ArticlePDF Available

Focused SWOT: Diagnosing critical strengths and weaknesses

Taylor & Francis
International Journal of Production Research
Authors:

Abstract and Figures

Despite the problems involved in its use, SWOT (strengths-weaknesses-opportunities-threats) analysis remains a major strategic tool for listing the strengths and weaknesses of an organisation, for recording the major strengths and translating them into value. This paper presents a straightforward methodology for making a structured analysis of strengths and weaknesses, based on an analysis of important value-creating events and the strengths and weaknesses that caused these events. The focused SWOT methodology distils the strengths and weaknesses into core competences and core problems, by using the core-competence tree and the current-reality tree. The core competences and core problems are then linked into a plan of action aimed at preserving and leveraging the organisation's core competences, while defending against exposure to core problems. Applications of the methodology are presented and it is demonstrated in a detailed case study.
Content may be subject to copyright.
PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE
This article was downloaded by:
[Canadian Research Knowledge Network]
On:
17 March 2010
Access details:
Access Details: [subscription number 918588849]
Publisher
Taylor & Francis
Informa Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registered office: Mortimer House, 37-
41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK
International Journal of Production Research
Publication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information:
http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/title~content=t713696255
Focused SWOT: diagnosing critical strengths and weaknesses
Alex Coman
a
; Boaz Ronen
b
a
Academic College of Tel Aviv-Jaffa, Tel Aviv, Israel
b
Faculty of Management, Tel Aviv University,
Tel Aviv, Israel
To cite this Article Coman, Alex and Ronen, Boaz(2009) 'Focused SWOT: diagnosing critical strengths and weaknesses',
International Journal of Production Research, 47: 20, 5677 — 5689
To link to this Article: DOI: 10.1080/00207540802146130
URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00207540802146130
Full terms and conditions of use: http://www.informaworld.com/terms-and-conditions-of-access.pdf
This article may be used for research, teaching and private study purposes. Any substantial or
systematic reproduction, re-distribution, re-selling, loan or sub-licensing, systematic supply or
distribution in any form to anyone is expressly forbidden.
The publisher does not give any warranty express or implied or make any representation that the contents
will be complete or accurate or up to date. The accuracy of any instructions, formulae and drug doses
should be independently verified with primary sources. The publisher shall not be liable for any loss,
actions, claims, proceedings, demand or costs or damages whatsoever or howsoever caused arising directly
or indirectly in connection with or arising out of the use of this material.
International Journal of Production Research
Vol. 47, No. 20, 15 October 2009, 5677–5689
Focused SWOT: diagnosing critical strengths and weaknesses
Alex Coman
a
and Boaz Ronen
b
*
a
Academic College of Tel Aviv-Jaffa, Tel Aviv, Israel;
b
Faculty of Management,
Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
(Received 18 July 2007; final version received 10 April 2008)
Despite the problems involved in its use, SWOT (strengths-weaknesses-
opportunities-threats) analysis remains a major strategic tool for listing the
strengths and weaknesses of an organisation, for recording the major strengths
and translating them into value. This paper presents a straightforward
methodology for making a structured analysis of strengths and weaknesses,
based on an analysis of important value-creating events and the strengths and
weaknesses that caused these events. The focused SWOT methodology distils the
strengths and weaknesses into core competences and core problems, by using the
core-competence tree and the current-reality tree. The core competences and core
problems are then linked into a plan of action aimed at preserving and leveraging
the organisation’s core competences, while defending against exposure to core
problems. Applications of the methodology are presented and it is demonstrated
in a detailed case study.
Keywords: theory of constraints (TOC); SWOT; strategy; core-competence tree
1. Introduction
The strengths-weaknesses-opportunities-threats (SWOT) analysis is one of the most
popular tools in use for defining an organisation’s strategic action. The beauty of SWOT is
its internal scrutiny of the organisation’s capabilities, followed by environmental scanning
to identify appropriate opportunities and threats. However, it has its flaws:
. No straightforward methodology has been proposed to identify strengths and
weaknesses.
. Most SWOT analyses focus on an excessive number of the organisation’s
strengths and weaknesses rather than on the main ones, which makes it difficult to
translate the findings into actions.
. There is no indication of causality among the strengths and weaknesses, nor are
they ranked into any hierarchy.
. The SWOT analysis is typically a one-time event lacking mechanisms for acting
upon and monitoring the changes in strengths and weaknesses over the longer
term.
*Corresponding author. Email: boazr@post.tau.ac.il
ISSN 0020–7543 print/ISSN 1366–588X online
ß 2009 Taylor & Francis
DOI: 10.1080/00207540802146130
http://www.informaworld.com
Downloaded By: [Canadian Research Knowledge Network] At: 14:44 17 March 2010
This paper only deals with the company’s strengths and weaknesses. For a
comprehensive discussion of opportunities and threats the reader is referred to Coman’s
(2007a) FAST model and Coman (2007b).
While diagnostic tools are listed in the literature they have not been organically linked
to SWOT analysis to create a coherent diagnostic methodology. Aaker (2001) states that
‘A firm’s asset or competency that is capable of being the competitive basis of many of its
businesses is termed a core asset or competency’. Prahalad and Hamel (1990) define core
competences as ‘the collective learning in the organisation, ... harmonising streams of
technology, ...the organisation of work and the delivery of value’ and suggest that
developing core competences is the key to competitiveness. Core competences are a
fundamental subset of the firm’s strengths. They are distinctive in their essential
contribution to the firm’s value and in the difficulty facing competitors wishing to
emulate them.
Ittner and Larcker (2003) find that while only 23% of the 157 companies they surveyed
‘consistently built and verified the cause-and-effect relationships between the chosen
drivers of strategic success and outcomes’ their return-on-assets and return-on-investment
were significantly higher than the rest of the companies.
