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A better class of acronym
There are plenty of clumsy acronyms in the world of business and management research, the sort of things that have you desperately looking back to remind yourself what those initials stand for.
SWOT is not one of them. The strategic management tool's acronym - strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats - is simple and catchy, which must have helped to perpetuate its usage in business and beyond.
The origin of the actual term is unknown. But SWOT analysis has been around now for several decades during which time it has grown as a key tool for addressing complex strategic situations by reducing the quantity of information. It can therefore help to improve decision-making and act as a starting point for strategic planning.
Typically, managers first consider internal strengths and weaknesses (at the top row of the 2 × 2 grid). These can include image, structure, access to natural resources, capacity and efficiency, and finance. In the grid's bottom row, opportunities and threats might include customers, competitors; market trends, partners and suppliers; social changes and new technology, and political, environmental and regulatory issues.
Decade of research
For 10 years, the authors searched peer-reviewed academic research from a database for SWOT analysis studies and articles to identify uses, trends and recommendations. The database includes more than 3,000 publications, primarily about business conditions, management techniques, trends, management practice and theory, corporate strategy, and the competitive landscape. Ultimately, 142 research studies were examined, looking at individuals, organizations, industries, and entire countries.
SWOT analysis was often applied to organizational assessments for strategic planning, for comparing two companies, and for assessing several companies, though not the entire group of companies comprising an industry. Individual studies were grouped into subcategories of health care, government and not-for-profit, and for-profit companies. Not-for-profits included an assessment of...