SWOT Analysis

Sort what you know into Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats, then turn it into actions with TOWS. A SWOT is only useful when each cell holds evidence and the result changes a decision.

When to use

• Assessing the position of a product, team, project, company or competitor.
• A go / no-go on a market, partnership, or new initiative where internal fit and external conditions both matter.
• Preparing a strategy review or a planning session.

Skip: detailed implementation plans, market sizing, or choosing between concrete options on weighted criteria.

Before you start

1. State in one block: Subject (one entity), Scope and horizon (for example "our API product, next 12 months"), Decision it informs, and Pass (Gather, SWOT, Prioritize, TOWS, Next steps).
2. Gather first. Read docs, metrics, customer feedback, competitor pages and the codebase where relevant. Every item needs a source or the label [user stated] or [assumed]. Ask up to 3 questions only for what tools cannot answer.
3. Light path. Small ask: 3 items per cell, top 2 per cell kept, 1 action per TOWS pair.

Steps

1. SWOT

Place each item by one test:

• Internal and within your control: Strength or Weakness.
• External and outside your control: Opportunity or Threat.

Make items specific and comparative ("support answers in under 1 hour, competitors take a day" beats "great support").

	Helpful	Harmful
Internal	Strengths	Weaknesses
External	Opportunities	Threats

2. Prioritize

Keep the 2-4 items per cell that most affect the decision. Say why the rest are dropped.

3. TOWS

Pair cells to make actions:

• SO: use strengths to take opportunities.
• WO: fix weaknesses that block opportunities.
• ST: use strengths to reduce threats.
• WT: limit exposure where a weakness meets a threat.

4. Next steps

Name the 2-3 actions with an owner (or "to be assigned"), and the one assumption to test first.

Pitfalls

• Items with no evidence ("strong brand"). Add a source or mark [assumed].
• Mixing internal and external: "competitor launched a feature" is a Threat, not a Weakness.
• Long lists with no ranking. A SWOT that does not prioritize does not help a decision.
• Stopping at the grid. Without TOWS or next steps it records opinions and decides nothing.
• Treating one item as both a Strength and an Opportunity. Pick the cell that matches the test.

Worked example: references/example.md.

Checklist

• Subject, scope, horizon and the decision stated
• Each item sits in the right cell by the internal / external test
• Items are specific, comparative and sourced or labeled
• Priorities kept per cell
• TOWS actions and next steps with owners