How to do a swot analysis of an enterprise. Course work: SWOT analysis of an enterprise using the example of a representative office in Ufa of a foreign leasing company. Famous brand

If you think that SWOT analysis is a boring theory from a marketing course, you are mistaken! Where do you start to analyze the situation in your business, what do you do first when you don’t know what to do or what to do correctly, how you weigh everything "Behind" And "Against"? Advice from friends and colleagues, find a solution on the Internet, act on it and boom? This is not enough, you need a real tool that will help you identify the strengths and weaknesses of the project and make the right decisions.

SWOT analysis will help you in this matter. You can not only weigh risks with its help, but also build strategies, do audits, and analyze complex decisions. In this article we will take a detailed look at the capabilities of this tool using an example and learn how to use it in practice.

A little history

SWOT analysis was first introduced to the world in 1963 at Harvard by academic Kenneth Richmond Andrews. At the conference, for the first time, this method of strategic planning was introduced into the arsenal of modern business, which is used by all marketers, analysts and business owners today. It is a mandatory stage of strategic planning and an excellent tool for auditing a company.

This method of analysis allows you to look at the business as a whole, at a separate cell of the company, business process or product from the position of weaknesses and strengths, advantages and threats, both internal and external. And also, many people use it in everyday life. Let's learn how to use it.

S.W.O.T. is an abbreviation from English of four words:

S (Strengths)– strengths. When describing the strengths of the object being analyzed, you should describe more of its own internal advantages. This is easy to do if you perform this task as a team and using the Internet. The more broadly and objectively you look at the subject of analysis (company, process, product, etc.), the more likely it is that a SWOT analysis will produce effective conclusions, so do not assign this task only to marketers or managers.

W (Weaknesses)- flaws. A similar situation with the shortcomings, remember all the disadvantages, all the unpleasant moments associated with the subject of analysis and write them down. Everything that weakens it and makes it unattractive, burdens it - fix everything. Objectively and only regarding the analyzed object.

O (Opportunities)- possibilities. Describe what opportunities the external environment gives you? What favorable external factors accompany development help your subject of analysis develop?

T (Threats)– threats. Record facts that negatively affect the development or promotion of your object of analysis from the outside. In most cases, this addresses the competitive environment and changes in the external market that may threaten you.

SWOT Analysis Template

The analysis is performed by compiling a table or 2 by 2 matrix in which evaluation criteria are entered in each cell, for example:

You can copy this example template into MS Word and print it for work.

There is an opinion that SWOT analysis is a superficial, inaccurate analysis tool based on the subjective opinion of one person. However, if you conduct an audit by a team of specialists from different fields, you can completely achieve an objective picture of the situation.

SWOT analysis using the example of a company

Now we will fill out the SWOT template or matrix with data from one company X, which is engaged in the auto business (selling new cars, spare parts, and repair services).

Let's start from the upper left corner with the strengths of the company that it has at the moment in time, then fill in the upper right field - we enter the internal existing shortcomings / weaknesses of the company there. In the lower left square we write the opportunities of the external environment that can be realized in the future, and in the right square we write threats and risks that are terrible for the business as a whole.

When you fill out the SWOT analysis matrix, analyze the upper squares from the side of the manager and from the side of your clients, and the bottom squares from the side of the company's management.

As we see in the green square with a plus, you need to record the company's resources. Personnel, equipment, software, finances, uniqueness, business processes, etc.
In the beige sector, we fix shortcomings within the company. Answer these questions:

“What’s stopping you from selling more?”
“What don’t you have compared to your competitors?”
“Who is hindering development or does not meet the assigned competencies?”
“What or what resource is missing to solve the problem?”
“What’s not to like about your customers?”

3. The blue sector should reveal the opportunities that are provided to your company from the outside. Answer these questions:

“What are the prospects for the development of your business line in the modern market?”
“Is there an increase in demand for your product/services? Are the needs of your target audience growing?”
“What are the trends regarding laws in your area of business?”
“Are there free niches where your company could make additional profit?”
“Is there an opportunity to expand your product range?”
“Who could help you develop your business? How?"

4. The most important threat sector. It is this that is a priority and will provide us with material for developing specific activities. To fill in the red sector you need to write answers to the questions:

“What are my worst fears?”
“I would have done ....., but if not .... »
“The company will cease to exist if...”
“What actions of competitors will affect the development of the company?”
“What changes in policy and legislation are undesirable for business?”

