SWOT Analysis
SWOT Analysis, or sometimes known as the TOWS Matrix, is a strategic planning tool used to evaluate the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats involved in a project or in a business venture or in any other situation of an organization or individual requiring a decision in pursuit of an objective. It involves monitoring the marketing environment internal and external to the organization or individual. The technique is credited to Albert Humphrey, who led a research project at Stanford University in the 1960s and 1970s using data from the Fortune 500 companies.
Strategic and Creative Use of SWOT Analysis
Strategic Use: Orienting SWOTs to An Objective. If SWOT analysis does not start with defining a desired end state or objective, it runs the risk of being useless. A SWOT analysis may be incorporated into the strategic planning model. An example of a strategic planning technique that incorporates an objective-driven SWOT analysis is SCAN analysis. Strategic Planning, including SWOT and SCAN analysis, has been the subject of much research.
If a clear objective has been identified, SWOT analysis can be used to help in the pursuit of that objective. In this case, SWOTs are:
- Strengths: attributes of the organization that are helpful to achieving the objective.
- Weaknesses: attributes of the organization that are harmful to achieving the objective.
- Opportunities: external conditions that are helpful to achieving the objective.
- Threats: external conditions that are harmful to achieving the objective.
First, the decision makers have to determine whether the objective is attainable, given the SWOTs. If the objective is NOT attainable a different objective must be selected and the process repeated.
Creative Use of SWOTs. If, on the other hand, the objective seems attainable, the SWOTs are used as inputs to the creative generation of possible strategies, by asking and answering each of the following four questions, many times:
- How can we Use each Strength?
- How can we Stop each Weakness?
- How can we Exploit each Opportunity?
- How can we Defend against each Threat?
Internal and external factors
The aim of any SWOT analysis is to identify the key internal and external factors that are important to achieving the objective. SWOT analysis groups key pieces of information into two main categories:
Internal factors - The strengths and weaknesses internal to the organization.
External factors - The opportunities and threats presented by the external environment.
The internal factors may be viewed as strengths or weaknesses depending upon their impact on the organization's objectives. What may represent strengths with respect to one objective may be weaknesses for another objective. The factors may include all of the 4P's; as well as personnel, finance, manufacturing capabilities, and so on. The external factors may include macroeconomic matters, technological change, legislation, and socio-cultural changes, as well as changes in the marketplace or competitive position. The results are often presented in the form of a matrix.
SWOT analysis is just one method of categorization and has its own weaknesses. For example, it may tend to persuade companies to compile lists rather than think about what is really important in achieving objectives. It also presents the resulting lists uncritically and without clear prioritization so that, for example, weak opportunities may appear to balance strong threats.
It is prudent not to eliminate too quickly any candidate SWOT entry. The importance of individual SWOTs will be revealed by the value of the strategies it generates. A SWOT item that produces valuable strategies is important. A SWOT item that generates no strategies is not important.
Examples of SWOTs
Strengths and weaknesses
- Resources: financial, intellectual, location
- Customer service
- Efficiency
- Infrastructure
- Quality
- Staff
- Management
- Price
- Delivery time
- Cost
- Capacity
- Relationships with customers
- Brand strength
- Local language knowledge
- Ethics
- Principles
- Political/Legal
- Market Trends
- Economic condition
- Expectations of stakeholders
- Technology
- Public expectations
- Competitors and competitive actions
- Bad PR
- Criticism (Editorial)
- Global Markets
The following errors have been observed in published accounts of SWOT analysis:
- Conducting a SWOT analysis before defining and agreeing upon an objective (a desired end state). SWOTs should not exist in the abstract. They can exist only with reference to an objective. If the desired end state is not openly defined and agreed upon, the participants may have different end states in mind and the results will be ineffective.
- Opportunities external to the company are often confused with strengths internal to the company. They should be kept separate.
- SWOTs are sometimes confused with possible strategies. SWOTs are descriptions of conditions, while possible strategies define actions. This error is made especially with reference to opportunity analysis. To avoid this error, it may be useful to think of opportunities as "auspicious conditions".
- "Make your points long enough, and include enough detail, to make it plain why a particular factor is important, and why it can be considered as a strength, weakness, opportunity or threat. Include precise evidence, and cite figures, where possible.
- Be as specific as you can about the precise nature of a firm’s strength and weakness. Do not build content with general factors like economies of scale.
- Avoid vague, general opportunities and threats that could be put forward for just about any organisation under any circumstances.