This paper presents the focused SWOT analysis methodology to discover and diagnose
the core competences and core problems of an organisation. The analysis consists of
three tools:
(1) The event-factor review (EFR), which analyses value creation and destruction
events and generates a ‘strengths and weaknesses’ list for the organisation.
(2) The core-competence tree (CCT), which distils the strengths list to generate a short
list of core competences.
(3) The focused current-reality tree (fCRT), which refines the weaknesses into a short
list of core problems.
The methodology is based on the focused management philosophy (Ronen and
Pass 2007, Coman, Koller and Ronen 1992) and Goldratt’s theory of constraints
(TOC) (Goldratt 1994). The methodology has been applied world wide in dozens
of companies.
The paper is organised as follows. Section 2 discusses the shortcomings of current
applications of SWOT analysis. We then present the focused SWOT methodology and
its individual components, and follow with a demonstration of its application to
real-life organisations, providing guidelines for its quick implementation. Section 3
describes focused SWOT’s event-factor review methodology for the analysis of
business events and derivation of strengths and weaknesses. Section 4 describes
focused SWOT’s discovery of core competences and core problems. Section 5 describes
the construction of the focused current-reality tree and the core-competence tree.
Section 6 describes a case study where the methodology was implemented. Section 7
concludes the paper.
2. Drawbacks of current SWOT analysis
The merit of SWOT as the leading tool for strategic analysis lies in its simplicity and
clarity: scrutiny of internal strengths and weaknesses is followed by analysis of external
opportunities and threats, enabling the company’s management to seek markets or
5678 A. Coman and B. Ronen
Downloaded By: [Canadian Research Knowledge Network] At: 14:44 17 March 2010
business opportunities that create value and identify potential events that threaten its
value or position. The objective of the strengths analysis is to leverage the
organisation’s core competences and maximise their value-creation potential, while
core problems need to be diagnosed so that they can be corrected. As noted by Hill
and Westbrook (1997) and by Valentin (2001) the problem with SWOT is that it lacks
a set of application tools.
Having reviewed over 500 executive presentations of large US and international
companies and based on our practical experience we have observed significant variance
in terms of analytical rigor. We thus propose the following criteria for the evaluation
of strengths and weaknesses lists:
(1) Concise: Four or five items per list. Executives burdened with routine
responsibilities do not have time to effectively implement larger quantities of
action items (Davenport and Beck 2001). Most of the surveyed companies meet
this criterion.
(2) Actionable: Items should call for actions. They should easily allow for the crisp
definition of action goals provided to executives charged with remedying the
problems. Many companies list weaknesses such as ‘Asia’ (ThyssenKrupp 2006),
which cannot readily be transformed into action.
(3) Significant: The items in the lists substantially impact the company’s value.
Actionable weaknesses that have a negligible effect on the company’s value should
be eliminated from the analysis.
(4) Authentic: The lists should obviously be authentic rather than wishful thinking.
We discuss three case studies of SWOT analyses by major international companies.
We describe the SWOT outcomes and assess the quality of the SWOT analysis and the
rigour and applicability of the above criteria.
Consider the SWOT analysis performed by an Australian telecom company.
Strengths:
. Strong brand.
. Extensive distribution.
. High quality service low churn (customers abandoning the company for its
competitors).
Weaknesses:
. Slow to react to competitive threats.
. Perceptions of poor value.
. Behind in the pre-paid area.
. Lack of focus in the youth market.
. Unclear data strategy.
These strengths and weaknesses meet the criteria for effective analysis.
(1) Concise: Three strengths and five weaknesses.
(2) Actionable: Most weaknesses focus on a clear well-defined issue within manage-
ment’s control or influence.
(3) Significant: Churn has a significant impact on the value of a telecom company; this
highly competitive arena requires rapid response to opportunities and threats.
(4) Authentic: The list seems robust and authentic.
International Journal of Production Research 5679
Downloaded By: [Canadian Research Knowledge Network] At: 14:44 17 March 2010
However, many companies do not meet these criteria. Consider this example of a
SWOT analysis performed by a leading global IT services company:
Strengths:
. Competitiveness in the North, South and Central American markets: signings
growth.
. Build-to-order growth.
. Asian growth (without Japan).
Weaknesses:
. Short-term signings, revenue and profitability (in March).
. ‘Europe performance’.
. ‘Japan performance’.
These lists consist of outcomes rather than causes to be taken care of.
(1) Concise: The lists are concise.
(2) Actionable: The lists are not actionable as they list business successes and
failures rather than exposing the core competences or core problems of the
company.
(3) Significant: The items are significant.
(4) Authentic: The lists miss the point by focusing on external phenomena. Not a single
internal strength or weakness is identified.
A leading European automobile manufacturer produced the following lists.
Strengths:
. Technical competence.
. Well-known brands.
. Committed long-term shareholders.
. Loyal employees.
Weaknesses:
. Lack of innovation.
. Lack of growth.
. Insufficient profits.
Let us evaluate the lists.
(1) Concise: The lists are concise.
(2) Actionable: ‘Lack of growth’ is an effect and does not point at specific action.
(3) Significant: The items are significant.
(4) Authentic: The strengths list is somewhat unrealistic. The company’s
stated technical strength is not corroborated by the market perception and its
benchmark performance relative to competitors such as Toyota.
Table 1 summarises the strengths and weaknesses identified by executives of the three
companies listed in the case studies.
In conclusion, existing SWOT analyses often suffer from serious drawbacks.
We therefore suggest the formal application of structured methodologies to push
5680 A. Coman and B. Ronen
Downloaded By: [Canadian Research Knowledge Network] At: 14:44 17 March 2010
towards more rigorous and actionable analysis. This we call the focused SWOT
methodology.