You must answer these questions with a team consisting of managers and performers.

We get the result

What to do next with these records? The next step is to rank your posts by importance, weight and significance. In the example above, each entry is located under its own importance number - the first is the most important. Determine the three most important positions in the “Threats” block; first of all, you need to develop a strategic action plan for the company to eliminate or prepare for these threats.

Under the first point is: “Loss of dealership due to failure to meet sales plan.” The sales plan is an internal factor, and the fate of the company is still influenced by the importer, who analyzes the share of sales in the region and may deprive you of the right to sell cars of a certain brand. It turns out that this is an external factor that is associated with internal and external problems. Solution: draw up a SWOT analysis of the sales department, it will show the problems that do not allow you to sell enough. Objective #1 is clear.

Further. “Dependence of income on exchange rate fluctuations”. If your internal accounting is kept in foreign currency, you need to develop measures to reduce the impact of this factor on profitability, otherwise an increase in the exchange rate will destroy your margin (markup). For example: sell goods without coming to the warehouse, increase the turnover of goods (sell quickly), create an insurance fund in case of fluctuations, create an adaptive price list that will be automatically converted into national currency at the current exchange rate on the day of payment, etc.

Further. “Dependence on the policies and decisions of the importer”. Designate an employee who will monitor changes and sales rules regulated by the importer. Let him deal only with communication with the importing company. Find a contact person at the importing company who can help with advice and establish contact with him for long-term cooperation.

This data is entered into a table similar to this:

About the pros and cons of the technique

Advantage This method is the ability to obtain a general spatial picture of the state of the object of analysis, which will help make the right decision. SWOT analysis can be used in various fields and is accessible to everyone.

Disadvantage is the lack of accurate quantitative data that can show the dynamics of changes and the subjective factor in compilation.

Summary

This is how you can understand: what to do next, where to move, what is stopping you. A similar analysis can be carried out separately for each department, which will help identify more problems and, as a result, develop a strategy for further development or solution to the problem. The effectiveness of a SWOT analysis depends on the objectivity of the people who compiled it, as well as on the number of questions (coverage of the problem or condition). The more questions, the deeper you will touch on the problem, the more auditors, the more questions and subtleties you will be able to work out.

As you can see, SWOT analysis is a fairly powerful marketing tool that allows you to create a competent business development strategy and correct existing shortcomings.

The article carefully explains how to correctly write conclusions based on a SWOT analysis. Naturally, before you begin to draw conclusions on the work performed, you need to perform the following steps: list all the strengths and weaknesses of the company’s product using a painstaking assessment of internal reasons, list the main sources of business growth (abilities) and assess the future dangers of existence in the industry (dangers). ) due to the analysis of external causes.

If this work has been completed, then you can begin to prepare conclusions for the SWOT analysis.

Filling out the SWOT analysis table

The first step is to enter all the strengths and weaknesses, as well as abilities and threats into the SWOT analysis table. Approach this issue specifically and list even those reasons whose impact on the company’s success is not obvious.

Removing excess

The table is full. Now, before moving on to formulating conclusions on the swot analysis, it is necessary to exclude non-priority and unnecessary directions in each field of the table. By eliminating redundancy, you can focus only on those tasks that are important at that particular moment for the company. In order to quickly filter the recorded characteristics, follow the next 4 steps:

Step 1: Checking Strengths

For each strength, ask 2 questions: how does the strength increase customer satisfaction or company profits? and Does a powerful party differentiate itself from its rivals?. Reasons that hit your strengths, but do not increase profits, do not increase satisfaction and do not differentiate you from your competitors - feel free to cross them out. They are redundant.

Step 2: Checking Weaknesses

For each weak point in the SWAT analysis table, ask the question: How does the weak point reduce customer satisfaction or company profits? Weaknesses of the product that do not affect customer satisfaction or profits are reasons that are known only to you. Cross them out.

Step 3: Check your growth abilities

For each growth opportunity in the SWOT table, ask 2 questions: How can this opportunity increase satisfaction with the product or increase company profits? and Are there resources to implement the ability? Implementation period? If you find it difficult to answer the first question, cross out the option. If the company does not have the resources to implement the ability, postpone it until the next year and exclude it from the current SWOT analysis.

