SWOT to TOWS

I would like to discuss how we can effectively use SWOT analysis, and one method to enhance its application is by conducting a TOES analysis. This approach builds upon SWOT and helps us develop strategic alternatives for guiding our solutions.

So, how does this work? We begin by examining the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) we have identified. Next, we consider how to combine these elements to create strategic methods or solutions. The resulting strategic solutions can then lead us to various alternatives.

As we explore these combinations, we can ask questions such as: Which opportunities align with our strengths? Which competitors can benefit from our current skill set? What actions can we take today that capitalise on our strengths? The same process applies to threats and weaknesses: In which markets can we best compete? What resources can we leverage to overcome our weaknesses? How can our strengths help us mitigate threats?

By answering these questions, we can begin to formulate four distinct strategies. These strategies can either directly serve as alternatives for our solutions or be further refined and combined to create a range of options.

To illustrate this process, we take our identified strategies and analyse them. We may lay them out either individually or combined, establishing the alternatives we will use for decision-making. We will compare these alternatives against the decision criteria discussed in earlier materials.

We can create a framework similar to the following, which includes our strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats from the SWOT analysis. From there, we can derive insights that help us identify various strategies. For instance, we might explore:

1. Building Strategic Relationships: Collaborating with local organisations to connect with the artisans we are interested in.
2. Enhancing Social Media Presence: Utilising social media to strengthen our community engagement, especially if this area was previously lacking.
3. Establishing Ethical Standards: Focusing on producing ethical goods to position ourselves as a leading supplier in this market.
4. Improving Logistics: Partnering with logistics providers to enhance our supply chain.

These four strategies can be examined for their feasibility and may be used in conjunction with one another, modified, or further developed to create potential solutions to the problems we have identified. Ultimately, we will present these strategies and alternatives as part of our proposed solutions.