Tuesday, 16 August 2011

TOWS Analysis for Decision Making Strategy

How does a firm Decide to pursue one course of action over another? Along with SWOT analysis, TOWS analysis is a process That requires management to think critically of its operations. Several action plans by identifying That Could Improve the company's position, TOWS analysis allows management to choose That Those strategies most effectively capitalize on the available opportunities.

For companies to develop adequate and Successful business strategies, they must sufficiently analyze internal and external Their environments.(Continues below article). One helpful development tool entails strategic SWOT analysis, the which identifies the strengths, Weaknesses, opportunities, and threats facing a company.
However, a major shortcoming of this method involves its focus on the company's internal environment at the expense of its external situation. Subsequent to the SWOT model, Organizations Should Conduct a TOWS analysis, a procedure That focuses more on the external environment. Although the acronym is simply reversed SWOT, TOWS analysis takes a different approach to linking a company's internal strengths and Weaknesses with its external opportunities and threats. This approach allows a business to Cleary identify and evaluate the options it Could pursue.
 
To perform a proper analysis tows, the company must first conduct a SWOT analysis to identify its internal strengths and Weaknesses and external opportunities and threats. The rest of the procedure involves dividing and linking the Appropriate Classifications into four categories:

    
* Maxi-Maxi

    
* Maxi-Mini

    
* Mini-Maxi

    
* Mini-Mini



Creating a TOWS Matrix is ​​an easy and Visually helpful way to aid in this process.

"Maxi-Maxi" Strategy
 
Under the Maxi-Maxi classification, an organization identifies the Appropriate strengths it can use to take advantage of its opportunities. The firm needs to distinguish and list the strengths That Could aid in the maximization of each one of its listed opportunities. For example, possible strengths That Could Help a company penetrate new markets Could include a high-brand recognition, high-brand loyalty, large levels of research and development spending, and superior customer service.
 
"Maxi-Mini" Strategy
 
The Maxi-Mini category identifies the strengths the company can exploit to minimize its external threats. For instance, a potential threat to a firm Could be the loss of market share to a new competitor entering the market. Could one way the firm protect its position involves developing a marketing campaign emphasizing its superior customer service or its competitor's inferior customer service.
 
"Mini-Maxi" Strategy
 
With the Mini-Maxi strategy, a company wants to use its external opportunities to minimize its internal Weaknesses. To illustrate, consider a company faces rising labor That costs in its home country. Simultaneously, it has Identified an attractive opportunity to outsource some of its operations to another country where the cost of labor is far cheaper. This prospect of outsourcing reduces the company's threat of rising labor expenses.
 
"Mini-Mini" Strategy
 
Mini-Mini strategies Attempt to minimize the company's Weaknesses and Prevent external threats. This section matches the firm's threats and Weaknesses in order for the company to Recognize the potential Situations That Could Harm its operations. Possible once these conditions are realized, the company can conceive of Airways to protect its business. For example, a firm can enter into a strategic alliance or merge with one of its competitors to protect its operations from a rival firm. Moreover, the option to withdraw from a market or suspend operations are always present.

Friday, 12 August 2011

SWOT ANALYSIS MODEL

SWOT analysis, method, or model is a way to analyze competitive position of your company. SWOT analysis uses so-called SWOT matrix to assess both internal and external aspects of doing your business. The SWOT framework is a tool for auditing an organization and its environment.

SWOT is the first stage of planning and helps decision makers to focus on key issues. SWOT method is a key tool for company top officials to formulate strategic plans. Each letter in the word SWOT represents one strong word: S = strengths, W = weaknesses, O = opportunities, T = threats.
SWOT model analyzes factors that are internal to your business and also factors that affect your company from outside. Strengths and weaknesses in the SWOT matrix are internal factors. Opportunities and threats are external factors.

SWOT can be used in conjunction with other tools for strategic planning, such as the Porter's Five-Forces analysis or the Balanced Scorecard framework. SWOT is a very popular tool in marketing because it is quick, easy, and intuitive.

What is SWOT matrix?

The concept of determining strengths, weaknesses, threats, and opportunities is the fundamental idea behind the SWOT model. To present the model in a more understandable way, scholars came up with so-called SWOT matrix. SWOT matrix is only a graphical representation of the SWOT framework. 

SWOT analysis matrix

The above is a schema of how SWOT works. You start at the top level and go down to details. When this is filled with content, it gets the shape of a matrix, such as the example below: 


 SWOT matrix makes understanding the model easier.

