SWOT Analysis and career plan

A SWOT analysis is a great tool to help people to find their strengths and weaknesses as well as opportunities and threats. It's a strategic tool that will help everyone in both their business and their personal life.


Business SWOT

Strengths

• Advertising ideas
• Good team working
• Good understanding of local needs and issues

Weaknesses

• Lack of information on estate management
• Lack of experience and confidence
• Lack of competitive strengths

Opportunities

• Possibility of extending area of housing sold
• More advertising can be done
• Choose a good area for the property
• Good estate Management IT system

Threats

• Loosing staff
• Difficult to find experienced staff
• Difficult to let properties
• Competitive reality is quickly gaining strength
• Issues that may affect and decrease the property value

Personal SWOT

Strengths

• Get on well with people
• Well organised
• Responsible
• Enthusiastic
• Ambitious
• Honest
• Well motivated
• Good IT skills
• Good paperwork
• good at meeting deadlines
• excellent punctuality
• love of learning
• Kind
• Sense of fairness
• Self-control
• Positive attitude
• Working the achieve the best in the future

Weaknesses

• Not a great negotiator
• Lack of confidence and experience
• Impatient
• Problem solving in some occasions
• Easily distracted sometimes
• Too lazy sometimes

Opportunities

• Access course
• Achieving the qualifications I want
• Making new friendships
• Career direction
• New challenges
• Developing stronger communication skills

Threats

• Not achieving my goals and qualification
• Lack of competitive strengths

Task 3B

In this task I am going to write about two jobs, which I could do now.  

Administrative assistant is the job I could currently apply for, because I have the skills and qualifications I need to apply for it, because last year I worked as an admin assistant in a consultancy company for 2 weeks. I have worked a lot in a team during the assignments in college and I have good computer skills. Entry requirements can vary a lot between employers. Some may look for GCSEs, including Maths and English, and others may taste the keyboard, filling, and telephone skills. They may need Award, Certificate or Diploma in Business and Administration at levels one to three. I already have Level 1 qualifications and if I achieve my qualifications this year I will have Level 2 in Business, Maths and English.

The tasks this job might have include:

dealing with post

making sure that there is enough stationery

answering the telephone and passing on calls

reception duties such as greeting and looking after visitors

typing and setting up documents such as letters and reports

keeping computer records up to date

filing

using office equipment such as printers, photocopiers and fax machines

managing staff appointments

setting up meetings and taking minutes

making travel arrangements for staff.

To be an administrative assistant I will need to have:

• excellent time management skills
• good communication skills
• the ability to work well as part of a team
• computer literacy and good typing skills
• good 'people' skills
• accuracy and attention to detail
• the ability to use your own initiative

The second job I could currently apply for is as Customer Assistant in Vue cinemas. I am suitable for this job, because I love films and enjoy working with people. I get on well with them, so I can get more experience and improve my 'people' skills. The cinema is looking for people to deliver a great cinema experience to all their customers which will keep them coming back. There are a wide variety of duties in all areas of the cinema. The main duty is to meet and great customers and serve them drinks, snacks and tickets. Through experience I'll soon be able to suggest the best films and prepare screens for the next film. I need to ensure that my work is effective, the teams achieve their targets and the cinemas maximise profits. 

 

Career Plan

After I finish Level 2 in Business and I achieve qualifications in Maths and English Functional Skills Level 2 I want to study Access in Business Level 3 course. When I achieve the Access course I want to go to university and study Business Management. I am going to specialise in Economics, International Business, Law and Marketing. This is a three years course, so I plan to finish my education in about 5 years time. After that I plan to start work in a company as an Office administrator. This will help me to gain more experience within an business environment. In ten years time I plan to open my own business or to be a manager in a big company. I still don't have the skills and qualities I need to do this job, but in the future, I plan to work as a Business Adviser. As a business adviser I would give advice and support to help new businesses to start up. I would also encourage established businesses to grow. I might advise on different kind of issues including finance and marketing. To work as business adviser I need experience and a good track record in business management. Most business advisers have run their own business, or have worked in management, finance or human resources. I will need to demonstrate a wide range of skills, including marketing, finance, planning and project management. Employers are usually more interested in the skills and experience than the formal qualifications, although it may be helpful to have a business-related degree or professional qualification.

Day-to-day tasks would normally include:

• looking at clients’ business ideas and analysing their potential
• helping clients to develop business plans
• advising on sources of finance and grants
• helping existing small businesses with problems such as finding ways to reduce costs or improve marketing
• networking with the local business community and enterprise organisations

To be a business adviser, I will need to have:

• experience of managing small or medium-sized businesses
• excellent written and spoken communication skills
• clear, objective and logical thinking
• awareness of current business issues and trends
• a non-judgemental and positive approach
• IT skills
• good organisational skills and the ability to manage several projects at once