Category: Business Growth

In short

A SWOT analysis is a simple review of your business. SWOT stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats: what you do well, what holds you back, what you could take advantage of, and what could hurt you.

Many of the business owners I work with share a similar story. They have spent years, often decades, in large organisations. They know their industry inside out, they are well connected and respected, and they have spotted a gap that their experience is perfect for. So they take the leap and set up on their own.

Then comes the hard part. Knowing an industry and knowing how to build a business are two very different things. They know they need help, but not always what kind. Others come to me further down the line: a major client has gone, a new competitor has appeared, or growth has stalled and they are not quite sure why.

Wherever they are on that journey, I almost always start in the same place: the good old SWOT.

What is a SWOT analysis, and why do I start with one?

A SWOT analysis sorts everything you know about your business into four boxes. Two look inside the business, at things you can control. Two look outside, at things you can only prepare for and respond to.

HelpfulHarmful
Inside the business (you control it)Strengths: what you do well, and what gives you an edgeWeaknesses: what holds you back, or what is missing
Outside the business (you respond to it)Opportunities: changes or openings you could take advantage ofThreats: changes or risks that could hurt you

It is very simple, almost basic, but it is the foundation for everything else you build, and something you can keep referring back to.

What is a SWOT analysis used for?

It is most useful before a big decision, such as launching a business, adding a new service, writing a business plan or deciding where to put your time and money next year. It is also worth revisiting whenever something significant changes around you.

Why do so many SWOT analyses go nowhere?

If the SWOT is so simple, why doesn’t it help everyone? In my experience, there are two common mistakes.

The first is to fill in the boxes, then cling to the opportunities and ignore everything else. Opportunities are the exciting part, but they are only worth chasing if the business underneath can deliver them.

The second is to treat the SWOT as the finished product: you do it, you park it, and that’s that. Without a step that turns the findings into actions, nothing moves. It is also easy to be too kind to yourself. What you think is a strength might turn out to be a weakness, and that only comes out when someone asks you the awkward questions.

How should you approach a SWOT analysis?

I never rush it. With clients, I typically spend three or four hours in conversation before we have a SWOT we can work with. We start with their ambitions, how they like to work, why they believe the opportunity is real and what is happening in their industry. Only then do we start filling in the boxes.

Along the way, I keep asking “why?” When you start unpicking what someone believes about their business, a lot more comes out. I push for specifics, too: “strong network” is a start, but “direct access to decision makers in my three target sectors” is something you can actually use. And we look well beyond the business itself. In recent years I have seen clients’ sectors hit by conflict, extreme weather and supply problems, none of which they could control, and all of which affected their customers.

What does a typical SWOT analysis look like?

The details vary from client to client, but for the founder-led businesses I work with most often, the picture is remarkably consistent. Here is a typical SWOT analysis example from a specialist consultancy.

StrengthsDeep, first-hand knowledge of the industry, from the people doing the work to the corporates at the other end. A strong network with direct access to decision makers. A clear focus on a few target sectors. Credibility that clients trust.
WeaknessesNo defined processes or way of delivering projects. Knowledge and relationships all sit with the founder. Services not yet packaged into clear offers. No CRM, sales pipeline, marketing plan or brand.
OpportunitiesBecoming the recognised specialist in a growing niche. Thought leadership: articles, media comment and speaking. Rising demand for their kind of expertise. Partnerships with complementary firms.
ThreatsVolatility in their clients’ markets, from weather, conflict and policy changes. Economic uncertainty making clients delay spending on advice. Larger consultancies moving into the niche.

None of it is usually news to the business owner. But seeing it laid out tends to make one thing very clear: their biggest asset and their biggest risk are the same thing. Them. Their knowledge and relationships are the reason clients come to them, and the reason the business can’t yet grow beyond them.

That realisation changes the conversation. Many start out thinking they just need to launch. The SWOT takes us back to basics: how the work will flow, who will do what, how they will manage relationships, whether they need rules of engagement or NDAs when talking to contacts, and, most importantly, what exactly they are selling.

How do you turn a SWOT analysis into a plan?

This is the step most people skip, and it is where the real value lies. I use a TOWS matrix, which sounds technical but is simple: you pair the boxes, and each pairing suggests a different kind of action.

PairingThe question to askWhat it often means in practice
Strengths + OpportunitiesHow can we use what we are good at to take this opportunity?Use the founder’s credibility to build authority: articles, events, speaking and press.
Weaknesses + OpportunitiesWhat do we need to fix before we can take it?Turn general expertise into a handful of clear, packaged offers that clients can buy.
Strengths + ThreatsHow can our strengths protect us?Lean on real, practical experience, which larger firms moving into the niche can’t match.
Weaknesses + ThreatsWhere could a threat exploit a weak spot?Write down the methods, build simple systems and a steady sales pipeline, so the business doesn’t depend on one person alone.

