I’m working on a business discussion question and need an explanation to help me learn.

Discussion Topic

Post a total of 3 substantive responses. This includes your initial post and 2 replies to classmates or your faculty member.

Respond to the following in a minimum of 175 words:

• Do you think organizations differ from each other when placing importance on areas of the SWOT analysis?
• Describe a real-world example of an organization that would place more importance on one area of the SWOT analysis compared to another area.

Post 2 replies to classmates or your faculty member. Be constructive and professional.

Student 1 (NT)

SWOT analysis is used by individuals and companies alike, to identify and address strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. I do believe that organizations differ in which area they place the most emphasis. This would depend on the organization, the industry, their competition and so on and so forth. If my company produced a product that was patented technology, and unlike anything out there, with little to no competition, then I may not place as much emphasis on the threat part, as opposed to my area of “opportunity”. On the other hand, if there was so much competition in my companies area of industry, and there was a constant influx of new and emerging companies, coming out with the same “type” of product, but at cheaper prices, then I would put extra emphasis on the threat area, as well as where our weaknesses were.

A real-world example of this might be found in a company like Coca Cola. Specifically in regards to their “cola” soft drink. Aside from Pepsi, there is virtually no competition out there. There is no chance of a new company, emerging out of the blue, with a “cola” flavored soft drink that could possibly compete with the likes of COKE or PEPSI. That said, in Coca Colas SWOT analysis of their soda business, specifically in regards to their Coca Cola Classic, they do not have to focus as much on “threats”. More importantly, they should look for new “opportunities” to get their current cola, in the hands of more people around the world.

Student 2(CC)

SWOT analysis is an important tool that helps a company determine their (S) strengths, (W) weaknesses, (O) opportunities, and (T) threats. I believe companies will differ from each other when placing importance on the different areas of the SWOT analysis. I think they will differ because each company may different so their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats will be different. I think it also depends on who is in charge of the company, what their values, vision, and mission is. That will determine the goals of the company and define how they are performing and what things are strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats to the company.

A real-world example of an organization that would place more importance on one area of the SWOT analysis compared to another area would be a farmer versus a company like Netflix. For a farmer a threat would be a drought. For Netflix a they might place more emphasis on a weakness such as their contentious relationship with Internet service providers. For a farmer a drought is a threat that could cause them to lose revenue, while for Netflix their weakness could cause them to lose revenue so that would be an example of how they place more importance on one area than another.