Step 4: Threat Check

For each threat, ask 2 questions: How can this threat reduce satisfaction with the product or reduce company profits? Probable date of occurrence of danger? If you find it difficult to answer the first question, cross out the danger. The predictable period of occurrence of the danger is more than 3 years - postpone its consideration until the next year.

Final table for conclusions

As a result of the check, you will get a very convenient table that contains only the most important characteristics and on which it will be very comfortable to write conclusions.

10 main conclusions

Now that the table is ready, we can move on to drawing conclusions based on it. In practice, there are 10 areas in which it is recommended to draw conclusions:

Look at the strengths of your product: what competitive advantage of the product should be strengthened and developed?
What strengths of the company are not so obvious to buyers? Which strengths need more effective communication?
Look at the company's growth capabilities: What needs to be done to realize these capabilities in a very short time?
How to use the product's strengths in developing capabilities?
Look at the weaknesses of the product: how can you minimize the impact of the weaknesses on the product?
Develop an action plan to eliminate weaknesses or turn weaknesses into strengths.
Figure out how to hide those weak sides that are impossible to change?
Look at the existing dangers: how can the dangers be neutralized?
Is it possible to convert dangers into business opportunities and sources of sales growth?
What needs to be done to protect against threats in a very short time?

Detailed video course

Do you have questions about creating a SWOT analysis? Take advantage of our detailed video course to consolidate theoretical knowledge:

Part 1: SWOT analysis, identifying the strengths and weaknesses of the product

Watch the video - a course on SWOT analysis one hundred percent.

(Please note that this analysis is presented for informational purposes only and is not associated with any existing organization of the same name)

Characteristics of the company Gepard LLC

The founders of the company were a group of people specializing in the field of radio electronics. The company began its activities in 2005. A limited liability company was chosen as the form of implementation of entrepreneurial activity. The authorized capital of the company was 20,000 rubles. Fulfillment of orders is the only financing option. The company is an exclusive developer of an intelligent security system for objects for various purposes. The company needs to expand its production space, which is necessary to increase the volume of products produced, and, consequently, to increase working capital.

Marketing plan

At the moment, the company's priorities are:

promotion of manufactured products in this market segment;
obtaining a certificate that will allow the company to reach a new level of sales;
raising the company's rating and achieving a leading position in the field of video security systems.

SWOT analysis of Gepard LLC

This marketing method is a study of the company's capabilities. Next, based on the results obtained, recommendations are developed regarding the achievement of the set goals, as well as the identification of alternative development options.

First of all, it is necessary to make a complete assessment of the macro- and microenvironment of the company. The factors on which the assessment of the internal environment is traditionally based are:

organizational;
production;
marketing.

The external (macro) environment is assessed through analysis:

demand;
competition;
sales;
resource allocation;
factors beyond the control of marketing, such as inflation growth rates, the attractiveness of the area for incoming investors and others.

Carrying out the SWOT analysis itself is as follows::

Based on the assessment made earlier, compile a list of opportunities that the external environment allows the company to realize. Here you should make a list of factors that will help increase demand for the company’s products, reduce the level of competition, and others;
make a list of probable threats that could affect the enterprise from outside. This paragraph should talk about potential opportunities that could lead to a decrease in demand, change the choice priorities of ordinary consumers, increase the level of competition, and others;
make a list of the company's strengths. We are talking about the skills of personnel and their competence, the existing level of knowledge, as well as other factors that ensure the successful operation of the entire company;
make a list of the company's weaknesses. This paragraph highlights the most important reasons that hinder or may in the future affect the development of the organization.

When all the lists are ready, you should highlight the most significant factors from all the compiled lists. This is a very important point, so you should discard only items that really do not play an important role.

At the next stage, the classic SWOT analysis matrix is filled out, which provides an assessment of the influence of macro- and microenvironments on the enterprise as a whole.

After a thorough assessment, the following points remained::

1.Features:

sales of products;
installation by the enterprise;
possibility of warranty and post-warranty service;
ability to meet customer requirements;
flexible pricing policy;

2.Threats

taxation;
constant increase in competition from larger manufacturers;
insufficiency of own working capital;
small capacity of this market niche;

3.Strength:

production of products using modern high-tech equipment;
flexible pricing policy;
high quality of service provision;
trained personnel;

4.Weakness:

direct dependence on the consumer market;
lack of advertising;
small number of own installation teams;
brand unknown.