One lesson comes up again and again: knowing lots of people is not the same as having authority. Many of my clients talk to people in their industry every day and see them at events, but chatting with someone doesn’t give you authority. That has to be built.

From the pairings, we agree a short list of priorities, in order. For founder-led businesses it often looks something like this: define the offers, build the founder’s profile and the company’s, turn knowledge into repeatable methods, win the first flagship clients, and put the basic systems in place.

We then break each priority into steps that fit the budget, because when you are launching a business, cash flow is everything. In leaner months we might simply keep LinkedIn and events ticking over; when there is more to spend, we move on to the website or the sales process. We often build two profiles, not one: the founder’s personal profile and the company’s. The founder is the face of the business, but the larger organisations they want to work with need to see a business, not just one person.

What does progress look like after a SWOT?

Progress rarely happens overnight, but when every step ties back to the SWOT, clients can see it. I have seen businesses launch to a good reception and press coverage, founders invited to speak at more and higher-profile events, and first clients signed with retainers.

Offers almost always change along the way, and that is exactly what should happen. A SWOT is not a one-off; it is a foundation you keep coming back to.

What clients tell me they value most is having someone dig deep into their business without being an expert in their sector. Time and again, someone will stop and say, “I hadn’t thought about that.” An outsider who isn’t afraid to ask the simple questions is often what unlocks a SWOT.

How do you make your own SWOT analysis count?

Whether you are getting started, preparing to launch or planning your next stage of growth, here is how to make your own SWOT count:

  • Block out proper time. Set aside half a day, not twenty minutes at the end of a busy one. A rushed SWOT will only tell you what you already think.
  • Find someone to challenge you. Ask a colleague, adviser or trusted business contact to keep asking “why?” Their questions will uncover far more than your answers alone.
  • Be specific, and be honest. Rewrite vague points until they are something you can act on. Then test each strength: could it also be a weakness, for example if everything depends on you?
  • Look outside your business. List the changes in your sector, economy and customers’ markets over the past year, and how each could affect you.
  • Keep it short. Aim for four or five points per box. If everything is a priority, nothing is.
  • Pair the boxes. For each TOWS pairing, write down one action. Then choose your top three and put them in order.
  • Fit the plan to your budget. Break your first priority into small, affordable steps, and keep the basics going in quieter months.
  • Book a review. Put a date in the diary, three to six months from now, to revisit your SWOT and see what has changed. [link: quarterly review post]

Free SWOT analysis template

Our free template takes you through each step: the four boxes with prompt questions, a page for the TOWS pairings, and a simple plan for your top three actions, with an owner and a date for each.

The SWOT kit for growing businesses
Free 4-page PDF, no sign-up needed

Download the free kit

Need a sounding board?

If you are starting out, getting ready to launch or looking to grow, and would value a fresh pair of eyes on your business, I would be happy to talk it through. Sometimes the most useful thing is simply someone who will ask the questions you haven’t thought to ask yourself.

Call to action: Download the template, or talk to your local Regional Director on 0330 223 7580.

Frequently asked questions

What does SWOT stand for?

Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Strengths and weaknesses are inside your business, where you have control; opportunities and threats are outside it, and you prepare for and respond to them.

How long should a SWOT analysis take?

Longer than most people allow. Set aside half a day, ideally with someone who will question your answers. For a new business, a few hours of conversation before you fill in the boxes is time well spent.

How often should you do a SWOT analysis?

Revisit it every three to six months, and do it again in full before any big decision or when something significant changes around you.

Can a sole trader do a SWOT analysis?

Yes, and it is often most useful for a one-person business, where the owner is both the biggest strength and the biggest risk.

What is the difference between a SWOT and a TOWS matrix?

A SWOT lists what you find. A TOWS matrix pairs the boxes, for example strengths with opportunities, to turn those findings into actions.

About the author

When priorities compete and the workload keeps growing, your mission and values are the quickest way to decide what to do now, what to hand over and what to drop.

Everything on this list is urgent. So where do I start?

As the end of the year approaches, work can start to feel like one long list of competing demands. Marketing needs attention, the finance deadlines won’t move, admin keeps piling up, and your team keeps asking which of it matters most. Everything is shouting at once.

