PESTLE and SWOT ANALYSIS OF DEBT EDUCATORS USA Case Study
Key Learning Outcomes
By the end of the case, students should be able to:
- Discuss the business environment in which Debt Educators operates and how it is likely to be impacted by the different environmental factors.
- Identify key drivers of change in the business environment and how they might affect the growth and profitability of debt educators in the long run.
- Use PESTLE strategic theory to analyze a company's strategic position and challenges that are likely to impact its growth
- Understand how a company can use its inner strengths and environmental opportunities to mitigate its weaknesses and potential threats from the environment
1.0 INTRODUCTION
According to Friedman (2018), student loan debt is now the highest consumer debt category in the USA, ranking behind mortgages but higher than credit cards and auto loans. Approximately 44 million borrowers owe 1.5 trillion in student loans in USA with the average student owing $37,172 in student loan debt in 2016 (Friedman 2018). This has mainly been due to the rising cost of higher education, which has grown much faster than family incomes, plus the high-interest rates which have continued to grow through the years (Comet 2018).
Lobosco (2018) noted that at least 42% of people who have gone to college used student loans, with the average graduate in 2016 owing $28,400. The report further states that women hold at least two-thirds of all student loan debt in the USA, paying more in interest over time due to the fact that they are slow payers in comparison to men (Lobosco 2018).
According to statistics, the states of California, Texas, New York, and Florida carry the highest student loan debt outstanding among all resident borrowers in the USA (Friedman 2018).