Filling out the matrix table. Internal environmental factors include the strengths of the company. External – opportunities and threats.

If the company has the opportunity to neutralize the threat or take advantage of the situation provided by the external environment, then a “+” sign is placed in this column.

The “-” sign serves as a sign that the company cannot get rid of the threat on its own, regardless of its strengths.

The graph remains free if there are no relationships between the factors.

At the end of the procedure, not a single field should be left empty: each column must contain either “plus”, “minus”, or “zero”.

Analysis results

The SWOT analysis carried out showed the following results:

The company can increase volumes, and thanks to our own research center, it is possible to implement more advanced product variations.

The main threats are the adopted tax system and limiting the solvency of the potential client audience.

The weakness is the limitation of possible sales and direct dependence on the consumer market.

Analysis of existing management problems at Gepard LLC

The company has the following tasks::

promotion of manufactured products in your market segment;
improvement of customer service;
formation of a distribution network necessary to promote goods to the regions;
obtaining a certificate, which will enable the organization to reach a new level of sales;
raising the company's rating and achieving a leading position in the field of video security systems.

Tactics for achieving assigned tasks

Here, taking into account the specifics of the products being manufactured, as well as the marketing analysis carried out, it is advisable to focus on direct marketing. It does not require large financial investments, but requires coordination of work. Next, we will consider the areas in which the company should activate its activities.
Advertising
In this direction, direct mail to the addresses of potential clients will be a priority. Also, company employees are required to visit nearby villages for the purpose of direct advertising. Additionally, aggressive advertising will be used.

Distribution

For the first year, sales will primarily be made by company employees. But it is planned to attract companies as dealers that will install and commission the systems.

Increased demand
Upon purchase, the customer will be provided with a product with a basic configuration system, but additional options will be available. As a bonus, you will be given the opportunity to install the system free of charge for up to 3 days, during which the client makes a decision to purchase or refuse this offer. This will additionally serve as advertising for potential clients (neighbors, friends, work colleagues, etc.).

Positioning strategy

Once the company has chosen the most suitable market segment, it is faced with the task of introducing it into the selected market niche. In this situation, there are two options for achieving this goal:

Take a position in a small sub-segment in close proximity to a competitor, and then begin to fight for a leading position in the chosen market share.
Implement your task in a free subsegment.

When choosing the first option, the company should carefully weigh its own capabilities: is there enough internal potential to displace existing competitors.

The second option involves the provision of competitive goods. The company gets an excellent chance to get its own audience interested in this product.

Product Existence Strategy

The marketing term “existence” implies providing the product with the required quality, affordability, attraction and promotion.

Accordingly, four types are distinguished :

commodity;
price;
attraction;
pushing.

Let's look at each type in more detail.

The formation of any strategy of this type occurs according to the following plan:

the company's product portfolio is compiled;
organizational issues related to the development of new products, changes to existing ones, or complete exclusion of a product are resolved;

A brand strategy plan is adopted.

According to the results of the assessments, the product group of the Gepard company belongs to the priority development zone. This fact means that for the product being produced, the priority direction of development is the expansion of the existing market, as well as access to new levels. Accordingly, additional funding and investment are directed in this direction.

Improvement strategy

The quality of goods and services provided must be constantly improved. And the main direction of developing this strategy is to keep the product at the existing level that meets the market requirements at a given time.

The term “brand” hides the direct name of the enterprise or product. For the Gepard company, it is most profitable to use a multi-labeling strategy. This choice is due to the fact that the products (security systems) have been used for quite a long time and the use of the same name will make it possible to enhance the overall image of the company. If updated products are introduced, this will also only be a plus.

Pricing strategy

In this case, emphasis should be placed on leadership based on the relatively low cost of the product, as well as its quality characteristics. The cost of the goods produced by the Gepard enterprise is lower than that of competing enterprises, so you can try to win a larger part of the market segment by offering a high-quality product at a lower price. Progress in this direction will maximize market share. To increase income, you need to focus on the value of the product/service provided.

