SWOT analysis for the digital age Business Analyst

Not just staying on top, but if executed well SWOT analysis will help a business analyst to spearhead his/her project well ahead of competition.

A brief overview of SWOT analysis and its importance

SWOT analysis is not any twenty first century innovation. It’s been in practice ever since the days of Genghis Khan and Napoleon. Today’s business professionals need it more than bygone military leaders since it helps solve business and professional problems easily, that too with the help of digital information.

James Manktelow, CEO, Mindtools.com says “A SWOT Matrix is a useful and powerful tool for mapping the way forward for any business. It is also one of the tools you will need to lead your team to an inspiring and successful future."

SWOT analysis is an in-depth analysis of the internal and external business framework of an organization. SWOT stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. It is also often referred to as TOWS analysis, however SWOT analysis as a term is more popular and adhered to.

Explaining the four quadrants of SWOT analysis

Strengths: are areas of operations or activities that the BA’s team as a whole can do better compared to industry standards.

Weaknesses: Lack of coordination among the team, dysfunctional communication, interpersonal conflicts, etc. can be identified as weaknesses that a BA has to deal with while managing a team.

Opportunities: Upcoming trends/project requirements to which the team’s strengths can be matched or potential change in technology that will improve the efficiency of project execution, etc. are opportunities as far as a BA is considered.

Threats: Obstacles and potentially damaging challenges that the BA will have to confront in the present and future conditions can be referred to as threats. 

Why is SWOT Analysis important for a business analyst?

Business Analyst training lays impetus on SWOT analysis since it plays a vital role in helping a BA identify sources of strengths and opportunities. BA certification courses also guide candidates on how to further accelerate their personal growth through use of SWOT analysis.

Professionally, the analysis helps in identifying sources that can be taken better leverage. It also aids in spotting possible risks and threats that accompany each potential design. Personally, the BA become more aware of his/her own personal strengths and weaknesses which can be amplified or supressed for better performance.  

To quote Ian Christie, Career Coach of Monster Management, "SWOT is a simple yet powerful model to analyse the strategic positions of companies, products or business situations. You can also apply the SWOT technique to your own career planning."

Here is how a BA can vouch for his/her strengths or weaknesses for career success:

A BA must not only conduct SWOT analysis but also use the information so derived fruitfully in order to achieve career progress.

Map strengths to opportunities: The BA must pay close attention to find out niche areas where his/her strengths can be leveraged against opportunities.

Use opportunities to negate weaknesses and threats: Every opportunity presents an option to deal with a weakness or threat. For instance, BA certification training not only gives the opportunity to brush shoulders with industry peers but also sharpens the skillsets considerably.

Final words

SWOT analysis used to be a major business analysis tool. Today it has morphed as a personality assessment tool also wherein any professional including a business analyst can enhance their skillsets to achieve career advancement.