Can you show SWOT analysis on an example?


Strengths and weaknesses are internal value creating (or destroying) factors such as assets, skills, or resources a company has at its disposal relatively to its competitors. Below you can find a few examples of what your strengths might be:

  • Unique product
  • Location of your business
  • Patents, know-how, trade secrets
  • Worker's unique skill set
  • Corporate culture, company image
  • Quality of your product
  • Access to financing
  • Operational efficiency

The following list shows a few examples of weaknesses:

  • Location of your business
  • Lack of quality and customer service
  • Poor marketing and sales
  • Access to resources
  • Undifferentiated products or services

Opportunities and threats are external value creating (or destroying) factors a company cannot control but emerge from either the competitive dynamics of the industry or market or from demographic, economic, political, technical, social, legal, or cultural factors.

An opportunity in the SWOT model could be for example:

  • A new emerging or developing market (niche product, place - new country, less competition)
  • Merger, joint venture, or strategic alliance
  • Market trends
  • New technologies
  • Social changes (for example demographics)

And now the final one, threats. A threat could be:

  • New competition in the market, possibly with new products or services
  • Price wars
  • Economic conditions
  • Political changes
  • Competitor oligopoly or monopoly
  • Taxation
  • Availability of resources

Factors related to each aspect of the SWOT model depend very much of the nature of your business. SWOT for a manufacturing company will be different from a SWOT for an internet start-up.

Is SWOT analysis a hard science?

The answer is no. SWOT analysis can be very subjective. Someone can see a new firm coming into the market as a threat because it takes away your current customers. Someone else might see the same company as opportunity because that company might have innovative ideas which your business can explore, and your business might even benefit from possible takeover of that new competitor.

What is the difference between SWOT and TOWS?

TOWS analysis is very similar to the SWOT method. TOWS simply looks at the negative factors first in order to turn them into positive factors.
How should I do the SWOT analysis?

There is a number of simple rules that you can go by when creating a SWOT matrix in SWOT analysis.

Be realistic: Make sure you assess your situation objectively. It is better to be more pessimistic about weaknesses and threats and lighter about strengths and opportunities.

Today versus future: When doing the SWOT analysis, distinguish between today's state of your business and your expectation for the future. Mixing your expectation with the current state will result in skewed outcome.

Simple: Keep your SWOT matrix short and simple. Avoid complexity and over analysis. If you want to include many points to each quadrant of the SWOT matrix, it is a good idea to weight them.

What is the next step in SWOT analysis?

We mentioned that the SWOT analysis is very subjective. One way to bring numbers into the SWOT analysis and make it more useful is to weight individual items. Give a weight to every item in the SWOT matrix and then add them together. Each quadrant in the SWOT matrix will result in some number which as a whole will give you a better picture where your business is relative to other quadrants. This leads us to two models called the IFE matrix and EFE matrix that are rooted in the SWOT analysis.

There are three other models related to this called the BCG matrix model, SPACE matrix model, and QSPM model which you can find here: BCG matrix, SPACE matrix model, QSPM model.

In case you have any questions about SWOT analysis, you are welcome to ask them at our management discussion forum.

Tuesday, 9 August 2011

SWOT Analysis (Strategy)

SWOT is an abbreviation for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats

SWOT analysis is an important tool for auditing the overall strategic position of a business and its environment.

Once key strategic issues have been identified, they feed into business objectives, particularly marketing objectives. SWOT analysis can be used in conjunction with other tools for audit and analysis, such as PEST analysis and Porter's Five-Forces analysis. It is also a very popular tool with business and marketing students because it is quick and easy to learn.


The Key Distinction - Internal and External Issues

Strengths and weaknesses are Internal factors. For example, a strength could be your specialist marketing expertise. A weakness could be the lack of a new product.

Opportunities and threats are external factors. For example, an opportunity could be a developing distribution channel such as the Internet, or changing consumer lifestyles that potentially increase demand for a company's products. A threat could be a new competitor in an important existing market or a technological change that makes existing products potentially obsolete.

it is worth pointing out that SWOT analysis can be very subjective - two people rarely come-up with the same version of a SWOT analysis even when given the same information about the same business and its environment. Accordingly, SWOT analysis is best used as a guide and not a prescription. Adding and weighting criteria to each factor increases the validity of the analysis.