3. The event-factor review
To generate a quality list of strengths and weaknesses, we introduce the event-factor
review as a rapid and effective mechanism for deriving strengths and weaknesses from
business events.
As demonstrated in detail in the case study described in Section 6, the process consists
of a brief analysis of six to nine events that had a significant impact on the company’s
value. Such events include winning or losing tenders, meeting technical challenges,
influence in standards committees, meaningful market share gains or losses, and
substantial profits or losses in a given market segment.
We divide the events into successes and failures contingent on their impact on the
company’s value. From each event we derive strengths and weaknesses. Note that a won
contract can reveal strengths as well as weaknesses, such as ineffective implementation.
This was indeed the case with a hi-tech developer that won a major contract with a first-
tier telecom service provider, but lost over $5 million due to its inability to reliably deploy
its equipment in the field. Thus, while technological product development was designated
a company strength, project integration and delivery were a weakness.
Similarly, a lost contract reveals weaknesses but may nevertheless show strengths in
some areas. Consider, for example, a telecom contractor that successfully passed a proof-
of-concept milestone but ultimately lost the contract due to the inability to offer
competitive credit terms.
Table 1. Summary of the three case studies.
Australian telecom
company
Global IT services
company
European automobile
manufacturer
Strengths Strong brand. Competitiveness of the
North, South and
Central American
markets: signings
growth.
Technical competence.
Extensive distribution. Build-to-order growth. Well-known brands.
High quality service, low
churn (customers
Asian growth (without
Japan).
Committed long-term
shareholders.
abandoning the
company for its
competitors).
Loyal employees.
Weaknesses Slow to react to
competitive threats.
Short-term signings, rev-
enue and profitability
(in March).
Lack of innovation.
Perceptions of poor
value.
Performance in the
European market.
Lack of growth.
Behind in the pre-paid
area.
Performance in the
Japanese market.
Insufficient profits.
Lack of focus in the
youth market.
Unclear data strategy.
International Journal of Production Research 5681
Downloaded By: [Canadian Research Knowledge Network] At: 14:44 17 March 2010
This analysis generates strengths and weaknesses that enable diagnosis of the
company’s core competences and core problems.
Consider the following examples:
. Pilgrims Pride, in the poultry business, identifies success in its acquisition
integration track record. The company quantifies this success at $125 million
of annualised synergies realised in the financial year 2005, attributing it to its
strong strategic synergy teams. These teams of senior executives focus on
production, sales and marketing, and supply chain/purchasing. Function-
specific sub-teams manage human resources, finance and information
technology.
. Havas, an advertising agency, identifies success in being creative, as evidenced by
its multiple wins at the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival. The
strengths that can account for these wins include the following: the ability to
retain all the talent that the agency wants to retain around the world, and the
ability to lure top talent away from its competitors.
. British Telecom can lay claim to several key international successes, such as
its biggest commercial win ever outside the UK, worth up to E200 million
over seven years, with the Bavarian state government. BT identifies
six strengths that can account for these successes: brand and financial
strength, delivering next generation IP products to customers, being the
leading provider of solutions and systems integration, its existing strength in
the target segment, global accounts and service management, and its broad
network.
. Gillette recognised its ‘15 quarters of continuous negative revisions’ as a
failure. The company acknowledges, moreover, that this failure was self-
inflicted and identifies three drivers of poor performance, that is, weaknesses:
organisational disruption, trade loading, and segmentation and pricing
decisions.
4. Discovering the company’s core competences and core problems
The event-factor analysis generates 8–12 strengths and 8–12 weaknesses. The strengths are
usually the result of a small number of core competences that are discovered by core-
competence analysis. The weaknesses are caused by a small number of core problems that
can be discovered by focused current-reality tree analysis.
We apply the focused current-reality tree (fCRT) (Ronen et al. 2006) derived from
Goldratt’s (1994) technique. The original current-reality tree aims to map all undesired
effects and discover the core problems of a company. The fCRT created by Ronen and
Pass (2007) is a simpler and time effective tool based on Goldratt’s model. We use the
fCRT technique to discover the company’s core competences and its core problems, as
generated by the event-factor analysis.
The technique consists of three steps. When applied to company strengths it
consists of:
(1) Pruning the strengths list to eliminate redundancy, vagueness, and irrelevant
symptoms.
5682 A. Coman and B. Ronen
Downloaded By: [Canadian Research Knowledge Network] At: 14:44 17 March 2010
(2) Linking the strengths using cause-effect logic.
(3) Discovering 2–3 core competences.
When applied to company weaknesses the technique consists of:
(1) Pruning the weaknesses lists to eliminate redundancy, vagueness, and irrelevant
symptoms.
(2) Linking the weaknesses using cause-effect logic.
(3) Discovering 2–3 core-problems.
Consider the three steps in detail:
(i) Pruning
Eliminate all weaknesses that do not satisfy the following criteria.
. The weakness must exist over a period of time (and not be a one-time
phenomenon).
. The weakness must be expressed in undesirable terms.
. The weakness must be under our control or influence.
We start by eliminating weaknesses that are sporadic in order to focus on
chronic weaknesses that cause significant damage to the company. For example, a
one-time five-month delay in project delivery should not be included in the list of
weaknesses, even though it may receive excessive management attention, while a chronic
two- to three-month delay that has come to be considered acceptable should be included.
We express every weakness in negative terms in order to eliminate ambiguity.
A weakness listed as ‘culture’ will be redefined as ‘lack of individual initiative’ or
eliminated if no concrete definition is appropriate.
We strive to focus our attention on weaknesses that are actionable and
therefore eliminate weaknesses that are not under our control. For example, a
slowdown in the Japanese economy is not a legitimate weakness if there is nothing we
can do about it.
