Carrying Out A ‘SWOT’ Analysis: Questions to Help You Get Started (Resource developed by Simon Croft) The following questions are intended to help you get started on your ‘SWOT’ analysis. Not all of them will be relevant (or important) to all organisations, nor is the list intended to be comprehensive – use your judgement and knowledge of your organisation to identify what’s most important for your particular situation: Strengths and Weaknesses – look mainly internally to your organisation • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
How well do our services meet users’ needs and do users value them? Are we reaching those we really need to reach? How well do we do in achieving the targets we set ourselves? Do we have the right people working for us – trustees, staff and volunteers – in terms of skills, knowledge, commitment etc; and do we have enough people/capacity? Is our leadership strong and effective? Do we have ‘good governance’? Do we know what things cost us and do we provide value for money? Is our financial position strong and sustainable? Do we have a good profile? Do people know about us? What do others think of us? What is our reputation like? Are we well connected to other organisations, agencies, forums and contacts that we need to work with or influence, or that we might need support from? Do we have good relationships with all those who support us – funders, individual donors, referral agencies, volunteers, partner organisations etc? Do we communicate effectively – both internally and externally? Do we stay up to date with changes that affect us, or are we sometimes out of touch? Are we good at thinking ahead and planning for the future? Is our infrastructure fit for purpose and efficient? You may wish to consider how you manage and organise your people, the premises you work from, your IT, policies etc Are we good at monitoring and evaluating and at reporting? Do we know what we have achieved and are we good at telling others about it?
Opportunities and Threats – look mainly externally to your organisation •
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What changes and trends are affecting our area of work and/or our users? These may include: o New legislation o Changes in government or local authority or NHS policy and priorities o Demographics – changes in the population you serve o Changes in accepted working methods/approaches o Increased (or decreased) public interest in your area of work o New technological advances What (new) needs are becoming apparent? You may wish to look at: o Indices of deprivation o Reports and studies including surveys and needs assessments o Your own data o Published data from other organisations Do these changes imply opportunities to: o Do new work with existing users? o Do the same work with a wider group of users? Who are our competitors and what are they doing? Are there opportunities for partnership working, collaboration or even merger?
Code of Good Governance for Smaller Organisations: Useful Resources
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