SWOT Analysis

A grounded, evidence-backed SWOT — not the bullet-point ceremony most people perform at the start of a planning offsite.

When to use this skill

• Annual strategic planning input
• New market entry assessment
• Pivot conversations
• Competitive response decisions
• Org restructure evaluation
• Pre-board strategic review
• Pre-fundraise investor narrative grounding

The 2x2

| | Helpful | Harmful | |----------------|---------|---------| | Internal | Strengths | Weaknesses | | External | Opportunities | Threats |

Internal = within our control (people, IP, ops, brand, capital). External = outside our control (market, competition, regulation, tech shifts).

The single most-common SWOT failure: confusing internal with external.

Clarify First

Before building the SWOT, confirm these inputs. If any is unknown or vague, ASK — do not assume:

• ] Explicit scope/subject — e.g. "entering market X" or "our position vs Competitor X" (a SWOT for "the company" produces four lists pointing in four directions)
• ] Evidence per item — the data/quote/benchmark behind each entry (strengths must be facts, not aspirations; a SWOT with no real weaknesses signals bias)
• ] Competitor/market reference frame — what you're comparing against (strengths and threats are relative, not absolute)
• ] TOWS actions wanted — whether to cross-cut into SO/ST/WO/WT moves (converts the static SWOT into strategy rather than a wall of bullets)

Stop rule: ask only the 2-3 that most change the output. If the user says "just draft it," proceed and list your assumptions at the top of the artifact.

Workflow

Step 1 — Define the scope

A SWOT must have an explicit subject:

• "Acme entering the European market"
• "Our enterprise sales motion vs SMB"
• "Our position vs Competitor X in vertical Y"

A SWOT without scope produces 4 lists of bullets that point in 4 directions.

Step 2 — Strengths (with evidence)

For each strength:

• What is it specifically?
• What's the evidence (data, customer quote, benchmark)?
• How does it compare to competitors?
• Does the market actually care?

A strength no customer cares about isn't a strength.

Step 3 — Weaknesses (with honesty)

For each weakness:

• What is it specifically?
• What's the evidence?
• Are we fixing it? Why or why not?
• What's the cost of leaving it?

A SWOT with no real weaknesses signals bias or low candor.

Step 4 — Opportunities (with sizing)

For each opportunity:

• What's the trigger / shift creating this opportunity?
• What's the size (TAM/SAM/SOM if quantifiable)?
• What's the time window?
• What's our right to win?

"AI is hot" is not an opportunity. "Regulated industries replacing manual GDPR processes — $8B SAM, 36-month window" is.

Step 5 — Threats (with severity)

For each threat:

• What is it specifically?
• How likely (1-5)?
• How severe if realized (1-5)?
• What can we do to mitigate?

Step 6 — TOWS matrix (cross-cuts)

The most-valuable post-SWOT step:

| | Opportunities | Threats | |--------------|---------------|---------| | Strengths | SO: leverage strength to capture opportunity | ST: leverage strength to defend against threat | | Weaknesses | WO: address weakness to capture opportunity | WT: minimize weakness to avoid threat |

This converts a static SWOT into strategic actions.

Step 7 — Run swot_scorer.py

Audit for: generic items, missing evidence, internal/external misclassification, no quantification, no TOWS actions, one-sided SWOT.

bash
python3 project-management/strategy-frameworks/swot-analysis/scripts/swot_scorer.py \
  --input swot.json --format markdown

Decision frameworks

Internal vs external — the test

If the item depends on something we own (people, money, tech, brand, process, IP) → internal.

If the item depends on something we don't own (market, customers, competitors, regulators, technology trends) → external.

Common miscategorizations:

• "Strong brand recognition in segment X" — internal (we own it)
• "Customers love our brand" — external (customer behavior)
• "Strong eng team" — internal
• "Hard to recruit eng talent" — external
• "Our cloud bill is high" — internal
• "Cloud prices rising" — external

When to do a SWOT vs other frameworks

| Use SWOT | Use other | |----------|-----------| | Broad strategic positioning | Industry analysis → Porter's Five Forces | | Multi-stakeholder alignment | Macro environment → PESTLE | | Annual planning input | Growth options → Ansoff Matrix | | New market entry overview | Business model design → BMC / Lean Canvas |

SWOT is breadth. Other frameworks add depth on specific dimensions.

From SWOT to strategy

A SWOT alone isn't a strategy. It's input. Strategy comes from:

1. SWOT → identifies positioning realities
2. TOWS → identifies strategic options
3. Prioritization → which 2-3 options to pursue
4. Resourcing → what we'll fund + give up
5. KPIs → how we'll know it worked

Skipping any step produces a wall of analysis without action.

Common engagements

"Run a SWOT for entering market X"

1. Scope: explicitly "entering market X."
2. List internal capabilities relevant to that market (Strengths, Weaknesses).
3. List external factors specific to market X (Opportunities, Threats).
4. Score evidence + materiality per item.
5. Run TOWS.
6. Recommend 2-3 strategic moves.

"Audit our existing SWOT"

1. Pull current SWOT.
2. Run swot_scorer.py for generic/ungrounded/miscategorized items.
3. Surface bias: too many strengths, no real weaknesses, vague opportunities.
4. Add TOWS if missing.

Anti-patterns to avoid

• No explicit scope. SWOT for "the company" = SWOT for nothing.
• Generic items. "Great team, great product, growing market, competitors."
• Strengths = aspirations. What you wish were true, not what is.
• No weaknesses. Either bias or low candor.
• Opportunities = topics, not options. "AI" isn't an opportunity.
• Threats = abstract anxieties. Quantify likelihood + severity.
• No TOWS. SWOT without TOWS is just a wall.
• Internal/external confusion. Common; check every item.
• SWOT replaces strategy. SWOT is input, not output.

References

• references/swot-framework.md — categorization, evidence standards, TOWS
• references/swot-anti-patterns.md — common failures + worked fixes

Related skills

• project-management/strategy-frameworks/porters-five-forces — competitive dynamics
• project-management/strategy-frameworks/ansoff-matrix — growth options
• project-management/strategy-frameworks/business-model-canvas — operational view
• project-management/strategy-frameworks/lean-canvas — startup view
• c-level-advisor/ceo-advisor — strategic context