We narrow down the list by aggregating similar weaknesses under a single category and
by deleting less important ones.
(ii) Linking the strengths and weaknesses using cause-effect logic
Evidence shows that weaknesses are often linked in cause–effect relationships. We discover
these relationships and depict them with arrows pointing from causes to their effects, as in
Figure 1, which shows the situation of the CEO of the major European automobile
manufacturer of the case study in Section 2, who identified three weaknesses: lack of
innovation; lack of growth; insufficient profits. These weaknesses are not independent.
Lack of
growth
Lack of innovation
Insufficient
profits
Figure 1. Cause–effect relations between weaknesses.
International Journal of Production Research 5683
Downloaded By: [Canadian Research Knowledge Network] At: 14:44 17 March 2010
Lack of innovation is the cause of the company’s lack of growth and insufficient profits.
We indicate this in the following manner in the tree.
We add a ‘leading weakness’ at the top of the tree as a focus for the analysis (see
Figure 2). All weaknesses must eventually lead to the leading weakness, and they must be
underpinned by the core problems, as we show in the construction of the focused current-
reality tree described in Section 5. We usually define the leading weakness as follows: the
company’s value is insufficient. Other leading weaknesses can be used in the case of not-
for-profit organisations.
(iii) Discovering 2–3 core problems
The underlying assumption is that the company has a few core problems, and most
weaknesses are symptoms of these core problems. Correct identification of the core
problems is essential.
When a patient goes to his doctor for a check-up and complains about various
symptoms (headaches, perspiration, nausea and high fever), a good doctor will try to find
and treat the patient’s core problems. Myopic treatment of the symptoms requires greater
effort, hides the real causes, and usually results in an aggravation of the patient’s
complaint, whereas treating the root cause, insofar as this is possible, will cure or at least
alleviate it. Similarly, executives who tackle a short list of their company’s core problems
achieve high rates of success with less effort.
After linking the weaknesses through cause-effect relations, we discover two to
three core problems at the bottom of the current-reality tree to obtain a focused
current-reality tree.
A schematic fCRT is given in Figure 2.
Core
problems
The firm’s value is
insufficient
The "leading weakness"
Weaknesses
Figure 2. A schematic fCRT.
5684 A. Coman and B. Ronen
Downloaded By: [Canadian Research Knowledge Network] At: 14:44 17 March 2010
5. Constructing the fCRT and the CCT
Construction of the tree begins with the leading weakness, under which we position all the
weaknesses identified as causes linked directly to them, making links with cause-effect
arrows. We add, layer by layer, the weaknesses that are causes of the previously included
weaknesses. As needed, we add inferences that explain non-trivial relations among
weaknesses and insights gained during the construction of the tree. At the end of the
process of constructing the fCRT, we have at its base a small number of weaknesses with
no weaknesses to explain them. These are the core problems, usually one to three in
number. They could be weaknesses or inferences (conclusions of the team constructing the
fCRT) that we identify as core problems.
Among the examples of core problems in organisations are the following.
. An excessively centralistic manager.
. Lack of a clear strategy.
. Unstructured processes.
. Inappropriate performance measures.
. Lack of focus.
. The company is driven by technological thinking rather than by business thinking.
. A gap between professional and managerial abilities.
An identical process is applied to the core-competence tree (CCT), which ends with two
to three core competences being identified at the bottom of the tree. The ‘leading-
competence’ is usually ‘value was created for the shareholders’.
6. A case study
The case study described in this section demonstrates the application of the focused SWOT
analysis methodology in a real-life international hi-tech company. The presentation has
been modified to disguise the company and its market.
Company profile:
. $40 million sales/year.
. 200 employees.
. Operates in the hi-tech electronics defence arena.
. Two product lines:
(i) Components for the electronics defence industry.
(ii) Subsystems for first-tier customers in the electronics defence industry.
. Strong marketing and sales department, active mainly in the USA.
. Rapid time-to-market R&D expertise.
. Strong influence on major standardisation committees.
. Excellent human resources management and atmosphere.
. Subcontracting of production activities.
. Sales to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs).
. In common with the electronics defence industry as a whole, the firm has been
facing a severe decline in demand, which poses a threat to its cash flow.
We now apply the focused SWOT analysis to the company, starting with an
event-factor review.
International Journal of Production Research 5685
Downloaded By: [Canadian Research Knowledge Network] At: 14:44 17 March 2010
Event-factor Review
Event Factor
Outcome Description Strengths Weaknesses
Rapid
multidisciplinary
product development.
Good engineering and
production.
Good interdisciplinary
communications.
Product not
differentiated
enough.
New markets
require
‘education’.
Leading an important
technical standard
committee.
Sales to market
leaders.
Technological
innovation and
professionalism.
Top people working in
a creative
atmosphere.
High employee
motivation.
Successes
Exceeding sales
targets
Strong sales
department.
High sales growth
rate.
The company is
losing money.
Failure to sell to the
leading company in
the market
Technological
leadership.
Losing money over a
period of 3 years
Product over-
specification and
over-design.
No access to the
end-user.
Insufficient R&D
strategic gating.
High burn rate.
Failures
Failure in M&A
negotiations with a
leading player in the
industry
Winning a first-tier
customer contract
Small player in a
giants’
playground.
Excessive
technological
orientation.
No awareness of
M&A potential.
Figure 3. Event-factor review.
5686 A. Coman and B. Ronen
Downloaded By: [Canadian Research Knowledge Network] At: 14:44 17 March 2010
Winning a first-tier customer contract is a major success. It reveals the strengths listed
in Figure 3. However, profit margins for this contract are insufficient due to the fact that
the product is not sufficiently differentiated, and that new markets require ‘education’.
Similarly, exceeding sales targets exposes a weakness, namely that the firm is losing
money due to an exorbitantly expensive sales infrastructure of offices worldwide.