Distribution strategy

Distribution methods are also considered to be controllable factors that help solve the problem of bringing the product to the direct consumer.

Before deciding to open a branch, you should first obtain an assessment of the region where it is located (whether the volume of potential customers is sufficient here). Competing enterprises cannot be ignored either. It is worth assessing the main characteristics of their activities. After carrying out comparative procedures, a list of the most suitable regions for location should be compiled.
It is most preferable to build a choice from the compiled list based on the most frequently used scheme. The proposed region conditionally becomes the center of the area where its influence spreads. It is conventionally divided into 3 zones:

primary;
secondary;
extreme.

The primary zone includes almost 70% of the total number of consumers who use the company’s services. The remaining 25-30% of potential clients end up in the secondary zone. The extreme zone is casual consumers.

The choice of location area is additionally influenced by factors such as :

assessment of potential client base;
degree of competition;
assessment of technical capabilities and others.

It is the evaluative analysis of the above factors that allows you to most accurately calculate the potential of the selected sales point.

In order to most effectively influence the potential target audience, a communication strategy is being developed for the unit to help form and maintain the desired image of the product and the company itself as an organization as a whole.

This strategy includes the following tasks :

conducting personal sales;

SWOT analysis- one of the most common methods that comprehensively evaluate internal and external factors influencing the development of a company. It is an analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the organization, as well as the opportunities and threats from the external environment. “S” and “W” refer to the state of the company, and “O” and “T” refer to the external environment of the organization.

SWOT analysis is a preliminary research stage in drawing up strategic plans, developing strategic goals and objectives of the company.

The term SWOT was first used by Kenneth Andrews in 1963 at Harvard at a business policy conference.

Term in English: SWOT analysis.

Main parameters of SWOT analysis

SWOT stands for:

Strengths– strengths,

Weakness- weak sides,

Opportunities- possibilities,

Threats– threats.

Based on the results of the situational analysis, it is possible to assess whether the company has the internal strengths and resources to realize existing opportunities and resist external threats. Accordingly, an analysis of the internal and external situation is necessary.

When assessing external situation worth considering:

legislation and political climate,
expected or possible changes that may affect the operation of the company. (Example: changes in customs legislation);
economic situation of the country, region (changes in GNP indicators, possible major changes in the economy potentially affecting the company, expected inflation);
socio-demographic factors;
changes in technology (waiting for technical innovations);
ecological environment.

During the analysis internal situation the company's resources and business processes are assessed, and competitiveness is analyzed.

During the analysis process, the formulation of the company's sustainable competitive advantages is confirmed or changed. Key analysis factors:

Deciphering the method

The main idea of the technique SWOT analysis consists of an attempt to determine by calculation how much each of the possible development paths can influence the success of the current, tactical and strategic business processes of the enterprise. When ranking threats in the SWOT analysis matrix by degree of impact, it is assumed to determine the estimated time at which the enterprise will reach a certain degree of destruction, and the sooner economic performance indicators deteriorate, the more attention should be paid to eliminating this threat. After complete completion of the work, based on a SWOT analysis and associated with identifying the greatest threats to the enterprise’s activities and identifying priority areas of development that promise the greatest economic effect with the available financial and human resources, the next stage begins to optimize the work of personnel.

The results of the SWOT analysis are entered into tables.

Decisive for success are always specific actions (events) related to specific goals and consistently implemented.

NexterrorsMost often found in SWOT analysis tables:

1. Conducting a SWOT analysis without a pre-established overall goal. SWOT is not an abstract analysis; its use involves achieving a specific goal

2. External chances are often confused with internal strengths of the company, while they should be strictly distinguished

3. SWOT analysis is often confused with all sorts of strategies. We must not forget the main difference between one and the other (SWOT analysis describes states, and strategy describes actions)

