Determination of Business Strategies Using SWOT Analysis; Planning and Managing the Organizational Resources to Enhance Growth and Profitability

Abstract

A SWOT analysis is the method to evaluate the internal weaknesses and strengths of an organization as well as evaluating the threats and opportunities of its external environment. This is considered as an effective framework to plan and manage the organizational resources to achieve certain goals in a specific period of time. The purpose of implementing SWOT analysis in an organization is to formulate the strategy of a business based on existing internal and external factors. There may be several disadvantages associated with running a SWOT analysis; however, its efficiency in determining the future strategy of a business is more indeed. Although the origin of SWOT analysis is uncertain, there is a long historical background about its uses to facilitate the decision-making process in every complex environment. The final result of a SWOT analysis can be presented in a matrix which is a combination of the four factors and determines strengths and weaknesses that a company involves, with opportunities and threats that it may face. This article provides a study of SWOT analysis basics and provides several practical insights of steps to provide a SWOT matrix.