Areas to Consider

Some of the key areas to consider when identifying and evaluating Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats are listed in the example SWOT analysis below:

Monday, 8 August 2011

SWOT | TOWS ANALYSIS

SWOT is the acronym for strength, weakness, opportunities and strengths whereas tows is the acronym for threats, opportunities, weakness and strengths Both refers to the same thing. SWOT or TOWS analysis use by the firm to develop strategies or We can say the set of possible strategies. Strategist prefer SWOT or TOWS MATRIX Because it Gives an alternative set of strategies the which help the firm to choose the strategies suit the firm in terms of available resources.

SWOT analysis is not only the part of strategic management, it's also the part of marketing, human resources and other business areas. In this tutorials We Will discuss the way to develop the TOWS matrix and its attributes in detail and also give examples to show firm develop strategies using a SWOT or TOWS matrix.

What are the Things need to be included in the SWOT or TOWS matrix?

SWOT or TOWS matrix as discussed above consist of strength, weakness opportunities and threats, using variety of these strategies are developed. The most common tabular form of the SWOT or TOWS is shown in the figure below.


I would like to explain strengths, weakness opportunities and threats before going into details to Make Easier for the readers unfamiliar to this topic.
Strengths
Strengths are the strong areas or attributes of the company, the which are used to Overcome weakness and capitalize to take advantage of the external opportunities available in the industry.Weakness
Weakness are painful for the company means these are the weak factors, the which needs to be Improve in Future Otherwise if They exposed to the competitors They can take the advantage of it.
OpportunitiesOpportunities are the chances exist in the external environment, firm it depends whether the firm is willing to exploit the opportunities or may be They ignore the opportunities due to lack of resources.
Threats
Threats are always twisted for the firm, the minimum number of threats in the external environment of open many doors for the firm. Maximum number of threats for the firm Reduced Their power in the industry.
How to identify strengths, weakness, opportunities and threats for the TOWS Matrix?
Well, if you have Them Same question its a good one, finding strengths, weakness, opportunism and threats is deep thinking process. The best thing to do ask the decision maker, employee, strategic partners and customers as well about your good and bad points. The other way out to use some statistical and mathematical tool.In strategic management strengths and weakness are extracted from the IFE Matrix, opportunities and threats from EFE matrix.
Example of Wal-Mart Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities and ThreatsWal-Mart Strengths


    
* Customer oriented
    
* SAM'S Club customers Able to buy in bulk
    
* Super centers offer one stop shopping
    
* Satisfaction guaranteed programs promoting customer goodwill
    
* Buy from local merchants Pls possible
    
* Stock ownership and profit-sharing with employees
    
* Leads industry in information technology
    
* Ongoing development of its employees Strong community involvement

Wal-Mart Weakness


    
* No formal mission statement
    
* Membership only for SAM'S Club
    
* Keep poor performing employees on hand
    
* Old fashioned store policies
    
* Few women in top management and Minorities
Wal-Mart Opportunities

    
* Consumers want ease of shopping
    
* Internet shopping growing
    
* Dollar value Increasing
    
* Similar shopping patterns worldwide
    
* Retail sales expected to increase of
    
* Environment conscious consumers
    
* Elderly population growing
    
* The Asian market is virtually untapped by retail
    
* European Market untapped by retail

Wal-Mart Threats

    
* Regulation of Wal-Mart Pharmacies
    
* Small towns do not want the entry of Wal-Mart
    
* Bad media exposure for Kathie Lee Brand
    
* Variety of competition nationally, regionally and locally
    
* Substitute products more easily Because of intense competition

What type of strategies are the part of the TOWS Matrix?
The SWOT Matrix is ​​an Important matching tool that helps managers develops four types of strategies:

   
1. -SO strategies use a firm's internal strengths to take advantage of external opportunities.
   
2. WO-strategies are aimed at Improving Internal Weaknesses by taking advantage of external opportunities.
   
3. -ST strategies use a firm's strengths to avoid or Reduced the impact of external threats.
   
4. -WT strategies are defensive tactics directed at reducing internal Weaknesses and avoiding external threats.

Example of Pakistan State Oil TOWS Matrix




The TOWS matrix above shows the four types of strategies, SO PSO strategies are developed using the strengths to exploit external opportunities, WO strategies are developed to Overcome Weaknesses by utilizing the opportunities. ST strategies are developed by a PSO to minimize or Eliminate the threats using the internal strengths and last WT strategies are developed to avoid threat and minimize Weaknesses.