A to-do list can’t settle that for you. It treats every item as equal, and the most urgent things are rarely the most important. What you need is a filter, and most businesses already have one, even if nobody has looked at it for years: a clear sense of what the business is for and how it wants to work. In other words, its mission and values.

What we learned rewriting our own

Rebecca and I have spent the last few weeks revisiting Get Ahead’s mission, vision and values. The old versions weren’t wrong, and they read well on the website. But when we asked whether they helped us make actual decisions, the answer was mostly no.

So we rewrote them to do specific jobs. As we open new regions, our values need to help us judge whether a prospective Regional Director is the right fit. They need to show Virtual Experts that joining Get Ahead means joining a network, not signing up to a job board. And our goals need to keep the two of us focused on a small number of priorities rather than on whatever lands in the inbox.

The lesson was simple. If your mission and values can’t help you make a decision, they’re decoration.

What useful mission and values look like in a small business

A mission says what you do and who you do it for, in a sentence you could say out loud without cringing. Values describe how you work, in terms specific enough to rule some choices out. “Excellence” rules nothing out, because nobody sets out to be mediocre. “We reply to every client within one working day” or “we’d rather turn work down than overpromise” does, and your team can check themselves against it.

You don’t need many. Three to five values that people can remember will do more than a list of ten that nobody can recall. They also need to be written down and shared, so they guide the whole team rather than only the person who wrote them.

A quick test: think of a decision you made last month, perhaps a client you took on or a request you said yes to. Would your mission and values have pointed the same way? If they wouldn’t have helped either way, they need sharpening.

Do it, delegate it or drop it

Once your purpose is clear, it becomes a practical filter for the list. For each item, ask three questions.

Does this move us towards what we’re here to do? If not, it’s a candidate for dropping, however urgent it feels. Does it need me, specifically? If it matters but doesn’t need your judgement, it’s a candidate to hand over. Would anyone notice if it stopped? Some regular tasks carry on long after the reason for them has gone.

What’s left is the work that only you can do and that moves the business forward, and that is where your time should go. As the year closes, it’s also worth asking one bigger question: if you could add one thing to the business next year and remove one thing, what would they be?

Giving your team a message they can use

A clear purpose isn’t only for the owner. When everyone can explain in a sentence what the business does and why, they make better calls without checking back, and they describe you consistently to customers, suppliers and anyone else who asks. That consistency is a large part of what people come to trust.

Try asking a few people in your team to describe the business in one sentence. If the answers vary widely, that’s worth knowing, and it’s a cheap problem to fix. There’s more on getting a team pulling in the same direction in how to improve performance in a growing business.

Where Get Ahead can help

Much of what lands in the “delegate” pile is the work our Virtual Experts do every day: marketing, bookkeeping and finance support, admin, and the operational tasks that crowd out thinking time. They are experienced, UK-based professionals, and your local Regional Director takes the time to understand how your business works, and what it’s for, before matching you with the right person.

If your list feels longer than your week, let’s talk about what’s taking up your time and where the right support would make the biggest difference. Find out more about our services or call 0330 223 7580.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between a mission and values?

A mission says what your business does and who it is for. Values describe how you go about it: the standards and behaviours you expect from everyone in the business, including yourself.

How many values should a small business have?

Three to five is usually enough. A few specific values are easier to remember, and more useful when making decisions, than a long list.

How can mission and values help with prioritising?

They give you a test for each task: does it move the business towards its purpose, and does it fit how you want to work? Tasks that don’t are candidates to drop.

How do I decide what to delegate?

Hand over work that matters but doesn’t need your personal judgement, such as regular admin, bookkeeping or social media scheduling, and keep the decisions only you can make.

Get in touch: martin@getaheadva.com   |   Explore our support: getaheadva.com

Six practical ways to improve performance in a growing business when everyone is busy but things still slip.

We’re busier than ever. So why does it feel like we’re getting less done?

If you run a growing business, you may recognise that thought. The team has grown from three people to eight. There are more clients, more projects and more conversations, and everyone is working hard. Yet things that used to happen without anyone thinking about them now slip through: a client follow-up nobody sent, a decision made in one meeting that half the team never heard about, a project everyone assumed someone else was leading.

Nothing is broken, exactly. The business has simply outgrown the informal way it used to work, when most of it ran through the owner’s head and a quick word across the desk was enough to keep everyone in step.

Most advice on improving performance is written for large organisations with HR departments and layers of management. This article is for founders, owners and small teams who need things to work better without adding bureaucracy. From my consultancy work, and from running Get Ahead with Rebecca, I’ve found that when you want to improve performance in a growing business, the answer is rarely a new initiative. It is usually clarity: about what matters, who owns it, and how people find out.

