SWOT Analysis Overview

SWOT Analysis

Overview

A SWOT Analysis is a compilation of significant factors that affect the performance of an organization. SWOT is an acronym for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. Strengths and weaknesses are internal resources and capabilities. Opportunities and threats are factors external to the organization.

For this assignment, you will develop a SWOT analysis for your company. It is important to begin analyzing your company in this way so that you can develop a good problem statement for your final research paper. The company and industry research that you do in weeks 2 and 3 directly inform the content of your SWOT.

If you find a SWOT for your company in a profile or report, you are welcome to draw from it, but the analysis that you hand in must be your own. There are two primary reasons not to simply cut and paste from an already existing SWOT:

· It is plagiarism

· You would not be providing evidence for the points you are making.

You can use and cite the points in an existing SWOT, but you still need to provide cited evidence to back up any claims that you make.

Format

· Header includes your name and your company name.

· Begin with a 2×2 table where you present bulleted lists for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

· Your analysis is below the table and is presented in a narrative form. Write four sections of at least 250 words each (for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats). Each bullet point in your table should be addressed in your analysis for that section; if you do not cover a point in your analysis, then it does not belong in your table.

· Follow APA style for in-text citations and your reference list.

See the grading rubric on the next page for additional guidelines.

Rubric

Full Credit

Partial Credit

No Credit

Analysis of your company (2 points)

Your analysis demonstrates in-depth understanding of internal and external factors effecting your company.

You have identified strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats for your company, but your analysis lacks depth or your ideas could be more developed.

You are missing strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, or threats for your company.

Use of evidence (2 points)

Your assignment draws on a variety of relevant and appropriate sources of evidence that we covered in class. You use APA citation style correctly to credit your sources.

Your assignment uses research but relies heavily on just one or two sources. You use APA citation style with some errors.

Your research is missing, or you haven’t made clear to the reader which statements are supported by your research. Citations depart significantly from APA style or are missing.