Assignment Objectives: The objectives are to summarize the external market Opportunities and Threats facing your client company, describe its own internal Strengths and Weaknesses (SWOT table) and use the SWOT data to propose specific strategies (TOWS strategies) that will (1) mitigate each of the identified risks (threats and weaknesses) for your client company’s entry into the selected country; and (2) exploit the identified external opportunities.
Step one: Complete a SWOT MATRIX (which the group started in W3), which you should now show with ALL the country and industry (external) Opportunities and Threats and Company Competitive Strengths and Weaknesses (reflected in Section 10 of the BPT). These descriptions of the external O and T and internal S and W are written in your draft Business Plan, so your SWOT table should be consistent with the draft Business Plan unless you are making specific changes and those changes are explained.
Your completed SWOT should identify your assessment of the primary external threats (T) in this country and industry. You already have identified a competitor strategy based on competitor threat. This current analysis will focus more directly on mitigating the other Threats (aim for no more than 3), that may not be specific to any competitors (from Section 8iii of BPT).
Similarly, your completed SWOT should identify the primary external Opportunity and Opportunity support (O) factors for this country. You have already identified your target market Opportunity (size and growth potential) and your competitive advantages (Strengths), so this analysis will focus more specifically on opportunity support factors (aim for no more than 3) as potential areas for strategic exploitation (from Section 8ii of BPT).
These are the internal and external factors that you must consider in your strategy development: you are to identify strategies that will help to exploit opportunities and leverage strengths and mitigate both external threats and internal risks from the firm’s own weaknesses .
Step Two: This is your idea generation step and reflects your primary analysis. Develop the TOWS matrix, specifying the mitigating strategies and the opportunity exploiting strategies needed in each of the TOWS quadrants.
For example, if your previous analysis identified political ties as important or necessary to compete in this country (external Threat), but your client does not have those ties (internal Weakness), consider WT mitigation strategies (TOWS quadrant WT). Perhaps a specific type of partner (politically connected/experienced) or some specific activity (like political activity or contribution) might mitigate this risk for your client.
Similarly, for the primary external opportunity support factors for this country, specify a strategy that might leverage your firm’s competitive Strengths (quadrant OS strategies). For example, if your PESTEL analysis found an opportunity support factor in the country’s positive attitudes toward U.S. companies, consider how an OS strategy might leverage the U.S. identity of your firm (its Strength) in order to exploit that opportunity (e.g., perhaps by establishing a branded sales branch in country and/or by using product packaging that would leverage that Strength).
For each of the TOWS quadrants, identify potential strategies that will help your firm to operate successfully in this external environment of specific O’s and T’s.