Saturday, 6 August 2011

SWOT ANALYSIS of GOOGLE™

SWOT | TOWS Analysis: Before we go to the swot analysis of Google, lets try to remember the Google history. Google was started as a research project by two Stanford PhD students named Sergey Brin and Larry Page. They registered the domain name google.com in the year 1997 and in September 1998, it Became a privately Owned incorporate Google Inc. With its extensive research on search algorithms and use of state of the art technology, Google is successfully established its brand name in internet search engines market. By the year 2004, Google Came up covering over 75% of U.S. web search market. Though Google is a dominating player in the internet searching market, it has to Compete with its Rivals Nowhere in this field long time 'there is no entry barrier. Google cans expand / change its business model to survive in this best-search engine race.

SWOT Analysis:

Strengths:

  • Google - Already number one search engine has established a brand name, in the which its users trust. It's dependable, reliable and fast.
  • Google's end user needs very little marketing as the name Itself is getting word by mouth publicity.
  • Google has a simple interface and it Gives comprehensive results without confusing its users.
  • Google has a low operation cost as it uses low cost Unix web servers for indexing Millions of web pages across the Internet.
  • Google has hired PhDs WHO are continuously working hard in order to enhance the search algorithms and make searching faster, efficient and relevant.
  • By 2003, Google has already powered over 75% of the 300 million searches conducted daily in the U.S. and 300 million outside the U.S. plus
  • Provides an interface to Google's 88 languages ​​to make it comfortable to search for its users in different countries.
  • Google uses state of the art search technology to index pages regularly in order to give most updated results to its users.
  • Also Google weights the votes and Ranks web pages with its PageRank technology to give its users access to most Important pages first.
  • Google is not biased Towards advertisers. It clearly separates relevant advertisements and actual results by giving "Sponsored Links" tag to sponsored results Pls user searches to get information with Some keyword. Moreover, it Ranks Also sponsored links to keep most relevant sponsored links on the top.
  • Google offers localized search called "search by location" Nowhere cans users get results showing vendors, products and services Nearby Their areas.
  • Also Google has a range of innovative additional services like Images, Groups, Directory, and News. Google Did not complicate its website by making Itself a portal, rather it kept tabs for these services on its homepage so users cans Easily navigate and That Also keeps the website as simple as it was Earlier.
  • Also Google has come up with solutions for wireless handheld devices, personalized toolbars, catalogs the which are added essence strengths.
  • Google Quickly routes the user to the webpage and does Linger for ad revenue.

Weaknesses:

  • Many spammers manipulate Google's ranking technology by creating dummy sites with Thousands of links to pages That They wanted Google to rank highly.
  • Google's link-based ranking did not employ the actual traffic analysis.
  • Google's Cost Per Click advertising charging and ranking policy is confusing and makes it Difficult for marketers to Predict Nowhere Their ads would be positioned and how much They Would cost.
  • Google's contextual advertising was perceived by marketers to be less effective in generating sales Because visitors to web pages showing editorial content Searchers Than were the resource persons as less likely, to be ready to buy.
  • Contextual search algorithms are not 100% perfect and many a times make Mistakes.
  • Google's localized search algorithms Sometimes too result in errors due to automated indexing.
  • Google's business model is complex, depending upon both google.com and mass market portals for its revenue.
  • Although Google is a dominating player Among the search engine websites, only 50% to 65% of web search queries are accurately Answered by it.
  • Google does not have "sticky" like Yahoo! And MSN cans have the which attract users.
  • Google does not have highly personalized search by which it Could charge users with switching costs if They Decide to leave Google's services.
Opportunities:
  • Google cans increase of switching costs by tracking users' search histories with Their permissions and Could Remind users through emails for the relevant search updates as per Their personal interest.
  • • Google cans changed from a mass-market portals like Yahoo and MSN and cans increase of switching costs for its users.
  • • Google cans add "sticky" like chat rooms and email systems to attract users and to survive in tough competition.
  • • cans enhance Google's personalized and localized searching and cans Also add localized listings of paid advertisers.
  • • Google cans start new services like multimedia, product search, private databases, and print media.
  • Google cans • Also merge with an established mass-market portal to lock in large numbers of users and advertisers.
  • • Google cans start giving full-fledged services on hand held mobile devices to capture markets beyond conventional internet.

