De Montfort University: SWOT, Porter's Model, & Website Suggestions

This report presents a comprehensive SWOT analysis of De Montfort University, identifying its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. It highlights the university's quality education, established departments, and high employment rate as strengths, while noting limited course offerings and world ranking as weaknesses. Opportunities include expanding distance learning programs and targeting international students, but threats arise from competition and the need for trained staff. The report also applies Porter's Five Forces model to analyze the competitive landscape and offers suggestions for improving the university's website to address cultural and trust issues, including incorporating student experiences and semiotics. Recommendations focus on introducing new courses, improving world ranking, developing a business strategy for distance learning, and training staff to meet diverse student expectations.

Running head: PLAGIARISM TASK
1. SWOT Analysis
For examining environment both internally and externally of any organization, SWOT
analysis is seen to be a tool which is very much useful (Ommani, 2010). Depending upon the
SWOT analysis of De Montfort University, The SWOT diagram for the SWOT analysis is
clearly shown in the matrix format as seen below:
Strengths
 University provides quality
education
 Established departments with variety
of courses supported by the bodies
which are professional.
 One of the top twenty five
universities with highest rate of
employment in UK.
 Experienced staff of teaching.
Weakness
 University has very less number of
courses to offer
 The world ranking of the university
is 600-800th
(TimesHigherEducation, 2018)
Opportunities
 University offers programs of
distance learning with addition of
new courses to international
students.
 The university also offers education
beyond all the traditional
boundaries.
 University promotes the distance
learning education concept to the
Gulf and south Asian countries
Threats
 Competition from other universities
offering programs of distance
learning.
 Increment in the expectations of the
students from several regions.
 Lack of trained staff for dealing with
programs of distance learning.

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Summary of Findings
The university is seen to have been offering quality education in UK and it is considered
to be one of the most favorite university internationally. The SWOT diagram clearly
summarizes that the university has high employment rate among other academic
organizations. This makes the university in initiating distance learning programs for targeting
students all over the globe and create opportunity to include new courses for attracting more
students. It has been observed that De Montfort University has come concern points. The
university has been seen to have very limited courses for the students and lower ranking
among other universities in the world. The university has not only targeted the international
students all over the world, it has even attracted all the domestic students as well. This has
arisen threats for competing with the universities which have more resources. It also attracts
domestic students as well by providing education beyond the boundary campus. The lack in
the number of trained staffs is a concern which the university faces while dealing with the
programs of distance learning.
Recommendation
Depending upon the SWOT analysis, some recommendations can be made.
Recommendations can be made for overcoming the weaknesses which are potential and deal
with all kinds of threats faced by the university. They are summarized below:
 Introduction of new courses for both undergraduates and postgraduates will help the
university in attracting more students and help in competing with other universities which
offers diverse services.

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 The university must focus on improving the university’s world ranking. This can be done
by focusing on the research programs for the post graduates secures a well reputation
among the topmost universities throughout the world.
 There is a need for the company in observing closely and considering all the threats
which are potential as received form some other universities. Proper strategy of business
is to be introduced for introducing the program of distance learning in the market.
 The university must have both balanced as well as trained staffs for dealing with all kinds
of expectations of several students throughout the world.
2. Porters Competitive Forces Model for the external situation
analysis
Bargaining of
Suppliers
(LOW to
Average)
The fee is
normally fixed
where rate of
commission is
given to all the
agencies.
Threats of
New Entry
(LOW)
It is difficult to
open a new
university and
then compete
against an
organization
which is
established like
DMU
Rivalry
Among
Existing
Competitors
(High)
Competition is
always high
among the
universities
based on UK
for attracting
students
internationally
.
Bargaining
Power of
Customers
(Low to
moderate)
Universities
do not bargain
but offer
partial fee
reduction on
full payment
of fee
Threats of
Substitutes
(Very low as
substitute)
Quality of
education is
difficult to offer

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Set of Objectives
Investment on the development of the compact system for providing distance learning via
internet across the world.
 The university must widen the range of its courses and offer large number of courses which
will further help in attracting more and more international students.
 The university must invest on skill development of staffs which are existing and also new on
staffs which are new for dealing with a variety of students from several parts of the world.
 The university must also focus on the development of policy of compact business for
promoting distance learning programs all over the world.
3. Suggestions for the website of De Montfort University
The university’s website needs to address both the cultural as well as the trust issues which
are interdependent and also needs improvements. It has been noticed that several issues related to
culture and trust requires a lot of improvements. Hence, the use of communication upon the
internet for reaching the university targeted audiences is to be discussed. The website is needed
to include the student’s experience from separate cultures and clearly show the experience from
their cultures to convey a friendly environment. The university must adopt a recruitment policy
for the representors from several countries for dealing students by their fellows of country in the

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educational agent form helping in describing the best of format of the university in the countries
targeted.
The university must also adopt the semiotics policy which is considered as a good way in the
industry of e-commerce with the website’s trust issues and this is helpful for describing messages
with signs as well as symbols so that everyone can easily and clearly understand regardless of
culture. As a result, this increases the website usability. The university could also include the
virtual day of opening concept where people throughout the world talk with the staffs of the
administration of the university by utilizing platforms of social media for reaching targeted
audience.

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References
Ommani, A. R. (2010). Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) analysis for
farming system businesses management: Case of wheat farmers of Shadervan District ,
Shoushtar Township, Iran. African Journal of Business Management, 5(22), 9448–9454.
Retrieved from
http://www.academicjournals.org/AJBM%5Cnhttp://www.academicjournals.org/journal/
AJBM/article-full-text-pdf/21F95E420498
TimesHigherEducation. (2018). De Montfort University. Retrieved from
https://www.timeshighereducation.com/world-university-rankings/de-montfort-university