Strategic Management Report: SWOT Analysis for Business Development

This report delves into the realm of strategic management, emphasizing the pivotal role of SWOT analysis. It begins by defining strategic management as the process of establishing long-term performance objectives and developing strategies to achieve organizational goals, encompassing goal setting, strategy formulation, implementation, and monitoring. The report highlights SWOT analysis as a crucial tool for auditing an organization's internal strengths and weaknesses, and external opportunities and threats. It explains the four strategic approaches derived from the SWOT matrix (SO, WO, ST, and WT) and outlines the steps for conducting a SWOT analysis, including data gathering and analysis of internal and external factors such as human resources, market demand, and legal norms. The report underscores the importance of SWOT analysis in identifying opportunities, mitigating threats, and formulating effective strategic plans to enhance business value. The analysis provides a competitive edge by helping organizations control internal and external factors impacting the business.

STRATEGIC
MANAGEMENT

Strategic management is the process which establishes the performance objectives in an
entity in order to achieve the long-term direction. This management involves the development of
the strategies to achieve the organisational objectives. The steps of managing scheme involves
setting of objectives, development of policies to achieve the set targets and allocating resources
to implement these plans (Peppard and Ward, 2016). In this learning, I am going to explain the
most useful means of strategic management. This report further emphasises on the importance of
the tool chosen.
Strategic management is the combination of four basic concepts, namely goal setting,
strategy formulation, implementation and monitoring. The objective setting component the
management is the process in which the creation of aims took place. This process also includes
preparation of a mission statement and performance objectives of an organisation. The next
concept of this management is about the formation of strategy, under this step complete planning
of process is done. This is the most crucial phase of strategy development. After the formulation
of the policies, they are implemented in the establishment. The main aim behind this concept is
to gather all the available and necessary resources required to bring the developed plan in action.
The final concept of the strategic management deals with the monitoring of the implemented
policies. This is the stage at which an entity is able to check the effectiveness of the schemes
(Daspit and et.al, 2017). All the factors that impact upon an entity are analysed in this
management. Also, it includes many tools and techniques which are helpful in building an
organisation such as PESTEL, SWOT, five forces analysis, benchmarking, etc.
The tool I selected for this learning is SWOT analysis. In this analysis, there is a 2 by 2
matrix comprising of the four factors namely, strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats on
an entity are analysed. Depending upon the matrix there are four types of strategies, S-O, W-O,
S-T and W-T S-O strategies implements the opportunities that are good fit to the strengths of
entity, the W-O factors deals with the weakness occurring in the way of opportunities, from S-T
element establishment uses its strengths to suppress the threats over it and the W-T strategies are
used to develop defensive plan to prevent the weakness of firm which are highly susceptible to
the threats (Engert and et.al, 2016). The different type of strategies of the SWOT matrix are
pictured below-

This method is used for auditing an organisation and its environment. This technique
further analyses the internal factors and compare them with the external environment to
implement the required modifications. This analysis is done in the very first step of business
planning, as this tool emphasise on the key issues (Steinbach and et.al, 2017). The most
appropriate methods which are to be used for the implementation of future plans can be planned
with this technique. For carrying out this analysis, firstly the organisation is being selected in
which this tool is to be used afterwards the entire information of the entity is gathered. This
information is related to all the factors that are playing any role in the organisation. The internal
factors involve human resources, physical resources, finance, objectives, activities, etc. whereas
the external factors constituents a wide range and some major among them are market demand,
economy, funding sources and investors, legal norms, etc. Both the environments are important
and should be considered while planning for a business.
In order to effectively plan a SWOT analysis, there are some steps which should be
followed by a firm such as designate a leader for all the tasks which are to be performed.
Afterwards, introduce that leader with other members so that a communication channel generates
between them and then, introduce the SWOT method (Farkas, 2016). After mapping of method,
some target should be set so that the leader can motivate employees in attaining that. All the data
Illustration 1: Strategies
(Source: Bull and et.al, 2016)

thus observed such as strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats will be recorded and
changes will be made, if required.
The SWOT analysis can be used while exploring the new and best possibilities for
solutions to the problems arising. It further determines the possible modification required for
enhancing a particular strategy. The lacking areas of the entity are evaluated by using this tool
and hence, depending upon the evaluation, prevention methods can be prepared.
According to me, the most useful tool in managing an entity is SWOT analysis. This tool
helps in evaluating all the internal and external factors that either impacting or going to impact
upon the organisation (Fred, 2011). The internal parameters allow the evaluation of strengths and
weaknesses, which can be directly managed by some modifications and alterations in the system
of the entity whereas the external factors state about the possibility and threats which can only be
anticipate by the establishment. Both of the factors are interrelated to each other as the strengths
of the company brings the opportunities while, the weaknesses give rise to the threats. As, the
strength includes the advantages that the establishment is keeping, the factor that makes you
better than others. Hence, by evaluating these elements, the upcoming opportunities can be
identified and similarly, weaknesses are the factors whose improvement can reduce the threats.
Thus, by working on the internal factors, external ones can be controlled. Also, by identifying all
Illustration 2: SWOT ANALYSIS
(Source- Bettis and et.al, 2016)

these factors, an effective strategic plan can be prepared to enhance the business value of an
organisation. This technique provides entity with the entire factors that it should consider while
making a decision.
From this report, it is crystal clear that SWOT analysis the base of strategic management,
all other implements are dependent on this analysis. This tool provides an entity with a
competitive edge. With the help of this tool, both the internal and external factors which impacts
upon the business can be controlled. Further, this study states the importance of this analysis in
enhancing the concern value of an organisation. Thus, SWOT analysis is a tool which cannot be
ignored while planning a business.

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Bettis, R. A. and et.al, 2016. Creating repeatable cumulative knowledge in strategic
management. Strategic Management Journal. 37(2). pp. 257-261.
Daspit, J. J. and et.al, 2017. A Strategic Management Perspective of the Family Firm: Past
Trends, New Insights, and Future Directions. Journal of Managerial Issues. 29(1). pp.
6-29.
Engert, S .and et.al, 2016. Exploring the integration of corporate sustainability into strategic
management: a literature review. Journal of cleaner production. 112. pp. 2833-2850.
Farkas, F., 2016. Hard and Soft Approaches of Strategic Organisational Change
Management. STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT. 21(2). pp. 13-22.
Peppard, J. and Ward, J., 2016. The strategic management of information systems: Building a
digital strategy. John Wiley & Sons.
Steinbach, A. L. and et.al, 2017. Top management team incentive heterogeneity, strategic
investment behaviour, and performance: A contingency theory of incentive
alignment. Strategic Management Journal.
Bull, J. W. and et.al, 2016. Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats: A SWOT analysis
of the ecosystem services framework. Ecosystem services. 17. pp. 99-111.
Online
Fred D., 2011 Strategic Management CONCEPTS AND CASES [PDF]. Available
through: <http://www.douglas.qc.ca/info/committing-an-offence>. [Accessed on 13th
July 2017].