4. In the process of SWOT analysis, priorities are not identified and specific activities are not named. SWOT-Analysis.

Rules for conducting SWOT analysis

No formal training is required to conduct a SWOT analysis. Any manager who understands the company's affairs and is familiar with the market can draw up a simple SWOT form.
But this simplicity and ease of use also has a downside. There is a risk of misuse, hasty and meaningless conclusions, and the use of vague and ambiguous concepts. In addition, do not forget that for the objectivity of the picture, only relevant, verified and fresh information must be used for analysis, which many users simply forget about.
Here are a few simple rules that will help you avoid such mistakes and get the most out of your SWOT analysis.
Rule 1. For an objective SWOT analysis, a business must be segmented by area or specific market. A general analysis that covers the entire business is inappropriate, as the results will be too generalized and useless. Focusing a SWOT analysis on a specific segment will ensure that the company's most important strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats are identified.
Rule 2. We must be aware that the elements of SWOT differ significantly from each other, in particular regarding their origin and spheres of influence. For example, strengths and weaknesses are internal characteristics of the company, therefore, they are under its control. Opportunities and threats are external, objective, independent characteristics of the market environment, and they are not subject to the influence of the organization.
Rule 3. The strengths and weaknesses of a company are subjective concepts. But opinions on these characteristics should not be expressed by managers or even competitors, but by clients, customers, partners, and investors. How they consider and perceive these elements is the way it is. Strengths will be considered as such as long as the market perceives them as competitive.
Rule 4. For objective analysis, diverse input data should be used. Even if it is not possible to obtain the results of extensive marketing research, this does not mean that it is enough to limit oneself to the work of one person. For accuracy and depth of analysis, it is best to organize a group discussion with the exchange of ideas, learn and take into account the points of view of all functional departments of the company. Any information or initial data must be supported by reasoned evidence (official letters, verified quotes, industry statistics, press reports, information from dealers, customer opinions and comments, government publications).
Rule 5. The more precise the wording, the more useful the analysis will be. Therefore, one should avoid broad, vague and ambiguous statements that mean nothing to most buyers.

Pros and cons

SWOT analysis is often criticized. We are talking about a standardized analysis scheme, which is not suitable for all enterprises and firms.

Benefits of SWOT Analysis

Helps a company leverage internal strengths or differentiating advantages in its strategy.
If the company does not yet have strong distinctive advantages, you can analyze your potential strengths and use them to achieve marketing goals.
Analyze all the company’s weaknesses and vulnerabilities to understand whether they affect competition, market position, and whether they can be corrected based on strategic considerations?
Know what resources and qualifications are best used to maximize opportunities.
Identify the threats that are most critical to the company and take a series of strategic actions to ensure good protection.

Flaws

SWOT analysis is simply a tool for obtaining visual structured information; it does not contain clear recommendations or specific formulated answers. Next is the work of the analyst.
The simplicity of SWOT analysis is deceptive; its results are extremely dependent on the completeness and quality of the source information. An objective SWOT analysis requires experts with a deep understanding of market development trends and its current state, or to carry out a large amount of work on collecting and analyzing primary information.
In the process of generating tables, mechanical errors may be made (loss of important factors or inclusion of unnecessary ones, incorrect assessment of weighting coefficients, etc.). They are difficult to identify, except for very obvious errors, but they affect the process of further analysis and lead to incorrect conclusions and erroneous strategic decisions.

Literature and links

This is a preliminary encyclopedic article on this topic. You can contribute to the development of the project by improving and expanding the text of the publication in accordance with the rules of the project. You can find the user manual

SWOTanalysis

SWOT- a method of analysis in strategic planning, which consists in dividing factors and phenomena into four categories: s trengths (strengths), w eaknesses (weaknesses), o pportunities (opportunities) and t hreats (threats).

SWOT analysis can be presented in the form of a table:

SWOT was first introduced in 1963 at Harvard Business Policy Conference by Professor Kenneth Andrews. Kenneth Andrews). Initially, SWOT analysis was based on articulating and structuring knowledge about the current situation and trends. Because SWOT analysis does not generally contain economic categories, it can be applied to any organization, individual and country to build strategies in a wide variety of areas.

The methodology for conducting a SWOT analysis is very simple, and the analysis itself consists of two parts. Opportunities and threats represent an analysis of the external environment, all factors that can affect the company, but do not depend on it. Strengths and weaknesses are an internal analysis of the company/product. According to Professor Philip Kotler, a good manager, when drawing up a SWOT analysis, should indicate at least 5 global external threats and opportunities that can both develop and destroy a business. There are always such opportunities, it is important to find them.

