SWOT / TOWS

Situation Analysis

Internal Analysis External Analysis

Strengths Weaknesses Opportunities Threats

SWOT Profile
Internal Analysis
• Company Culture
• Company image
• Organizational structure
• Key staff
• Access to natural resources
• Operational efficiency
• Operational capacity
• Brand awareness
• Market share
• Financial resources
• Exclusive contracts
• Patents and trade secrets
External Analysis
• Customer • Social Changes
• Competitors • New Technology
• Market trends • Economic environment
• Suppliers • Political and regulatory
• Partners environment
Strengths and the internal for example: factors factors tend to
Weaknesses environment - relating to products, be in the
the situation pricing, costs, present
inside the profitability,
company or performance, quality,
organization people, skills,
adaptability, brands,
services, reputation,
processes, infrastructure,
etc.
Opportunities the external for example: factors factors tend
and Threats environment - relating to markets, to be in the
the situation sectors, audience, future
outside the fashion, seasonality,
company or trends, competition,
organization economics, politics,
society, culture,
technology,
environmental, media,
law, etc.
SWOT
 Customer Relationship Management (CRM) and
Strengths
Information Technology (IT) support Amazon's business
strategy.
 New and emerging markets provide opportunities for
Opportunity
eBay in countries such as China and India.
 Home Depot joins competitors such as Lowes and
Menards in taking a second look at expansion plans due Threat
to an uncertain economy.
 Sony's production facilities are located far from its Weakness
customer base.
 Carnival Cruises are such a large company that they
have significant cost advantages over most of their Strengths
competitors.
There are positive projects for General Motors' Opportunity
business in China and India.
SWOT case
• Jigs Jardinero owns and operates Twigs Tree Trimming Service. Jigs
graduated from the forestry program of a nearby university and
worked for a large landscape design firm, performing tree trimming
and removal. After several years of experience abroad, he bought
his own truck, stump grinder, and other equipment and opened his
own business targeting Metro Manila area.
• Although many of his jobs are one-time operations to remove a tree
or stump, others are recurring, such as trimming a tree or groups of
trees every year or every other year. When business is slow, he calls
former clients to remind them of her services and of the need to
trim their trees on a regular basis.
•think of T.O.W.S as a modified,
cross-referenced S.W.O.T.
analysis. It goes deeper than
simply listing up Strengths,
Weaknesses, Opportunities and
Threats ― It is a means of
looking for relationships
between each to “brainstorm”
possible strategies and tactics.
T.O.W.S. analysis helps you get a better understanding
of the strategic choices that you face. It helps you ask,
and answer, the following questions:

• How do you make the most of your strengths?

• How do you circumvent your weaknesses?
• How do you capitalize on your opportunities?
• How do you mitigate and manage your threats?
The arrangement helps you to identify strategic alternatives that
address the following additional questions:
• Strengths and Opportunities (S/O) – How can you use your
internal strengths to take advantage of the existing external
opportunities?
• Strengths and Threats (S/T) – How can you take advantage of
your strengths to avoid or mitigate real and potential external
threats?
• Weaknesses and Opportunities (W/O) – How can you use the
external opportunities to overcome the internal weaknesses you
are experiencing?
• Weaknesses and Threats (W/T) – What can you do to minimize
your internal weaknesses and avoid external threats?
 Case for a small independent bookstore in a university town

• Strengths • Weaknesses
1. Workers are all well-educated 1. Space is tight
students who love books 2. Bank gave us a limited line of
2. The space is attractive and credit
inviting 3. Health insurance costs are rising
3. Long-term lease is low rate 4. Business is slower during summer
4. Customers are supportive of small vacation
bookstores 5. Inventory system needs to be
5. Popular café makes it easy for upgraded
customers to linger and find 6. High staff turnover due to
something to buy students graduating
 Case for a small independent bookstore in a university town
• Opportunities
1. We can have local authors give
lectures and book signings
2. We can make personalized
recommendations to long-term
customers
3. We can deliver the same-day to
mobility-impaired customers
4. We can feature things that
appeal to summer tourists
5. We can start a frequent buyer
program
• Threats
1. Large chains have more buying
power
2. E-books and e-book readers
eliminate need for physical
books
3. Younger generations don’t read
as much
4. Nearby public library reopened
after 2-year remodel