Conducting SWOT analysis (identifying an
organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) is one of the
most commonly used activities in strategic planning. It is also an activity most often done
poorly. Here are three ideas to
improve your SWOTing:
1. Be Systematic. Don’t just ask people on your strategic
planning committee what they think your SWOTs are. Use an assessment tool or framework so that
you can systematically think through your SWOTs. For organization assessments, you can read
more here about the VPP/McKinsey assessment tool and for Board Assessment you can learn more here about a tool from BoardSource.
2. Seek External Input. Go beyond your strategic planning group to
solicit SWOTs. What does the staff
think, what do donors think, what do your clients think? You want to get a divergence of ideas and
perspectives. Make sure to collect
environmental data from external sources so you can consider facts, not just
opinions.
3. Get Relevant. When you decide which SWOTs are most
important to keep in mind during strategy formulation, challenge yourselves on
the relevance of each item. How will we
leverage this Strength to move toward our goals and vision? How will fortifying this Weakness help us
move forward? Why will seizing this Opportunity
allow us to catapult ourselves into the future?
What is it about this Threat that could derail us? If you cannot provide solid answers to these
questions then the particular SWOT you are discussing is not relevant. Identify those that are.
Accurately identifying your SWOTs sets you up to
identify strategic actions that will move you forward toward your goals and
vision. Take the time to improve your
SWOTing process so you can make an improved Mission Impact.
For more
ideas on how you can lead breakthroughs in your organization, follow this blog
and check out my web site at www.SheehanNonprofitConsulting.com You will find free resources you can
download, including a Breakthrough Strategy Workbook that you can download at
no cost. You can also check out my book,
Mission Impact: Breakthrough Strategies
for Nonprofits, and buy it if you are interested. And you can follow Sheehan Nonprofit
Consulting on Facebook.
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