Despite its technological leadership, the company has failed to sell to the leading
customer in the market. Even though the customer’s engineers showed a preference for the
company’s products over all others for their superior design and price, the customer’s
Sales to market leaders
Sales and partnership
with leading firms
Choice people working
in an atmosphere of
excellence
Technological
leadership
Core Competences
Technological
innovation and
professionalism
Good inter-functional
communications
High employee
motivation
Strong
sales
department
Good
engineering and
production
Rapid
multidisciplinary
system view
development
Influence in
standards
committee
High sales growth rate
Owner value was created
Figure 4. Core competences.
Low profitability
The firm is losing money
Excessive
technology
orientation
High burn rate
Small player in
giants’
playground
Core Problems
Not enough strategic
gating in R&D
No access to
the end user
New markets
require
‘education’
No awareness of
M&A objectives
Product over-specification
and over-design
No exit
Firm’s market value is insufficient
Product not
differentiated
enough
Focus on single
new technology
Figure 5. Core problems.
International Journal of Production Research 5687
Downloaded By: [Canadian Research Knowledge Network] At: 14:44 17 March 2010
procurement department would not place an order due to its policy of not buying from
small companies.
We now construct the core-competence tree from the list of strengths (Figure 4) and the
focused current-reality tree from the list of weaknesses (Figure 5).
It should be noted that the core competences and core problems may include factors
that were discovered during the cause analysis and were not necessarily part of the
strengths and weaknesses lists.
Drawing up a short list of core competences and core problems enabled management
to focus its efforts effectively on the actionable items that had given rise to them. The
company’s ‘excessive technology orientation’ was resolved by assigning one of the two
joint CEOs to handling M&A full time. ‘High burn rate’ was resolved by introducing a
strategic gating (Pass and Ronen 2003) function and improving R&D processes and their
management. ‘Focus on a single new technology’ was resolved by appointing a business
development executive. ‘Small player in a giants’ playground’ was resolved by distributing
the product through a large third party.
7. Conclusions
We have demonstrated that the major problems in the analysis of strengths and
weaknesses can be alleviated by introducing three tools: event-factor analysis as a rigorous
generator of strengths and weaknesses; focused current-reality tree (fCRT) analysis for the
discovery of core-problems; and core-competence tree (CCT) analysis for the discovery of
core competences. For comprehensive value creation, managerial and financial resources
need to be allocated to remedy the discovered core problems. At the same time the core
competences identified need to be leveraged to all organisational functions and
opportunities identified for their exploitation. The FAST model (Coman 2007a) suggests
methodologies for broader implementation.
Acknowledgement
The authors wish to thank the anonymous referees for their enlightening comments.
References
Aaker, D.A., 2001. Developing business strategies. 6th ed. New York, NY: John Wiley and Sons.
Coman, A., 2007a. FAST: Value Creation through Technology Investment Management.
Proceedings Portland international conference on management of engineering & technology,
5–9 August 2007, Portland, Oregon, 1680–1693.
Coman, A., 2007b. Available from: http://www.coman.org/fastgive.doc [Accessed 19 May 2008].
Coman, A., Koller, G. and Ronen, B., 1992. The application of focused management in the
electronics industry: A case study. Production and Inventory Management, 2nd quarter, 65–70.
Davenport, T.H. and Beck, J.C., 2001. The attention economy: understanding the new currency of
business. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press.
Goldratt, E.M., 1994. It’s not luck. Croton on Hudson, NY: North River Press.
Hill, T. and Westbrook, R., 1997. SWOT analysis: it’s time for a product recall. Long Range
Planning, 30 (1), 46–52.
5688 A. Coman and B. Ronen
Downloaded By: [Canadian Research Knowledge Network] At: 14:44 17 March 2010
Ittner, C.D. and Larcker, D.F., 2003. Coming up short on nonfinancial performance measurement.
Harvard Business Review, November/December, 88–95.
Pass, S. and Ronen, B., 2003. Management by the market constraint in the hi-tech industry.
International Journal of Production Research, 41 (4), 713–724.
Prahalad, C.K. and Hamel, G., 1990. The core competence of the corporation. Harvard Business
Review, May/June, 79–91.
Ronen, B. and Pass, S., 2007. Focused operations management: achieving more with existing resources.
San Francisco, CA: John Wiley and Sons.
Ronen, B., Pliskin, J.S. and Pass, S., 2006. Focused operations management for health services
organisations. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, an Imprint of Wiley.
ThyssenKrupp. 2005. Ekkehard D. Schulz. Available from: www.thyssenkrupp.com/documents/hv-
2005-01-21-en/Charts_Hv_2005_Rede_en.pdf [Accessed 19 May 2008].
Valentin, E.K., 2001. SWOT analysis from a resource-based view. Journal of Marketing Theory and
Practice, 9 (2), 54–69.
International Journal of Production Research 5689
Downloaded By: [Canadian Research Knowledge Network] At: 14:44 17 March 2010
... Figure 1 shows a schematic description of the DCAM framework, which includes both the quantitative and qualitative paths, with our focus on the latter, in this paper. The DCAM qualitative analysis path consists of the following seven steps: 1. ARENA Analysis -based on the Focused ARENA Strategy [14,15]. 2. Constraint Analysis -based on the Theory of Constraints [16]. ...
... 3 4. SWOT Analysis -based on Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats analysis. 5. Focused Current Reality Tree (fCRT) -based on Value-Focused Management [14,15]. 6. ...
... The focused ARENA strategy is a tool for the analysis of a market or an industry. It includes "locating-mapping-identifying" the different stakeholders and players in the arena of the system [14,15]. ...