Threats:
  • Google partially Depends upon Some portals like AOL. Getting those contracts terminated, Google Would lose considerable share of its revenue.
  • There is no long-time entry barrier in this business. Many competitors cans emerge in coming years with Same services, better interface and names and cans catch up Google's market.
  • Google's confusing Cost Per Click rankings and charging policy disappoint Could Would its advertisers and companies start loosing many of Them.
  • Competition and Rivalry:
  • Portals like Yahoo Provide more services and solutions with conventional search Than Google do. Google Would start loosing its users due to added attractions in. Such portals.
  • MSN is coming up with its new operating system, called "Longhorn" which would be having "implicit query" feature. Longhorn search will from be Able to search the web, blogs, news sources, the hard drive files, emails plus attachments all from a keyword search without a browser. Users Will Be Able to search directly from already established Microsoft programs like MS word. Would this handcuff users and ultimately It would harm Google's market.
  • Overture has been Google's old competitors. Though Google has more advertisers acquitted Than Overture, Google's share of market revenue lags behind overture by 20% and there is always competition for getting collaborated with well known mass-market portals like AOL, Yahoo and MSN.
  • Google's scale Might Also changed from a liability in order to cop up with new and enhanced search techniques if company's ability to modify its algorithms and database architecture was constrained by its server infrastructure and the size of its index.
  • If Google comes up Becoming a portal, it May lose its simplicity and comprehensiveness Because of the which it is a favorite Among its users.
  • Google cans get trapped in. Regarding privacy issues if it decides to go for highly personalized search for the which it has to capture a user's personal information.
  • If Google decides to merge with Some already established mass-market portal, it will from start loosing its brand name well earned.
  • Recommendations:
  • Google's core competence is its strong search technology, the which Gives accurate results to its users and That Also at the right place without misleading Them. Google Should concentrate on making its search engine much more accurate, relevant and dependable the which is most Important thing as far as the user's objective is Concerned. Getting more users Would Also help the company in getting more advertisers and ultimately earning revenue.
  • Should Google start giving services like print, multimedia, travel, mail, Instant Messaging, etc. to Compete with one-stop portals like Yahoo and MSN, but without changing its simplicity and comprehensiveness. Google cans by putting simple users navigate links on its homepage and at the Same time it would be Able to sustain its traditional looks.
  • Google has already started contextual and localized search solutions. It Should improv the quality and relevance of results of these services as well as gathering REVENUES Should start from advertisers Who Are covering perform certain areas and willing to pay only for the results the which are accessed by the users of the area in the which They are Providing services or products.
  • Google Should Also put in Efforts to improv its search algorithms and stop spammers from spoofing and getting Their pages Ranked high.
  • Google Should Also start Providing personalized search solutions by Storing users' information with permissions Their comfortable and making a web search for Them Pls They come back. Would this help the company in generating long term relationships with the customers.
  • Google Should regularly take feedback from its advertisers and Should make changes in its charging and ranking of policies if it is Appropriate for both the parties as well as in favor of search engine users.
  • Google cans • Also generates revenue by indexing databases of large organizations and Providing Them a private search solutions.

Conclusion:

It is not recommended for Google to merge with mass-market portals. Though That Would Help Google in SECURING users and advertisers but Also It would harm Google's independent growth. Google has cutting edge technology and excellent minds behind it and use it Should That in Providing users with 100% relevant search results. Though rival portals are coming up with strategies to handcuff users but Would users finally choose the one WHO Gives most accurate search results. As far as profit is Concerned, locking in maximum market from quality services automatically Would help Google in attracting more number of advertisers to make revenue from.
Thus, Google Should keep updating its technology and services with the Same simplicity and comprehensiveness as it has been since its establishment Providing.

Friday, 5 August 2011

How to do a SWOT Analysis (Strategic Planning Made Easy)

“Strategic Planning” sounds a lofty pursuit and perhaps beyond our humble capabilities. Not so with a SWOT Analysis. Learn how to do a SWOT analysis using the SWOT matrix and become an effective strategic planner today, achieving your goals.What’s Strategic Planning Anyway?

Strategic planning is just management speak for long term future planning. Strategic planning concerns anything that will bring results in anything from 1 year to 5 years or beyond. It’s good management practice to raise your head above the daily grind every now and then, and take action now to positively affect your future.


Definition of SWOT

As with most management models, the clue is in the name.

