SWOT

SWOT stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats.

Two come from within the organisation, and the two come from outside. Can you decide which is which?

Strengths are things that can be done well, and that make the business better than others in the same market.

Weaknesses are things that are not done so well, or that your organisation doesn't do at all, although your competitors might.

Opportunities usually come from outside. You may think that improving a process is an internal opportunity, but with a business, the main opportunities are those that assist you to grow the business. As a manager, opportunities to develop your section may come from another department as well as from outside the company.

Threats are things that can threaten your business. You need to think about how to get rid of these, or at least minimise the impact that they have.

A SWOT analysis helps you to look at the current situation, find the things you do best, and then find a sustainable direction for the business to go in.

From a manager's point of view, you can look at the people in your team as part of this analysis. It may also help you to make training decisions. A SWOT analysis can be set out in a number of ways, but it is sometimes shown as a grid.