Preprint
Full-text available
The organic fraction of municipal solid waste (OFMSW) is a significant environmental threat, and an economic and social challenge to manage. As such, the efficient treatment of OFMSW is a significant key factor in achieving sustainable waste management. Decentralized Composting (DC) develops a new framework of waste management. The DC Analysis Model (DCAM), proposed in our previous study, provides a powerful tool for decision makers, based on the quantification of the DC project characteristics. In this paper, we focus on the qualitative analysis as a complementary tool to support decision making, in cases where quantitative analysis is unequivocal. The qualitative analysis identifies the main players in the field, the critical stakeholders and the potential conflicts between them. It also reveals the root problems and the core competencies for the project's implementation. DCAM qualitative analysis in Shefa-Amr (case study) indicates that unresolved root problems, such as the “lack of national regulation”, “clear ownership of the project” and “lack of ongoing budget” can result in an unsustainable composting system. Countering that, “the commitment of the municipality”, together with “economic viability” and securing “suitable areas for placing composters” are among the most important core competencies for the effective implementation of DC projects.
... No entanto, para que isso aconteça, é essencial ter a capacidade de construir uma estratégia única que constitua uma vantagem competitiva sobre seus rivais. Isso só pode acontecer com o uso de ferramentas como a análise SWOT, que permitem uma compreensão integrada de todas as dimensões do ambiente interno e externo da empresa para atingir níveis de excelência (Coman & Ronen, 2009 (Pereira et al., 2021;Puyt et al., 2023). ...
Article
Full-text available
A agricultura familiar enfrenta muitos desafios, grande parte motivada pela falta da modernização da produção, devido a carência da adoção de novas tecnologias bem como a necessidade de profissionalização das práticas de gestão dos agricultores. Com os produtores de tomate de Antônio João, localizado no estado de Mato Grosso do Sul, não é diferente: uma região que antes era bastante conhecida pela produção de tomate, realizada por pequenos produtores familiares, agora se depara com o declínio da sua produção. Assim, este trabalho teve por objetivo realizar o diagnóstico estratégico das propriedades agrícolas familiares de tomate no município de Antônio João - MS. O estudo foi realizado através de entrevistas onde 20 produtores que trabalham com agricultura familiar na produção de tomates no município participaram. Os produtores foram caracterizados, e, na sequência, análises uni variadas e bivariadas fundamentaram a elaboração da análise SWOT e construção do Diagrama de Ishikawa. Observou-se que os agricultores apresentam dificuldade no controle gerencial, ficando à mercê de situações que dificultam a compreensão do mercado onde estão inseridos. Concluiu-se que as ferramentas são importantes não somente para os produtores de tomate, mas sim para todos aqueles produtores que compreender melhor seu ambiente de negócio e se situar sobre os problemas, buscando administrar sua propriedade de forma mais eficiente
... SWOT analysis, PESTLE analysis, and Porter's Five Forces are important strategic analysis tools that have been adopted for decades. Specifically, numerous researchers have used SWOT analysis as a strategic planning technique to evaluate organization status [9]. It not only evaluates the current situation of a business but also analyzes the difference between reality and plans. ...
Article
Full-text available
The rapid growth of the sharing economy has propelled shared mobility to the forefront of the public’s attention. Continuous advancements in autonomous driving technology also bring new opportunities and challenges to the shared mobility industry. This study comprehensively analyzes the impact of using land-based autonomous vehicles (AVs) to provide shared mobility services, utilizing SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats), PESTLE analysis (Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Legal, and Environmental), and Porter’s Five Forces (the bargaining power of suppliers, the bargaining power of buyers, threats of new entrants, substitutes, and rivalry). The findings reveal that AVs can provide improved shared mobility services by increasing transportation safety, reducing emissions, reducing costs, enhancing traffic efficiency, and increasing customer satisfaction as well as the profitability of shared mobility services. However, challenges such as technological and policy uncertainties, safety concerns, high initial costs, inadequate public communication infrastructure, and the absence of standardized regulations can hinder the widespread adoption of AVs. The benefits are also restricted by the low market penetration rate of AVs. To promote AVs in the shared mobility market, this study also provides implications for AV stakeholders tailored to the evolving shared mobility market dynamics.
... As a result of these definitions, the analysis is conducted in four steps. The first step is to identify the strengths of the organized structure (Coman & Ronen, 2009). This involves examining how the institution or structure has advantages, which areas it excels in compared to competitors, and how resources are utilized. ...
... Metode ini menekankan pentingnya mempertimbangkan peran faktor internal dan eksternal dalam pengambilan keputusan (Normasyhuri & Nurohmah, 2023). Analisis SWOT dimulai dengan mengidentifikasi kekuatan dan kelemahan internal organisasi (Coman & Ronen, 2009). ...
Article
Full-text available
Industry has an important role in the economic growth of a region. The city of Yogyakarta is an example that shows the diversity of industry, especially on a small scale or home-based, such as PT. TS Putra 2 which focuses on aluminum casting. The aim of this research is to find out the right marketing strategy for PT. TS Putra 2. This research method is qualitative and quantitative based on location observations and interviews with company owners. Analysis uses the SWOT method and IFAS-EFAS method. The results of this research are the potential and opportunities to expand marketing reach and increase industrial profitability, which can be done through marketing innovation, direct sales, and utilization of marketing time. The conclusion of this research is that a marketing team is also needed to come up with marketing innovations for TS Putra 2 Cast Aluminum products.
... It can be used by organizations of all sizes and across various industries. Moreover, it can be applied to a wide range of scenarios, from formulating a corporate strategy to planning a new project or evaluating a potential merger (Coman & Ronen, 2009). ...
