Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats

Thoroughly review the four quadrants of a SWOT analysis. Then, examine the supplemental checklist and tools. Each tool gives additional context for understanding how to use a SWOT analysis in your organization.

How Do You Use Your SWOT Analysis?

Better understanding the factors affecting your initiative puts you in a better position for action. This understanding helps as you:

Identify the issues or problems you intend to change
Set or reaffirm goals
Create an action plan

As you consider your analysis, be open to the possibilities that exist within a weakness or threat. Likewise, recognize that an opportunity can become a threat if everyone else sees the opportunity and plans to take advantage of it as well, thereby increasing your competition.

Finally, during your assessment and planning, you might keep an image in mind to help you make the most of a SWOT analysis: Look for a "stretch", not just a "fit". As Radha Balamuralikrishna and John C. Dugger of Iowa State University point out, SWOT usually reflects your current position or situation. Therefore one drawback is that it might not encourage openness to new possibilities. You can use SWOT to justify a course that has already been decided upon, but if your goal is to grow or improve, you will want to keep this in mind.