Typically, a SWOT analysis begins with identifying strengths and weaknesses. It is important to take into account that when determining them, you should be guided by the opinion of consumers, and not by company employees. It is your clients who know your strengths and weaknesses better than anyone. Here is a list of factors often found in the analysis of strengths and weaknesses:

1) Company reputation

2) Product quality

3) Quality of service

4) Market share

6) Logistics

7) Promotion efficiency

8) Quality of work of sales agents

9) Geographical coverage

10) Introduction of innovations

11) Costs

12) Fin. Sustainability

13) Workers

14) Technical equipment

15) Ability to meet deadlines

16) Flexibility, quick response to events

17) Assortment

19) Resources

20) Buyer knowledge

It is important that the data be real facts and not someone’s guesses. Moreover, it is very bad when the responsibility for creating a SWOT analysis lies with one person. It turns out to be a slightly one-sided vision.

Opportunities and threats. These are all elements of the external environment that have nothing to do with the company. When analyzing them, it is important to understand that the data must be clear and verified. Otherwise, the entire analysis may become meaningless. External opportunities and threats include:

1) Economic situation in the country and the world

2) Demographic situation

3) Political

4) Social movements

5) Technological progress

6) Competitor analysis

7) Legislation

8) Cultural factors

9) Social issues

Typically, a SWOT analysis is presented in the form of a table. After it is carried out, it is necessary to develop a plan to eliminate weaknesses, and the company’s actions in case of threats. You should also consider how opportunities and strengths can be used most effectively.

In practice, several different forms of SWOT analysis:

1) Express SWOT analysis- the most common (due to ease of implementation) type of qualitative analysis, which allows us to determine which strengths of our organization will help fight threats and take advantage of the opportunities of the external environment, and which of our weaknesses will prevent us from doing this. This type of analysis is liked to be shown in some business schools, since the scheme for conducting it has an undoubted advantage: it is very clear and simple. However, in practice, this technique has drawbacks: only the most obvious factors fall into the points of all cells of the table, and even then, some of these factors disappear in the cross matrix because they cannot be used.

2) Summary SWOT analysis, which should present the main indicators that characterize the company’s current activities and outline prospects for future development. Therefore, it should be done not “BEFORE” and not “INSTEAD”, but only AFTER all other types of strategic analysis. The advantage of this form of analysis is that it allows, in some approximation, to give a quantitative assessment of those factors that have been identified (even in cases where the company does not have objective information about these factors). Another advantage is the ability (based on all types of strategic analysis) to immediately move on to developing a strategy and develop a set of measures necessary to achieve strategic goals. The obvious disadvantage is the more complex analysis procedure (during strategic sessions in which the company's top management participates, it can take 1-2 days, depending on the depth of elaboration of factors).

3. Mixed SWOT analysis is an attempt to combine the first and second forms of analysis. To do this, at least three main types of strategic analysis are first carried out (usually STEP analysis, analysis using Porter’s “5 forces” model, and analysis of the internal environment using one of the methods). Then all factors are combined into single tables, from which a cross matrix is formed (as in the express form). Factors are not usually quantified. The advantage of this form is the depth of analysis. The disadvantage should include the psychological factor: in practice, very often the matter ends with the construction of a beautiful matrix and complacency (“well, now we know what to expect and what to fear, so we don’t need anything else”), or forgetting all the factors included in a large SWOT table: only those factors that are included in the matrix remain before your eyes and in your memory.

Anti-SWOTanalysis

There is also the “Anti-SWOT” method, which is based on SWOT, but its essence is that an analysis of the consequences of failure to implement the intended statements indicated in strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats is carried out.
Quadrant “strengths - opportunities”:
-How not to realize your strengths when there are opportunities?
-How can high expectations about the realization of opportunities prevent the use of strengths?
Quadrant "strengths - threats":
-How and when (under what circumstances) will strengths prevent the threat from being neutralized?
-How will increasing threats reduce strength?
Quadrant “weaknesses - opportunities”:
-How and under what conditions will changing weaknesses prevent you from taking advantage of opportunities?
-How and under what conditions will opportunities not allow you to level out your weaknesses?
Quadrant “weaknesses - threats”:
-How and under what conditions will threats strengthen weaknesses?
It is assumed that conducting an anti-SWOT allows one to formulate a plan for crisis measures that may arise during the implementation of the strategy.

MatrixSPACE-analysis

The main method for such assessments is the Strategic Positioning and Action Evaluation (SPACE) matrix.

