slow decision making process

– As mentioned earlier in the report, Zhaojin Mining Industry has a very deliberative decision making approach. This approach has resulted in prudent decisions, but it has also resulted in missing opportunities in the Gold & Silver industry over the last five years. Zhaojin Mining Industry 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 Zhaojin Mining Industry needs to have more collaboration between its sales team and marketing team. Sales professionals in the Gold & Silver industry have deep experience in developing customer relationships. Marketing department at Zhaojin Mining Industry can leverage the sales team experience to cultivate customer relationships as Zhaojin Mining Industry is planning to shift buying processes online.

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 Zhaojin Mining Industry supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes, Zhaojin Mining Industry is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Zhaojin Mining Industry vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.

Employees’ less understanding of Zhaojin Mining Industry strategy

– From the outside it seems that the employees of Zhaojin Mining Industry 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.

High cash cycle compare to competitors

Zhaojin Mining Industry has a high cash cycle compare to other players in the Gold & Silver industry. It needs to shorten the cash cycle by 12% to be more competitive in the marketplace, reduce inventory costs, and be more profitable.

Slow to harness new channels of communication

– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Zhaojin Mining Industry is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication can help Zhaojin Mining Industry to provide better information regarding Gold & Silver products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.

Lack of clear differentiation of Zhaojin Mining Industry products

– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Zhaojin Mining Industry needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.

Ability to respond to the competition

– As the decision making is very deliberative at Zhaojin Mining Industry, in the dynamic environment of Gold & Silver industry it has struggled to respond to the nimble upstart competition. Zhaojin Mining Industry has reasonably good record with similar level competitors but it has struggled with new entrants taking away niches of its business.

Skills based hiring in Gold & Silver industry

– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Zhaojin Mining Industry 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.

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Zhaojin Mining Industry Opportunities | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The opportunities of Zhaojin Mining Industry are -

Building a culture of innovation

– managers at Zhaojin Mining Industry 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 Gold & Silver industry.

Learning at scale

– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Zhaojin Mining Industry 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.

Increase in government spending

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

Buying journey improvements

– Zhaojin Mining Industry can improve the customer journey of consumers in the Gold & Silver 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.

Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19

– consumer behavior has changed in the Gold & Silver industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Zhaojin Mining Industry can take advantage of these changes in consumer behavior to build a far more efficient business model. For example consumer regular ordering of products can reduce both last mile delivery costs and market penetration costs. Zhaojin Mining Industry can further use this consumer data to build better customer loyalty, provide better products and service collection, and improve the value proposition in inflationary times.

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. Zhaojin Mining Industry can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.

Lowering marketing communication costs

– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Zhaojin Mining Industry in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Gold & Silver industry, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.

Creating value in data economy

– The success of analytics program of Zhaojin Mining Industry has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in Gold & Silver industry. This can help Zhaojin Mining Industry to build a more holistic ecosystem for Zhaojin Mining Industry products in the Gold & Silver industry by providing – data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.

Developing new processes and practices

– Zhaojin Mining Industry can develop new processes and procedures in Gold & Silver 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.

Leveraging digital technologies

– Zhaojin Mining Industry 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.

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 Zhaojin Mining Industry 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.

Using analytics as competitive advantage

– Zhaojin Mining Industry has spent a significant amount of money and effort to integrate analytics and machine learning into its operations in Gold & Silver sector. This continuous investment in analytics has enabled Zhaojin Mining Industry to build a competitive advantage using analytics. The analytics driven competitive advantage can help Zhaojin Mining Industry 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 Zhaojin Mining Industry 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 Zhaojin Mining Industry to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.

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Threats Zhaojin Mining Industry External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The threats of Zhaojin Mining Industry are -

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 Zhaojin Mining Industry business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.

Trade war between China and United States

– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Zhaojin Mining Industry in Gold & Silver industry. The Gold & Silver 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.

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.

Stagnating economy with rate increase

– Zhaojin Mining Industry 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 Gold & Silver industry.

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. Zhaojin Mining Industry 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.

Regulatory challenges

– Zhaojin Mining Industry 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 Gold & Silver industry regulations.

Learning curve for new practices

– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, Zhaojin Mining Industry may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Gold & Silver sector.

Barriers of entry lowering

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

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 Zhaojin Mining Industry in the Gold & Silver sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.

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. Zhaojin Mining Industry needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Gold & Silver industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.

High dependence on third party suppliers

– Zhaojin Mining Industry 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 wage structure of Zhaojin Mining Industry

– 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 Zhaojin Mining Industry.

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.

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Weighted SWOT Analysis of Zhaojin Mining Industry Template, Example

Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers at Zhaojin Mining Industry 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 Zhaojin Mining Industry 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 Zhaojin Mining Industry 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 Zhaojin Mining Industry 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 Zhaojin Mining Industry needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.

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