unit 7 chapter 25 : SWOT ANALYSIS

Question 1

SWOT analysis is

Answer 1

method of strategic analsysis ehich considers internal and external enviro of a bs

Question 2

SWOTacronmy

Answer 2

strength
weakness
Opportunities
Threats

Question 3

What do strength and weakness look at

Answer 3

internal position of bs @present time

Question 4

giv example of 4 strength s

Answer 4

highly skilled +loyal staff

hihg level of cash

strong brand name

good distribution network

Question 5

give 4 examples of weaknesses

Answer 5

large amoutns of lt borrowing

under utilised capacity

low net profit margin

lack of new products under development

Question 6

what do opportunities and threats refer to and look to

Answer 6

external factors

looks to teh future

Question 7

opportunities offer what types of chances for bs

Answer 7

positive chances for bs

Question 8

threats are factors which may be

Answer 8

damaging

Question 9

give example of 3 opps in future a bs may benefit from

Answer 9

growth in a major market

alliance w competitor to develop new technology

rising income levels among target consumer groups

Question 10

give example of three future threats for a bs

Answer 10

being taken over by larger competitor

change in consumer tastes leading to signficiant fall in demand

new laws increasing businesses COP

Question 11

After managers identify SWOT what do they do

Answer 11

rank in order of significance such as

whats most significant threat

Question 12

knowing bs weakness and threats means can identify …

Answer 12

actions bs needs to take immediatley as well as in future to protect itself

Question 13

once SWOTs been done managers should have clearer

Answer 13

view on what bs is good at , its weaknesses and what bs could be doing and against what it should protect itself

Question 14

from knowing swot managers can develop strtaegy/range of strategies that seek to do waht 3 things

Answer 14

build on strengths to exploit opportunities

reduce/eliminate their weaknesses

protect bs against threats

Question 15

SWOT analysis is not a

Answer 15

one off excersise

Question 16

why is swot analysis not a one off excersise

Answer 16

bs i susbject to constant change in its internal and external enviro

Question 17

as bs is subjbect to constant change in internal and external enviro it should be

and startegies should be

Answer 17

constantly

monitored
analysed

strategies should be adjusted accordingly `

Question 18

BENEFITS OF SWOT ANALYSIS r

Answer 18

low cost , straightforward tech that can be used by managers in all types of bs & may be very suitable to assist maangers of samll bs in devising a strategy

encourages managment teams to develop plans that are logical in the context of bs current position whilst activley promo a forward looking approach which shoudl be central element of bs planning

can be comboed effectivley with other managment techniques such as PESTC analysis to develop a bs strategy

SWOT analysis and esp the threat part of analysis can help managers recognise and assess risk which is an important part of making strategic decisiosn

Question 19

LIMITATIONS OF SWOT ANALYSIS

Answer 19

only covers issues that can be clasified as SWOT , can be difficult to address uncertain/two sided factors e.g factors that can be SW or both

only as good as data its based on - if poor ,analysis unlikrly ot be useful. + data its based on can become outdated quickly e.g profit levels and mkt position could be quite different a year later

descision on bs startegy should be based on reliable relevant and comparable data. But SWOT analysus can be subjective depending on the opinions and positions of those collecting and analysing the data

can provide lot of info but unlikley to offer any solutions so results require further analysis by managers. Any benefit from the analysis will depend on the quality of the interpretation/data - if poor analysis liekly to be of little valye

analysis offers no assitance to managers in judging relative importance of SWOT in contributing to development of strategy . As consequence managers may undermine importance of some of the four elements