Article
Purpose: The impetus for this study lies in the pressing need for telecommunication companies to adapt to the rapidly evolving technological landscape and regulatory environment to maintain competitiveness and meet increasing consumer demands. Method: This study conducted a comprehensive analysis using SWOT analysis, Qualitative Data Analysis, and the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) to determine the best course of action. Results: This study navigates through the initial stages of identifying the strategic, operational, and financial implications of PT. XYZ Frequency Migration. It delves into the background of Broadband Wireless Access (BWA) technology, the significance of the 3.3 GHz and 10 GHz bands in telecommunications, and the broader context of industry trends necessitating this shift. Methodologically, this research integrates SWOT, stakeholder, qualitative data analysis (QDA), and the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) to provide a holistic understanding of the complexities of migration. This multi-faceted approach facilitates a comprehensive evaluation of the technological, operational, and strategic aspects of migration and offers nuanced insights into the challenges and opportunities inherent in the transition to the 10 GHz band. The study proposes that the convergence of various factors necessitates a strategic realignment that encompasses operational efficiency, technical excellence, financial prudence, regulatory compliance, and customer focus to effectively adapt to the 10 GHz spectrum. Contributions: This study contributes to the academic and practical understanding of network migration within the telecommunications sector, offering nuanced insights into the complexities of transitioning to higher frequency bands. It provides a framework for other telecommunications entities considering similar migrations, emphasizing the importance of a multifaceted strategic approach to navigating challenges and leveraging opportunities presented by such technological advancements.
Article
Full-text available
The SWOT analysis is a strategic planning tool that helps businesses identify their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. This article explores the importance of SWOT analysis in achieving business success. Through a comprehensive literature review, it examines the role of SWOT analysis in strategic planning, decision-making, and organizational growth. The methodology includes a review of case studies and empirical data from various industries. The findings highlight how SWOT analysis aids in aligning strategies with market dynamics and enhancing competitive advantage. The discussion delves into the practical implications and limitations of SWOT analysis, concluding with recommendations for its effective use in business strategy formulation.
Chapter
1. GİRİŞ Denizde petrol kirliliğinin önemli bir kısmı kıyıya yakın bölgelerde, özellikle liman sahalarında meydana gelmektedir. Bu yüzden bu tip afetler-de kıyı şeridinin kontamine olma riski oldukça yüksektir (Michel vd., 2000). Denize dökülen petrolün çevreye olan zararlarını en aza indirgeyebilmek ancak kirliliğe müdahalenin en kısa sürede gerçekleşmesine bağlıdır. Bu süreçte en ideal müdahale yöntem(ler)inin seçilmesi hayati önem arz etmek-tedir (Fingas, 2016). Deniz kirliliğine müdahale teknikleri, döküntüye neden olan olayın büyüklüğü, nedeni ve yaratacağı etki ile yakından ilişkilidir. İdeal müdahale çoğu zaman birden fazla tekniğin bir arada kullanılması ile sağlanmakta-dır (NOAA, 2013). Doğal geri kazanım süreci de dâhil olmak üzere, ideal müdahale tekniğinin seçimi, müdahale operasyonunun yaratacağı olumsuz çevresel etkileri de dikkate alarak yapılmalıdır (IPIECA, 2015a). Literatürdeki bilimsel çalışmalara bakıldığında, petrol kirliliğine acil müdahale tekniklerinin farklı model ve yöntemler açısından incelendiği görülmektedir. Etkin (2004), çalışmasında fiili ya da varsayımsal dökülme-lerde ortaya çıkan çevresel ve sosyo-ekonomik zararlar dâhil olmak üzere petrol sızıntısı maliyetlerini tahmin etmek için bir yöntem geliştirmiştir. Montewka vd. (2013) müdahale tekniklerinin operasyonel maliyetlerini hesaplamak için olasılıksal bir model önerisinde bulunmuştur. Cumo vd. (2007), petrol kirliliğine müdahalede mevcut en iyi tekniğe (BAT) ulaşmak için sırayla uygulanacak üç farklı kritere dayanan bir yöntem önermiştir.
Article
A matriz SWOT é uma metodologia para análise de cenários utilizada por empresas, mas ainda pouco aproveitada no setor do comércio de madeira. Este trabalho teve como objetivo descrever e analisar em uma madeireira localizada no município de Mossoró-RN, um estudo de caso da aplicação da matriz SWOT como ferramenta para planejamento estratégico. Duas estratégias de desenvolvimento foram sugeridas para o mercado de venda de madeira: a estratégia Oceano Azul e a implementação da logística reversa. Foi observada uma preferência do mercado local por apenas madeiras tropicais da espécie Manilkara sp. Dentro da filosofia do Oceano Azul, as empresas poderiam propor novas espécies de madeira de qualidade que reoriente o mercado. Outra oportunidade é a criação de convênios com o setor da construção civil, um dos principais clientes, para que seja implementado a logística reversa. A madeira descartada no final de sua vida útil poderia vir a ser coletada pelo comércio de madeira e ser convertida em bioenergia ou produtos de maior valor agregado, que poderia gerar nova fonte de renda e ajudaria no problema ambiental gerado pelo descarte irregular.Palavras-chave: planejamento setorial, tomada de decisão, vendas. WOOD MARKET: CASE STUDY ABOUT SWOT ANALYSIS AND STRATEGY FORMULATION ABSTRACT:SWOT matrix is a methodology for sceneries analysis used by companies, however it has not been fully tapped by the wood trade market. The aim of this work was to describe and analyze a study case of SWOT matrix application, as strategic planning tool in a wood trade business located at Mossoró municipality, RN, Brazil. Two strategies were suggested for the development of the wood trade market: Blue Ocean strategy and reverse logistic implementation. It was observed that the local market shows preference for the use of topical wood originated from just one species Manilkara sp. Within the Blue Ocean philosophy, the businesses could propose new species with quality wood that reorient the market. Other opportunity is establish partnerships with the construction sector, one of the main clients, to implement a reverse logistic. Dumped wood after its service life could be collected by wood sellers and converted to bioenergy or higher added value products, that could be a new source of income and would help the environmental problem created by the irregular disposal.Keywords: Sectoral planning, decision making, sales. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5935/2318-7670.v05nespa21
Article
Full-text available
The analysis of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) has long been recommendedas the foundation for strategy. In spite of this popularity, the actual procedure remains vaguelyoperationalized, and both descriptive and empirical accounts of its use (as noted here) indicate bothconceptual and procedural problems. After reviewing the development of SWOT in the strategyliterature, examples of SWOT analyses are noted. A variety of criticisms of the SWOT method areexamined, leading to a summary of key principles for SWOT analysis. A new, five-step method forcarrying out SWOT is proposed based on critical customer values and competitor comparisons,producing an assessment of organizational strengths in terms of strong product positioning. Thismethod is illustrated by a case analysis of a graduate degree program. The implications of SWOTanalysis for analyzing threats are considered in some detail, stressing the importance of competitiveintelligence as part of this process.