S = Strengths

W = Weaknesses
O = Opportunities
T = Threats

The SWOT Matrix Explained

All the best management models have four quadrants, and the SWOT matrix is no exception. You use each of the four quadrants in turn to anal
yze where you are now, where you want to be, and then make an action plan to get there.

Regardless of whether you or your team are future planning for specific products, work, personal or any other area, the SWOT analysis process is the same.

Step 1 – In the here and now…
List all strengths that exist now. Then in turn, list all weaknesses that exist now. Be realistic but avoid modesty!


Step 2 – What might be…
List all opportunities that exist in the future. Opportunities are potential future strengths. Then in turn, list all threats that exist in the future. Threats are potential future weaknesses.

Step 3 – Plan of action…
Review your SWOT matrix with a view to creating an action plan to address each of the four areas.

In summary;
· Strengths need to be maintained, built upon or leveraged.
· Weaknesses need to be remedied or stopped.
· Opportunities need to be prioritised and optimised.
· Threats need to be countered or minimised.

SWOT Analysis Example

Here’s one I prepared earlier:


Sow the seeds and reap the benefits

And that’s it! Not too complicated, I’m sure you’ll agree. The SWOT matrix is a useful tool for strategic planning and achieving your goals, individually or with a team. It’s easy to learn how to do a SWOT analysis – just try one out for yourself and reap the benefits.

SWOT analysis (Take a close look at your strengths and weaknesses with SWOT)

A SWOT analysis is a method for describing your business (or your business proposition) in terms of those factors that have the most impact.
Essentially you nominate the Strengths and Weaknesses of the business (its internal resources and capabilities), then you identify the Opportunities and Threats it faces (factors external to the organisation).
This is an easy, understandable way of identifying key issues and communicating them to others. And to make things even simpler to grasp, the typical SWOT analysis is done on a four-cell grid:





The exercise is simple: All you do is list factors in the relevant boxes. Strengths and weaknesses are internal factors; the quality of your product or the skills of your management, for example. (Both might also be weaknesses, of course, if the product quality is low and management incompetent.) Opportunities and threats are external factors, for instance the development of a whole new market (opportunity) or the arrival of a clutch of new competitors (threat).
Sometimes it helps to start without the grid. List any issues at all that might affect the business – internal or external, real or perceived. When the flow starts to dry, organise the items into the SWOT categories.
So what are those categories? 

Strengths 
 
In the first box list all the strengths of your company. Why should you succeed? What do you do well? Why do customers say they enjoy doing business with you? What distinct advantages does your company offer?
The important consideration is veracity: don’t be modest, but do be realistic. Any SWOT analysis is essentially subjective, but try for a third-party viewpoint: what strengths does the outsider see?
Here’s a jump-start trick, especially for a group SWOT session: begin by brainstorming adjectives that characterize your company, write them down as quickly as people say them, and then use those words to construct a more considered profile of your company’s strengths. If you’re the sole proprietor or the prime mover in the business, try starting with a list of your own positive personal characteristics. 

Weaknesses 
 
A weakness something that seriously impedes a firm’s effective performance, a limitation or deficiency in resource, skills, or capabilities. What could be improved about the business – markets, staffing, management, control? What stumbling blocks do you continue to encounter? What does your company do that can be improved? What should be avoided? What do your competitors do better than you?
Don’t try to disguise weaknesses, and don’t merely list errors, omissions and mistakes.
Look at things from the outsider’s perspective, too. For instance, a one-man business might list the proprietor’s knowledge as a strength; the outsider might see total reliance on one individual as a weakness. 

Opportunities 
 
Where are the openings for your business? What customer needs are not being met by your competitors?
You’ll probably start with marketing issues, presumably because your business fills a niche or can compete effectively, but do include all the possibilities. For instance, what are the interesting trends in your business sector – in terms of markets, yes, but also in technology changes, the legislative and regulatory environment, social patterns? 

Threats 
 
Threats are key impediments to the firm’s current or desired position. What are the more obvious obstacles in your way, both actual and potential?
Obvious candidates would include a sudden rush of bad debts or a slack sales period leading to cashflow problems. But think further than that: What is your competition doing that could take business away from you or stunt your company’s growth? How might your competitors react to any moves you make? What trends do you see that could wipe you out or make your service or product obsolete? Might technology changes threaten your products or services? Or your job?
It’s important to include a couple of worst-case scenarios. Weighing threats against opportunities is not a reason to indulge in pessimism; rather, it’s a question of considering how possible damage may be overcome, bypassed or restricted.

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