Start with one problem, not six

Before you change anything, pick the single performance problem that is costing you most right now. It might be slow client onboarding, invoices going out late, or a project that keeps drifting. Decide what “fixed” would look like, talk to the people closest to the work, agree two or three actions, and put a review date in the diary.

That may sound modest. It is meant to. A focused fix builds momentum, shows you what works in your business rather than in theory, and gives you something to repeat elsewhere. The five areas below are where most of those problems start, so use them to help you choose.

Is everyone working towards the same thing?

In a small business, the plan often lives in the owner’s head. That works until the team grows past the point where everyone overhears everything. Write down the three or four priorities that matter most this quarter, in plain language, and share them.

Then check that each person can see how their work connects to at least one of them. If someone can’t, either the priority isn’t clear enough or they are spending time on the wrong things, and both are worth knowing. For each priority, agree how you’ll tell whether it’s on track and name one person to lead it. One name, not a committee.

Who actually owns this?

The project that everyone supports and nobody owns is one of the most common reasons good businesses stall. Fiona Ibbetson, our Regional Director for Yorkshire, writes about this well in her piece on project accountability.

In owner-led businesses the hardest part is often the owner letting go. If every decision still needs your approval, you have become the bottleneck, however capable the people around you. Real delegation means agreeing the outcome and the boundaries, then stepping back and letting people decide how to get there. The same applies to outside support. A Virtual Expert given a clear outcome and the authority to act will usually achieve far more than one handed a list of tasks.

Do people hear about decisions at the right time?

Communication problems in small teams are rarely about volume. They are about timing and reasons. People find out about a decision after it has already affected their work, or they hear what changed but not why. Explaining the why matters more than it seems, because it lets people make sensible calls on their own without checking back each time.

Suzanne Evett, our Regional Director for Berkshire, makes a related point in what corporate conference planning taught her about owner-led businesses: people cannot act on information before they are ready to. So think about when people need to know something, not only what they need to know.

It also helps to agree where decisions live. If they are scattered across email, WhatsApp and memory, some will be missed. One agreed place, whether that is a Teams channel or a shared document, is enough. And make it two-way: ask regularly what is getting in the way, then act on at least some of what you hear.

Which processes are slowing you down?

Capable people are held back most by unclear responsibilities and by processes that made sense when the business was smaller. Three places usually leak time: tasks done differently every time, tasks only one person knows how to do, and manual jobs that repeat every week.

Some of these can be automated, and our article on using automation to eliminate repetitive tasks covers where to begin. Some just need writing down on a single page. Others are better handed to someone else entirely, particularly the admin, bookkeeping and scheduling that pull owners away from the work only they can do.

Then measure a small number of things that tell you whether customers and your team are better off: the time from enquiry to proposal, the share of invoices paid on time, how often work has to be redone. Measuring everything because you can is its own drain on time.

What does your own behaviour tell the team?

In a small business, culture is largely the owner’s behaviour, multiplied. If you send emails at 11pm, people assume that is expected. If mistakes are met with blame, problems go underground until they are expensive. If you ask for ideas and then act on one, people keep offering them.

Model the behaviour you want to see, respond to concerns consistently, and make it safe for anyone to say “I’m stuck” early rather than late. None of this costs money, and it does more to hold improvements in place than any process.

Where Get Ahead can help

Several of these are easier with the right support around you. Our HR specialists help owners set clear objectives, hold better performance conversations and support people who are managing others for the first time. Our Virtual Experts take on the admin, finance and operational work that crowds out thinking time, so the owner can focus on direction rather than keeping every plate spinning.

Every client works with a local Regional Director, who takes the time to understand how your business runs before matching you with the right people. If one of the areas above sounds familiar, talk to your local Regional Director. The first conversation is about where you are now and what would make the biggest difference.

Frequently asked questions

What is the quickest way to improve performance in a small business?

Choose one problem that is costing you time or money, define what fixed looks like, agree a few actions with the people closest to it and set a review date. Focused fixes build momentum faster than broad initiatives.

How can I improve team performance without micromanaging?

Agree the outcome and the boundaries, name one owner for each priority, then step back. Short, regular check-ins focused on obstacles work better than approving every decision.

What should a growing business measure?

A handful of measures that show whether customers and the team are better off, such as time from enquiry to proposal, invoices paid on time and how often work is redone.

When should a growing business bring in outside support?

When the owner has become the bottleneck, when the same tasks keep slipping, or when specialist skills such as HR or finance are needed for a defined piece of work rather than a full-time role.

Get in touch: martin@getaheadva.com   |   Explore our support: getaheadva.com