Entrepreneurs of different business organisations are fond of setting goals in order to move their businesses forward daily, irrespective of the challenges on the ground.
This is the reason why they have a target, aims, or objectives for whatever they have decided to produce at the end of a trading session, either quarterly, half a year, or yearly, as the case may be.
For better understanding, let us consider the meaning of the following i. e. the meaning of simple business goals. To understand what business goals are all about, you must understand and be able to analyse the letter’s SWOT.
1. SWOT Analysis
SWOT means strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. They are products of the environment. Business organisations do not operate in isolation but in an environment that is dynamic, multi-faceted, and has far-reaching imputes.
This environment could be internal or external. Internal environments are environments that are within the reach of an organisation. This internal environment has strengths and weaknesses as its characteristics.
An external environment is an environment that is outside the reach of an organisation. An organisation has to adjust appropriately to the external environment because they do not have any control over it. This offers both opportunities and threats.
Strengths
These are good attributes of an organisation that are a result of the organisation being able to manage and coordinate its activities well.
These include the ability of an organisation to recruit and retain well-trained staff, produce highly qualitative and improved products, sound human and customer relations.
The situation of the organisation in a good area, ability to build strong customer confidence, ability to acquire the most recent and sophisticated equipment, sound financial management system and so on.
2. Major areas of strength in business
Strengths of a business refer to internal and external factors, power, or capacity that make such a business stand out and forge ahead of other competitors in the market. e. a kind of added advantage over other entrepreneurs.
It also refers to what the workers do well or where their skills shine above others.
Leadership competence: Before a business can be strong, the workers in the establishment must be capable of performing he work in the organisation. They are to be men and women of qualities in each of their areas of work or schedule.
Communication skills: Whoever will succeed while others are failing is to be a man or woman with good communication skills. They must know how to listen to the customers and pacify anger and annoyance, especially during complaints, suggestions and package themselves to satisfy the needs of consumers and use the principle that customers are always right.
Self-motivation: They should be men and women of self or personal courage, even in the time of hopelessness, when nobody is around to cheer them up or encourage them in their present condition, especially when a great loss has occurred in the business.
Service competence: They must have the ability to serve the customers right, as far as the interpersonal relationship between a producer and a consumer is concerned.
Self-determination: They are to men and women of a single purpose, aim, goal, and objective. They must be ready never to give room to any discouragement or defeat, come what may.
Teamwork: They are to cultivate the attitude of working together as a man, having the same voice towards one goal for efficiency and effectiveness in the production of goods and services at hand.
Intelligence: They must have the ability to always think fast and right, especially during challenges, and rectify whatever negatives are on the ground to protect the good image of the business.
Hard work: They should be people who can work very hard at all times, even when the schedule is right or during overtime, or one challenge or the other in the business, and so on.
Weaknesses
These are negative characteristics of an organisation that are a result of the organisation’s not being able to manage and coordinate its internal environment.
These may include the loss of key management staff, as a result of a bad welfare package, bad after-sales services, poor customer relations, and so on.
3. Major areas of weakness in business
This is an area of business that is set back as a result of some negative factors, such as credit sales, lateness, insufficient training, or limited resources. All these qualities make a business a disadvantage compared to others in the field of business.
It causes businesses not to grow as it is expected and targeted, or goals set are unfulfilled as a result of such weaknesses. They serve as the weak point of an organisation. Examples of weak factors are as follows:
- Poor location
- Bad administrators
- Incompetent marketers
- Insufficient funds
- Credit sales
- Lack of standard equipment
Opportunities
These may include a steady supply of electricity in areas where the business is situated, special loan facilities offered by the government, and a reduction in the duties payable on raw materials used by the organisation.
4. Major areas of opportunity in business
There are a lot of businesses in different sectors of the economy that a student can pursue based on choice and decision. Some of them are Agro-allied business, Forest and future business, catering business, baby items, education services, and Internet-based business.
Telecommunication business, Information technology business, Fashion and style business, etc. But there is a chance of internal and external factors that a business has over others in accumulating more wealth or profit.
It also means improving one’s performance and advantage in a market setting for more profits. The following are some of the opportunities:
- Good location
- Good planning
- Sufficient funds
- Availability of experts
- Proper attitude
- Good communication skills
Threats
These are negative things posed by the external environments which are inimical to the survival of the business organisation. To remain in business, organisations must react sharply and timely manner to those threats.
Examples are when the government reviews upward, wages and salaries, the embargo on the importation of key raw materials used by the organisation, upward review of the tax rate payable by companies, epileptic and kiotic supply of power, etc.
5. Major areas of threats in business
Threats are internal and external factors that can cause trouble or setbacks for the business anytime, anywhere, if quick action is not taken to correct or prevent them. They ruin the business venture and can negatively affect its performance or achievement of its goals.
In fact, they are real troubleshooters and a dangerous zone for the business. Some of these threats are the following:
Poor location: This can serve as a threat if there is no good location for the business where people can patronise them very well.
Poor planning: In situations where there is poor planning, it may be very difficult to strive well, and the expectations of the organisation may be defeated.
Po0 or management: If the management is weak in their operations and is not capable of handling some sensitive issues with the customers, they are likely to be negatively affected in the business.
New government laws and regulations: This is a situation where there are negative laws and regulations from the government that affect the business negatively. This type of negative laws and regulations usually serves as a threat to any business.
New Competitors: You can think of competitors in business, such as Viju Milk and Vigo, Five Alive by Coca-Cola, Peak Milk, etc.
Political instability: At times, there can be political instability in a state or a country, which is likely to affect a business. A government that is in power today may powerfully approve a project which may be abandoned by another government in power tomorrow.
Such a way of administration instability may affect the business negatively sometimes.
Bad debt: Situations where there are a lot of unclaimed debts as a result of nature or natural disasters, such as death, storm, earthquake, war, etc, can serve as a threat to business anywhere in the part of the world.
Misuse of Technology: Misuse of technology renders your product useless. g. computer (instead of a typewriter), ATM card, e-commerce, etc An introduction of new equipment or instruments as a result of fast growth in the development of technology can also serve as a threat to business, etc. Read the similar post on this page.
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