The SPACE method consists in assessing four groups of factors for an enterprise. Each factor is assessed by experts on a scale from 0 to 6.

Factors of environmental stability (ES)

Technological changes (few - many)

Inflation rates (low - high)

Variability of demand (small - large)

Price range of competing products (small - large)

Barriers to market access (few - many)

Competitive pressure (weak - strong)

Price elasticity of demand (inflexible - flexible)

Factors of industrial potential (IS)

Growth potential (small - large)

Profit potential (small - large)

Financial stability (low - high)

Level of technology (simple - complex)

Degree of resource use (ineffective - effective)

Capital intensity (high - low)

Ease of access to the market (easy - difficult)

Productivity, capacity utilization (low - high)

Drivers of Competitive Advantage (CA)

Market share (large - small)

Product quality (high - low)

Product life cycle (initial - final)

Product replacement cycle (fixed - replaceable)

Customer loyalty (strong - weak)

Capacity utilization by competitors (strong - weak)

Vertical integration (high - low)

Financial Strength Factors (FS)

Return on investment (low - high)

Financial dependence (unbalanced - balanced)

Liquidity (unbalanced - balanced)

Required/available capital (large - small)

Flow of funds (weak - strong)

Ease of leaving the market (small - large)

Enterprise risk (large - small)

Having assessed the value of each factor, it is necessary to calculate the average value of the factors within each group, and then plot the obtained values on the coordinate axes. The result will be a quadrangle of one of the types shown in Fig. below.

If the side furthest from the center of coordinates is the side in the FS-IS quadrant, then the company is in an aggressive strategic state. If the party in the IS-ES quadrant is the most distant, then the company is in a competitive strategic state. If the side in the CA-FS quadrant is the most distant, then the company is in a conservative strategic state. If the party in the CA-ES quadrant is at its maximum distance, then the company is in a defensive strategic state.

SWOTAndSPACE- analyzes using the example of enterprises.

First, let's look at a practical example of SWOT analysis for the company OOO "Donut"

The company sells Russian equipment and bakes rye bread (the owner's hobby). The owner founded the company 10 years ago and has established good working relationships with all major customers.

Strengths of the Company	The Company's capabilities in the external environment
-Famous brand Qualified Service Center Dealer agreements with well-known factories Market structure of the sales department Six months ago, the HR manager found a Sales Director who increased sales by 60% in 6 months. Availability of own site and service center 3 months ago a Marketing Department was created, headed by a strong marketer, the Marketing Information System is working This month, the Prospective Development Department was organized, headed by an experienced leader. The head of the department participated in the creation of 7 new businesses.	Improving service and reducing maintenance time Possibility of narrow specialization Development of corporate clients and new consumer industries Integration with manufacturers Tight integration with factories and receiving big discounts Increased profitability, control over earnings Creating a new equipment rental business Implementation of CRM
Weaknesses of the Company	External threats to business
Quality problems (below average quality) Lack of working capital for purchases, weak financial director? At the beginning of the month, the owner fired the General Director, the deputy director temporarily appointed to this post is weak Last year there were dramatic changes: high staff turnover (20% over the last six months) Weekly conflicts (translation of arrows) between the Head of the Purchasing Department (old) and the Sales Director (new)	Instability of the dollar exchange rate (purchase prices are tied to $ and sold in rubles) (dollar exchange rate forecast) There is a change in supplier policy

ApplicationSPASE-analysis for choosing strategies at OJSC Yartelecom

Using SPASE analysis, we can conclude that the most suitable strategy is a strategy - a conservative position.

Factors that determine a firm's competitive advantage

Factors determining the financial position of firms

Average 2.44

Factorsdetermining the stability of the environment

Average value – 2.43

Factors determining the attractiveness of the industry

Average 4.63

Conclusion The company takes a conservative position.

This position is typical for stable, slow-growing markets.

The critical factor is the competitiveness of the product.

Recommended strategies 1) reduction of assortment; 2) cost reduction; 3) concentration on managing the flow of payments; 4) additional protective competitive products; 5) development of new products; 6) an attempt to penetrate more attractive markets.

Firm behavior: This is the behavior of the analyst. The company's policy is based on a thorough analysis of the opportunities available in the market and their careful use.