- Do not mistake the outcomes of strength (such as profits and market share) for strengths in their own right".
The usefulness of SWOT analysis is not limited to profit-seeking organizations. SWOT analysis may be used in any decision-making situation when a desired end-state (objective) has been defined. Examples include: non-profit making organizations, governmental units and individuals. SWOT analysis may also be, and often is, used in pre-crisis planning and preventive crisis management. Following the steps described above should lead to clarification of issues and development of goal-oriented alternatives.
Alternative view on SWOT
SWOT alongside PEST/PESTLE can be used as a basis for the analysis of business and environmental factors. [1] It is a technique widely used by a group, department, unit, organisation or even an individual.[2] As part of Continuing Professional Development SWOT analysis can be contained within and feed into an indidviduals CPD.[3] [4]
Using SWOT to analyse the market position of a small management consultancy with specialism in HRM.[5]
| 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 |
| Track record - successful assignments | No administrative back up | Developmental opportunities for extending business into the EU | Limited financial resources |
A SWOT carried out on a HR Department may look like this:
| Strengths | Weaknesses | Opportunities | Threats |
|---|---|---|---|
| Developed techniques for dealing with major areas of HR, job evaluation, psychometric testing and basic training | Reactive rather than pro-active; needs to be asked rather than developing unsolicited ideas | New management team, wanting to improve overall organizational effectiveness through organizational development and cultural management programmes | HR contribution not recognised by top management who by-pass it by employing external consultants |
A SWOT carried by an individual manager could look like this:
| Strengths | Weaknesses | Opportunities | Threats |
|---|---|---|---|
| Enthusiasm, energy, imagination, expertise in subject area, excellent track record in specialized area | Not good at achieving results through undirected use of personal energies, trouble at expressing themselves orally and on paper – may have ideas but these come over as incoherent, management experience and expertise limited | More general management opportunities requiring development of new managers | De-centralisation having the effect of removing departments where the individual is employed and eliminating middle management layers to form flatter structure of organization |
SWOT within corporate planning
As part of the development of strategies and plans to enable the organisation to achieve its objectives, then that organisation will use a systematic/rigorous process known as corporate planning.
- Set objectives – defining what the organisation is intending to do
- Environmental scanning: Internal appraisals of the organisations SWOT, this needs to include an assessment of the present situation as well as a portfolio of products/services and an analyse of the product/service life cycle
- Analysis of existing strategies, this should determine relevance from the results of an internal/external appraisal. This may include gap analysis which will look at environmental factors
- Strategic Issues defined – key factors in the development of a corporate plan which needs to be addressed by the organisation
- Develop new/revised strategies – revised analysis of strategic issues may mean the objectives need to change
- Establish critical success factors – the achievement of objectives and strategy implementation
- Preparation of operational, resource, projects plans for strategy implementation
- Monitoring results – mapping against plans, taking corrective action which may mean amending objectives/strategies.[6]
In Competitor analysis, marketers build detailed profiles of each competitor in the market, focusing especially on their relative competitive strengths and weaknesses using SWOT analysis. Marketing managers will examine each competitor's cost structure, sources of profits, resources and competencies, competitive positioning and product differentiation, degree of vertical integration, historical responses to industry developments, and other factors.
Marketing management often finds it necessary to invest in research to collect the data required to perform accurate marketing analysis. As such, they often conduct market research (alternately marketing research) to obtain this information. Marketers employ a variety of techniques to conduct market research, but some of the more common include:
- Qualitative marketing research, such as focus groups
- Quantitative marketing research, such as statistical surveys
- Experimental techniques such as test markets
- Observational techniques such as ethnographic (on-site) observation
- Marketing managers may also design and oversee various environmental scanning and competitive intelligence processes to help identify trends and inform the company's marketing analysis.
References
- Armstrong. M. A handbook of Human Resource Management Practice (10th edition) 2006, Kogan Page , London ISBN 0-7494-4631-5
- Boydell. T. and Leary. M. Identifying Training Needs, 2001 Chartered Institute of Personnel & Development, London ISBN 0-85292-630-8
- Chartered Management Institute (About the CPD scheme) (CMI website accessed 19/03/2007)
- Institute of Administrative Management website (accessed 16/03/2007)
- Armstrong.M Management Processes and Functions, 1996, London CIPD ISBN 0-85292-438-0
- Armstrong.M Management Processes and Functions, 1996, London CIPD ISBN 0-85292-438-0
