Critical Path Analysis - Topic of the week

Most businesses are always working on some new project, and one of the most difficult things can be keeping it running on time, and working out how long that time is expected to be.

Critical Path Analysis is a useful tool for working out minimum and maximum times for the project to be completed, as well as identifying potential delays.

Visit our free in depth article on Critical Path Analysis - Project Management to find out how to use this tool in easy to understand language.

posted by The Editor @ 12:44 PM 0 comments   

Swot Analysis

We get lots of emails asking us about how to do a SWOT analysis, so here is some starter information; along with a link to our free dedicated article.

SWOT Analysis

A SWOT analysis is a quick but useful tool to gain an insight into your business, and get an idea of what the future may bring.

Although a SWOT is only a basic form of analysis, it covers important issues in a simple to understand way.

Strengths and Weaknesses

The first part of the SWOT analysis is to list every strength your business has right now.
E.g.: Trusted by customers, strong loyalty, products are very profitable.

You then need to list the weaknesses your business has right now.
E.g.: Premises too small, cost of distribution too high, few repeat sales.

Both of these factors should be based on your business, not on the competition or marketplace, these are covered in the next section.

Opportunities and Threats

You now need to list all of the opportunities available to your business; this can cover both internal and external issues.
E.g.: New product expected to sell well, competitor closing down (if the market is still good), market growth is forecast.

Finally you should list all of the threats facing your business; this again covers both internal and external issues.
E.g.: New competitor opening, product sales dropping, market shrinking.

Once these are complete, you should spend time going through them; and you will be able to find links between them as well as possible action you can take to act upon them.

For a more detailed guide read our free article here:

SWOT Analysis - Understanding Your Business - Strengths and Weaknesses
SWOT Analysis - Opportunities and Threats

posted by The Editor @ 10:29 AM 0 comments