MGMT670 Week 4 Conf - Assignment Example

SWOT analysis is a very useful analytic tool. I personally have never used the tool at my workplace, but I am sure that it is being used by the company at the executive level. The SWOT application can be used to evaluate both the internal and external environments of an enterprise. The SWOT acronym stands for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. The managers of my company can use SWOT analysis to evaluate the viability of implementing a new project initiative. Last year the firm introduced to the market three new products.

Prior to launching any of the products the firm could have used SWOT analysis to evaluate the viability and chance of success of each of the three products. A second situation in which SWOT analysis would be useful for the company is to evaluate other companies. A few years ago the firm was looking for a strategic to form a marketing alliance. The executive management team of the company utilized SWOT to evaluate the different partner alternatives. “SWOT chart can help to uncover opportunities that your company is well placed to take advantage of” (Smith, 2006).

A third potential application of SWOT analysis is that it can be used to analyze different locations for international expansion. To fully analyze external opportunities an analyst has to monitor the key macroeconomic forces which are demographic-economic, technological, political-legal, social-cultural (Kotler, 2003). The identification of the strengths of a company can be used to formulate plans and operational procedures to improve the efficiency and profitability of a company. The analytics of opportunities can help an organization gain a competitive advantage.

Analyzing the threats of a company is crucial to adequately incorporate a risk management plan. It can also help firms mitigate and resolve problems when they occur through proper strategic planning. Our firm should expand the use of SWOT beyond the executive management team in order to take full advantage of the capabilities and reach of this powerful managerial tool. Limitations of SWOT SWOT analysis is a great tool, but it does have its limitations. For instance the use of SWOT does not provide alternative solutions to managers for specific problems.

The analysis is too broad base which hinders the ability of a firm to solve specific problems that are hurting the efficiency, productivity, and profitability of the company. Project management requires the ability of the project managers and his team to prioritize specific issues. The use of SWOT does not help the leader prioritize critical issues. “It may cause organizations to view circumstances as very simple because of which the organizations might overlook certain key strategic contact which may occur” (Managementstudyguide, 2012).

Another limitation of the use of SWOT analysis is that its scope is not suited for the business strategy of small vendors such as a hot dog cart. An important concept is the term materiality. Materiality implies that if the cost of implementing a strategy or acquiring information exceeds its benefits then the project, strategy, or process improvement should be rejected. ReferencesKotler, P. (2003). Marketing Management (11th ed.) New Jersey: Prentice Hall. Managementstudyguide.com (2012).

SWOT Analysis. Retrieved October 1, 2012 from http://www.managementstudyguide.com/swot-analysis.htmSmith, H. (2006). Beyond SWOT and Towards Change. Retrieved October 1, 2012 from http://www.bptrends.com