Article
Full-text available
Firms such as General Motors facing difficult competitive conditions must choose a number of technological investments from a broad range of opportunities. The FAST methodology rationalizes the technology selection and implementation process. FAST applies Root-Cause-Analysis for the identification of Root-Problems and Core-Competencies. Potential technological investments are developed into scenariosand their Key-Success-Factors are identified. Gap analysis assesses the risk related to the investment in each technology, The risk is defined as the Gap between the organizations available technological assets and the factors required for success. Technological challenges can be overcome through business alliances. Alternative technologies are mapped on the Ease/Value continuum and the optimal portfolio is selected.
Article
Focused management technology (FMT) is a managerial approach designed to improve processes and increase profits. It offers a synergy of the new and already well-established philosophies and techniques of other management approaches. These techniques and their underlying philosophies are modified and tailored to meet the special environment and the specific needs of the electronics industry. In this article, the integration of FMT into the electronics industry will be demonstrated by a successful implementation in a department of a leading Israeli electronics company.
Article
An approach to SWOT analysis is delineated and illustrated that mitigates shortcomings fostered by prevailing SWOT analysis conventions. SWOT analysis - the identification and assessment of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats - is intended to yield strategic insights. However, typical procedural guidelines consist largely of catchall questions devoid of explicit theoretical underpinnings. Too often, they produce shallow misleading results. As shown in this article, more penetrating strategic insights can be gained by following SWOT analysis guidelines derived from contemporary strategic management theory, especially the resource-based view of the firm.
Article
The attempt to improve the corporate strategy development process has fostered a range of approaches which have enjoyed different levels of support and popularity over time. One of the most popular is the SWOT analysis. This article reports on an in-depth review of its use by consuitants who included this as part of their approach to understanding a business from a corporate perspective and as part of the Department of Trade and Industry's Manufacturing Planning and Implementation Scheme. Of the 50 companies reviewed within the scheme, over 20 companies used a SWOT involving 14 consulting companies. All the applications showed similar characteristics—long lists (over 40 factors on average), general (often meaningless) descriptions, a failure to prioritize and no attempt to verify any points. But the most worrying general characteristic was that no-one subsequently used the outputs within the later stages of the strategy process. The continued use of the SWOT analysis, therefore, needs to be questioned.
Article
This paper presents a systematic approach to managing by the market constraint in the Hi-Tech industry. In line with the Theory of Constraints methodology, it is argued that in a market-constrained environment, the marketing and sales department together with the research and development department are Permanent Bottlenecks and need to be managed as such. The paper modifies the Theory of Constraint's five focusing steps to accommodate the market constraint. It describes the Strategic Gating and Tactical Gating that enable the firm to increase shareholder value, emphasizing that even though the company has to seek profitable orders in the competitive market, management can control the situation by the focusing methods presented. The paper also suggests a way to reduce costs in non-critical areas and stresses the need for lead-time protective buffers.
Article
NetDay creator John Gage on the technological tools and foundational metaphors that will shape our future.
Chapter
Development of a firm's core competencies is identified as the key for global leadership and competitiveness in the 1990s. NEC, Honda, and Canon are used as exemplars of firms that conceive of themselves in terms of core competencies. Core competencies are the organization's collective learning and ability to coordinate and integrate multiple production skills and technology streams; they are also about the organization of work and delivery of value in services and manufacturing. A firm must conceive of itself as a portfolios of competencies, instead of a portfolio of strategic business units (SBUs). The latter limit the ability of firms to exploit their technological capabilities; they are often dependent on external resources. The real source of advantage lies in management's ability to consolidate corporate-wide technologies and production skills into competencies, which will allow individual businesses to adapt to emerging opportunities. Cultivating core competencies does not mean outspending rivals on RD (2) they significantly contribute to the customer benefits of the end-product; and (3) they should be difficult for competitors to imitate. Cultivating core competencies also means benefiting from alliances and establishing competencies that are evolving in existing businesses. The tangible links between core competencies and end products are core products, which embody one or more core competencies. Companies must maximize their world manufacturing share in core products. Global leadership is won by core competence, core products, and end products; global brands are built by proliferating products out of core competencies. Firms must avoid the tyranny of the SBU, the costs of which are (1) under investment in developing core competencies and core products, (2) imprisoned resources, and (3) bounded innovation. Top management must add value to a firm by developing strategic architecture, which will avoid fragmenting core competencies, establish objectives for competence building, make resource allocation priorities transparent and consistent, ensure competencies are corporate resources, reward competence carriers (personnel who embody core competencies), and focus strategy at the corporate level. A firm must be conceived of as a hierarchy of core competences, core products, and market-focused business units. Obsession with competence building will mark the global winners of the 1990s. (TNM)