04.04.2012

Introduction:

SWOT analysis is a method for analysing a business ,its resources, and its environment.

SWOT is commonly used as part of strategic planning and looks at:

·         Internal strengths

·         Internal weaknesses

·         Opportunities in the external environment

·         Threats in the environment

SWOT can be help management in a business discover:

·         What the buisness does better than the competitors

·         What competitor do better than the business

·         Wherther the business is making the most of the opportunities available.

·         How a business should respond to change in its external environment.

The result of the analysis is a matrix of positive and negative factors for management to address:

	Positive factors	Negative factors
Internal factors	Strengths	Weaknesses
External factors	Opportunities	Threats

The key point to remember about SWOT is that:
Strengths and weaknesses

• Are internal to the business
• Relate to the present situation

Opportunities and threats

• Are external to the business
• Relate to changes in the environment which will impact the business

	Positive factors	Negative factors
Internal factors	Strengths ·         Technologocal strength ·         Leaidng brand ·         Distributional chennel ·         Customer loyalty or relationship ·         Production quality ·          scale ·         management	Weaknesses ·         absence of important skills ·         weak brand ·         pure access to distribution Eg: delivery ·         low customer retantion ·         unrelaible product or service ·         sub scale ·         management
External factors	Opportunities ·         changing customer tast ·         liberlisation of geigraphic market ·         technological advances ·         changes in government policies ·         lower personal taxes ·         change in population age structure ·         new distribution channels.	Threats ·         Changing customer tast ·         Closing of geographic market ·         Technological advances ·         Change in government policies ·         Tax increases ·         Change in population age structure ·         New distribution channels

07.04.2012

04.04.2012

Using SWOT analysis

There is no point producing a SWOT analysis unless it is actioned! SWOT analysis should be more than a list - it is an analytical technique to support strategic decisions
Strategy should be devised around strengths and opportunities
The key words are match and convert: