SWOT ANALYSIS

Strategic Planning Technique

Strengths (S)

What the organization does well, what unique resources it has, and what
others see as its strengths

Weaknesses (W)

What the organization could improve, where it has fewer resources than
others, and what others likely see as weaknesses

Opportunities (O)

What opportunities are open to the organization, what trends it could take
advantage of, and how it can turn its strengths into opportunities

Threats (T)

What threats could harm the organization, what its competition is doing, and
what threats its weaknesses expose it to
Albert Humphrey developed the SWOT framework in the 1960s and 1970s at
Stanford Research Institute. It was originally developed for businesses, but
has since been adopted by organizations of all types.

Given how widely used SWOT Analysis is, it is surprising to note that its
origins are unclear. Many pages cite Albert S. Humphrey as the originator and
state that he devised SWOT analysis whilst working on a research project at
Stanford University.

S.O.F.T He explains: “We started as the first step by asking, ‘what’s good and
bad about the operation?’ Then we asked, ‘What is good and bad about the
future?’ What is good in the present is Satisfactory, good in the future is
Opportunity, bad in the present is a Fault and bad in the future is a Threat.”

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SWOT can also be used at a team level. If we consider the PMO, it may be
useful to objectively assess the Strengths and Weaknesses of the team. What
skills do you have? What resources are at your disposal? What are you good
at? And what are you bad at? Once you’ve thought about Strengths and
Weaknesses, move on to exploring Opportunities and Threats within the
organization.

Where do gaps exist in the organization that the PMO could fill, or offer
support? Who is challenging the value of the PMO and what arguments are
they using? This kind of assessment can help the team map out its objectives
for the following year.

Personal SWOT Analysis

SWOT is not just about management processes – you can use it to undertake
your own personal evaluation. It can be a useful tool to help identify your
potential, to develop strategies for career building or to reflect before
embarking on significant change.

Using SWOT will give your a greater self awareness than a simple list of
positives and negatives. Identifying your personal strengths and opportunities
will help you deploy your talents to maximum effect. Similarly, understanding

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your weaknesses and threats will help you develop coping strategies to build
up resilience.

Explaining the 3C business model

The 3C analysis business model was originally created by Kenichi Ohmae, a

It has been used as a strategic business model for many years and is often
used in web marketing today.

This method has you focusing your analysis on the 3C’s or strategic triangle:
the customers, the competitors and the corporation. By analyzing these three
elements, you will be able to find the key success factor (KSF) and create a
viable marketing strategy. Many variations have been derived from this
method because of its simplicity.

You can start with any of the 3 “C”s, but it is recommended that you analyze
the customers first, then the competitors, and finally the company you are
working for.

If you analyze the corporation first, you will tend to use the company data as
the standard for analyzing the competitors and customers. Understanding the

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customer’s viewpoint is important in marketing. Therefore, first know the
customer, then the competition in your market, and finally the company.

SWOT Analysis Infographic

Key Points

 SWOT Analysis helps you to identify your organization’s Strengths,

 It guides you to build on what you do well, address what you’re lacking,
seize new openings, and minimize risks.

 Apply a SWOT Analysis to assess your organization’s position before

 Use a SWOT matrix to prompt your research and to record your ideas.
Avoid making huge lists of suggestions. Be as specific as you can, and be
honest about your weaknesses.

 Be realistic and rigorous. Prune and prioritize your ideas, to focus time
and money on the most significant and impactful actions and solutions.
Complement your use of SWOT with other tools.

 Collaborate with a team of people from across the business. This will
help to uncover a more accurate and honest picture.

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  Find out what’s working well, and what’s not so good. Ask yourself
where you want to go, how you might get there – and what might get in
your way.