District 29 "Where Members R.I.S.E!"

Division Governor Training

June 17, 2012

Dewberry

8403 Arlington Blvd, Fairfax, Virginia

D.R.I.V.E. Initiative

D-Delivering, R-Results based, I-Initiative that add, V-Value to,

E-Empower our members to succeed!

Tracking system which will help our members become: educated,

enlighten and engaged in pursuing the Distinguished Toastmaster award

This program enables participants to: Monitor, Measure and Track their

progress

This program will outline the following DTM Pre-requisites:

Speechcraft
High Performance Leadership
Club Sponsor, Mentor and Coach assignments
Youth Leadership Program
Successful Club Series/The Leadership Series

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Strategic Planning:

Review Communications Plan Consideration Document

Discuss SWOT Analysis

SWOT Analysis:

The key benefit S.W.O.T. offers when applied across areas of the company is a 360-degree view of the company, which helps create better focus for decision-making. “When you have an understanding of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats, you have valuable overall operational knowledge, which is the foundation for understanding everything from where your sales will come from to building on your strengths,” Kyle notes.

In addition to its more common use as a competitive assessment and sales projection tool, S.W.O.T. can be used to gauge the viability of a new product or brand, a sales distribution channel, shifting suppliers, a new idea, entering a new market, working with a partner, a potential investment, or outsourcing an activity.

Where possible, Kyle advises analyzing the four components of S.W.O.T., internally and externally. Try to use the competition as a benchmark, which will offer goals to work toward and better insight. The four S.W.O.T. components break down as follows:

Strengths—What are the things you do well as a company? What do you consider your competitive advantages to be and why? “From a customer standpoint, why do they come back to you?” asks Kyle. “One way to understand this strength is through customer surveys. You also can talk to your sales force about where success most often occurs or even ask about your competitors.” In each area, strengths can include everything from your people, pricing/value and processes to your ability to innovate and your culture.
Weaknesses—Where have you not been able to compete and why? Where are your gaps in capabilities and resources? Are you cash-strapped, do you have supply chain or inventory issues or do your vulnerabilities negatively affect your reputation?
Opportunities—“This really comes down to market research,” says Kyle. “For example, where are competitors that you’re not? Where are the emerging markets in your industry or even peripheral markets where you might expand your presence? Looking internally and externally, opportunities may fall in areas like using new accounting methods for greater efficiency or new technologies to streamline operations or offer products to consumers in new channels.” Think in terms of new markets, product development and business development.
Threats—External threats exist in the form of competitors, legislation/regulation that may affect your product, service or company, shifting consumer demand, environmental issues and the economy. “You also need to consider operational issues, such as an employee that may not be strong enough in his or her position to move forward or outmoded production techniques,” Kyle adds.

Among the many benefits of S.W.O.T. analysis is that it forces you out of the day-to-day, where you see only the effects of weaknesses or threats and may not understand their long-term potential impact. “If you take the time to look at the big picture, it creates a clear path to change and to keeping your company profitable,” concludes Kyle. “The ultimate advantage is that you’ll be able to better compete in your industry and be more profitable.”

Note: For a more in-depth view of S.W.O.T. and its uses, along with a free S.W.O.T. template, check out www.alanchapman.com/swotanalysisfreetemplate.htm.

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Useful Links:

New District 29 Website available on June 30, 2012

www.district29tm.org

Effective Evaluations

http://www.toastmasters.org/EffectiveEval

Moments of Truth (Print at 50%)

http://www.toastmasters.org/290Bmot

Area Governor Club Visit Report

http://www.toastmasters.org/ClubVisitRpt.aspx

Club Education Awards and Anniversaries

http://www.toastmasters.org/ToastmastersMagazine/HallofFame_1/February2012.aspx