mingyao743/make-rational-decision/swot-analysis

SWOT Analysis

Evaluate the current state and strategic position of a subject by examining internal and external factors across four quadrants.

When to Use

• Strategic planning and business decisions
• Evaluating a new project, product, or initiative
• Competitive analysis and market positioning
• Personal or team capability assessment
• Go/no-go decision gates

The Four Quadrants

                    Internal              External
                 ┌──────────────┐   ┌──────────────┐
                 │  STRENGTHS   │   │ OPPORTUNITIES│
   Positive     │              │   │              │
                 │ What we do   │   │ External     │
                 │ well         │   │ trends we    │
                 │              │   │ can leverage │
                 ├──────────────┤   ├──────────────┤
   Negative     │  WEAKNESSES  │   │   THREATS    │
                 │              │   │              │
                 │ Internal     │   │ External     │
                 │ gaps and     │   │ risks that   │
                 │ limitations  │   │ could harm   │
                 └──────────────┘   └──────────────┘

Process

1. Define the subject and objective

• What are you analyzing? (product, team, project, organization)
• What decision will this analysis inform?

1. Brainstorm each quadrant (time-box each to 10-15 min)

• Start with Strengths — build confidence and engagement
• Move to Weaknesses — honest internal assessment
• Then Opportunities — scan the external landscape
• Finish with Threats — identify external risks

1. Prioritize within each quadrant

• Rank items by impact (high/medium/low)
• Focus on the top 3-5 items per quadrant

1. Cross-analyze (TOWS matrix)

• S×O: How can strengths help capture opportunities?
• S×T: How can strengths mitigate threats?
• W×O: How can opportunities help overcome weaknesses?
• W×T: How can we defend against threats exploiting weaknesses?

1. Formulate strategy

• Translate cross-analysis insights into actionable strategies

Output Format

## SWOT Analysis: [Subject]
 
**Objective**: [What decision this analysis informs]
 
### Strengths (Internal, Positive)
1. [Strength] — Impact: High
2. [Strength] — Impact: Medium
3. [Strength] — Impact: Low
 
### Weaknesses (Internal, Negative)
1. [Weakness] — Impact: High
2. [Weakness] — Impact: Medium
 
### Opportunities (External, Positive)
1. [Opportunity] — Impact: High
2. [Opportunity] — Impact: Medium
 
### Threats (External, Negative)
1. [Threat] — Impact: High
2. [Threat] — Impact: Medium
 
### Strategy (TOWS Cross-Analysis)
| Strategy | Type | Leveraged From |
|----------|------|----------------|
| [Strategy 1] | S×O | Strength 1 + Opportunity 1 |
| [Strategy 2] | W×T | Weakness 1 mitigation vs Threat 1 |

Extensions

This skill is enhanced by the following shared extensions:

• `_shared/diagram-renderer.md` — Mermaid templates for rendering the SWOT quadrant chart and color-coded matrix
• `_shared/research-protocol.md` — Data collection methodology for the external O/T quadrants
• `_shared/multi-input-protocol.md` — Round-robin protocol for collecting SWOT input from multiple participants
• `_shared/skill-workflows.md` — Workflow 2 (Strategy Chain) and Workflow 3 (Decision Chain) use SWOT
• `_shared/examples-library.md` — Example 3 shows a complete SWOT with TOWS cross-analysis

Rules

• Strengths and Weaknesses are internal — things within your control
• Opportunities and Threats are external — things outside your control
• Each item should be specific and evidence-based, not vague
• Avoid listing the same item in multiple quadrants — if it's both a strength and a weakness, split it into distinct items
• Prioritization is essential — a SWOT with 20 items per quadrant is useless; aim for 3-5 per quadrant