2. Strength
• characteristics of the business or
project that give it an advantage
over others
Weakness
• characteristics that place the
business or project at a
disadvantage relative to others
Opportunity
• elements that the project could
exploit to its advantage
SWOT
Threats
• elements in the environment that
could cause trouble for the
business or project
7. Strengths Weaknesses Opportunities Threats
Reputation in
marketplace
Shortage of
consultants at
operating level rather
than partner level
Well established
position with a well
defined market niche
Large consultancies
operating at a minor
level
Expertise at partner
level in HRM
consultancy
Unable to deal with
multi-disciplinary
assignments because
of size or lack of ability
Identified market for
consultancy in areas
other than HRM
Other small
consultancies
looking to invade
the marketplace
8. SWOT Workshop
Write down 2 Strengths , Weaknesses , Opportunity and Threats
n
Strengths Weaknesses Opportunities Threats
NAME :__________________________________ D.O.B. :__/__/____
MOBILE NUMBER :__________________________________ EMAIL ID :____________________________________
10. SWOT Analysis (Demo Activity: Role Play)
James Manktelow: Hello. I'm James Manktelow, CEO of
MindTools.com, home to hundreds of free career-building tools and
resources.
Amy Carlson: And I'm Amy Carlson from Mind Tools. Do you ever feel
your career lacks focus? Or would you like to have a clear strategy in
place to grow your business, but don't know where to start? If so, you'll
find the SWOT Analysis tool very helpful.
11. JM: SWOT stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. By
analyzing your business – or career – in these four areas, you'll be able to cut
through the noise, and focus on what really matters. You can use SWOT
Analysis to identify a sustainable niche for your company – or on a personal
level, to help you develop your own career. By understanding your strengths
and weaknesses, you can exploit the most relevant opportunities in the
marketplace – and manage threats that might otherwise take you by
surprise.
AC: To do your SWOT Analysis you'll need a piece of paper – or you can print
off the free worksheet at MindTools.com. And give yourself enough time. It
pays to consider each of the four areas in depth, and to try to be as realistic
and rigorous as possible.
Starting with Strengths, ask yourself some key questions. What advantages
do you or your company have? What do you do better than anyone else?
What do people in your market see as your strengths?
12. JM: Moving onto Weaknesses, ask yourself what could you improve?
What should you avoid? What factors lose you sales? What do
outsiders see as your weaknesses?
With Opportunities, you'll want to consider where your best
opportunities lie. What interesting trends are you aware of? What
opportunities might arise from changes in technology, government
policy, social patterns, and the like? And – this is really important –
what opportunities do your strengths open up for you?
Finally, Threats. Ask yourself what obstacles you or your company face.
What is your competition doing that you should be worried about? Do
you have bad debt or cash-flow problems? And what threats do your
weaknesses expose you to?
13. AC: When you're making your lists, be precise – and prioritize,
so the most important points are at the top. You'll find that
your strengths and weaknesses are often internal to you or
your organization, while opportunities and threats often relate
to external factors. This is why SWOT Analysis is often called
Internal/External Analysis.
When you've finished the analysis, you'll have a better
understanding of how you can compete successfully, and
you'll have made a good start on crafting an effective
strategy for success.
Editor's Notes
A SWOT analysis (alternatively SWOT matrix) is a structured planning method used to evaluate the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats involved in a project or in a business venture. A SWOT analysis can be carried out for a product, place, industry or person. It involves specifying the objective of the business venture or project and identifying the internal and external factors that are favourable and unfavourable to achieve that objective.
Some authors credit SWOT to Albert Humphrey, who led a convention at the Stanford Research Institute (now SRI International) in the 1960s and 1970s using data from Fortune 500 companies. However, Humphrey himself does not claim the creation of SWOT, and the origins remain obscure. The degree to which the internal environment of the firm matches with the external environment is expressed by the concept of strategic fit.
Setting the objective should be done after the SWOT analysis has been performed. This would allow achievable goals or objectives to be set for the organization.
Strengths: characteristics of the business or project that give it an advantage over others.
Weaknesses: characteristics that place the business or project at a disadvantage relative to others
Opportunities: elements that the project could exploit to its advantage
Threats: elements in the environment that could cause trouble for the business or project
Identification of SWOTs is important because they can inform later steps in planning to achieve the objective.
First, the decision makers should consider whether the objective is attainable, given the SWOTs. If the objective is notattainable a different objective must be selected and the process repeated.
Users of SWOT analysis need to ask and answer questions that generate meaningful information for each category (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) to make the analysis useful and find their competitive advantage.
When to use SWOT
The use of a SWOT analysis by a community organization are as follows: to organize information, provide insight into barriers[13] that may be present while engaging in social change processes, and identify strengths available that can be activated to counteract these barriers.
A SWOT analysis can be used to:
Explore new solutions to problems [9]
Identify barriers that will limit goals/objectives [9]
Decide on direction that will be most effective [9]
Reveal possibilities and limitations for change[9]
To revise plans to best navigate systems, communities, and organizations
As a brainstorming and recording device as a means of communication[13]
To enhance “credibility of interpretation” to be utilized in presentation to leaders or key supporters.[10]
Benefits[edit]
The SWOT analysis in Social Work practice framework is beneficial because it helps organizations decide whether or not an objective is obtainable and therefore enables organizations to set achievable goals, objectives, and steps to further the social change or community development effort.[14] It enables organizers to take visions and produce practical and efficient outcomes in order to effect long-lasting change, and it helps organizations gather meaningful information in order to maximize their potential.[14] Completing a SWOT analysis is a useful process regarding the consideration of key organizational priorities, such as gender and cultural diversity, and fundraising objectives.[15]
