The SWOT analysis has been around for decades and is typically used for a quick analysis of a business or organization. SWOT is an acronym for (S)trengths, (W)eaknesses, (O)pportunities, and (T)hreats. To do this, partition a square into four quadrants and label each one separately with Strengths and Weaknesses across the X-axis and Opportunities and Threats across the Y-axis. Add relevant information about your company into each box to get a quick snapshot of the current status of the organization. Refer to Image 1 for an example of what a SWOT analysis would look like when complete.
Figure 1: SWOT Example, by Warren Lynch, 2020, Digital Image
The TOWS has the same acronyms but is simply written backward. It differs from the SWOT as it takes the analysis of the organization and it makes actionable tasks out of them by converging attributes from both the x and y-axes. The four new squares will be labeled SO (Strengths & Opportunities, SW (Strengths & Threats), WO (Weaknesses & Opportunities), and WT (Weaknesses & Threats). An example would be weaving together something from the weakness and opportunities squares to come up with a remedy that will make the business stronger. Please refer to Image 2 for an example of what a TOWS analysis would look like when completed.
Figure 2: TOWS Example, by Warren Lynch, 2020, Digital Image
The SWOT analysis is great a great snapshot of an organization; however, the TOWS takes the analysis one step farther to extract key actionable insights from the analysis to better improve the organization’s functions and mitigate potential damage.
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References:
Lynch, W 2020, SWOT Example, digital image, Medium, viewed March 11, 2021,
<https://warren2lynch.medium.com/from-swot-to-tows-analysis- 55ac394064b7#:~:text=SWOT%20matrix%20is%20a%20planning,and%20Threats%20in%20point%20form.&text=Whereas%2C%20TOWS%20matrix%20identifies%20the,selecting%20strategies%20on%20their%20bases>.
Lynch, W 2020, TOWS Example, digital image, Medium, viewed March 11, 2021,
<https://warren2lynch.medium.com/from-swot-to-tows-analysis-55ac394064b7#:~:text=SWOT%20matrix%20is%20a%20planning,and%20Threats%20in%20point%20form.&text=Whereas%2C%20TOWS%20matrix%20identifies%20the,selecting%20strategies%20on%20their%20bases>.
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