Concepts and Applications of Information Technology (IFSM201) Class Project

SWOT Analysis

Template

Concepts and Applications of Information Technology (IFSM201) Class Project

Purpose of this Assignment

The Class Project is the most significant assignment in this course, Concepts and Applications of Information Technology. As such, it accounts for 58% of the course points. This assignment is comprised of two deliverables; a SWOT Analysis and a Presentation. The SWOT Analysis is due in Week 4 (worth 33% of course grade), and the Presentation is due in Week 8 (worth 25% of course grade). This assignment gives you the opportunity to demonstrate your ability to research, evaluate, and describe business strategy focused on information technology tools and services. This assignment specifically addresses the following course outcomes:

• Identify the basic components of the information system: hardware, software, data, processes, and people, and how these components are used to support strategic decision making.

• Apply information technology tools for research, data gathering and information analysis, problem-solving, decision-making, and communicating information that aligns with business needs and objectives.

Start Here

The Class Project for this course focuses on the evaluation of a business or organization and how they might strengthen their operations through technology, including their information systems. There are two parts to the Class Project; the SWOT Analysis and the Presentation. You will use the same business/organization for both parts; however, the grade received on the SWOT Analysis will not affect the grade for the Presentation (they are separate assignments).

Step 1: Choose a Business or Organization

To begin, choose a business or organization that you would like to evaluate – it can be where you work, a school (UMGC), a place of worship, government entity (e.g., DMV, Secretary of State, courthouse, etc.), or any other type of organization. Since the focus of the analysis will involve information technology, the best type of organization to choose is one where you can envision technology playing a key role in improving products, processes, or services.

*From this point on, the instructions focus on the first deliverable, the SWOT Analysis*

Step 2: The SWOT Analysis (due week 4) Now that you have chosen a business or organization for your Class Project, it is time to complete the first deliverable – the SWOT analysis. A SWOT analysis is a framework for identifying and analyzing an organization's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats — SWOT stands for: Strength, Weakness, Opportunity, Threat. Commonly used by businesses, this tool focuses on factors that are important to strategic decision making. These factors include both internal and external influences on the viability of the organization. For more explanations on a SWOT Analysis, go to:

• YouTube “How to Perform a SWOT Analysis”

• Forbes: What Is A SWOT Analysis?

• SWOT Analysis: Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats

• Refer to the SWOT examples on Heineken and Walt Disney World (below) You will use a SWOT analysis to help analyze the current health of your organization, and (in week 8), you will identify possible ways the information technology could be used to make it stronger. The SWOT analysis offers a visual way of identifying both the positive attributes of an organization, and areas that need to be recognized and addressed. Thinking of the organization you chose, start by filling out a simple table listing its internal strengths and weaknesses, and external opportunities and threats. SWOT Table:

Task: List 2-3 Strengths and 2-3 Weaknesses Strengths and weaknesses are associated with internal resources and experiences and include:

• Characteristics of the business that give it an advantage over others in the industry.

• Positive tangible and intangible attributes, internal to an organization. ▪ Human resources – staff, volunteers, board members, target population

• Physical resources – location, building, equipment

• Financial – products/services, other sources of income

• Activities and processes – programs and processes, online presence

• Past experiences – building blocks for learning and success, your reputation in the community

Task: List 2-3 Opportunities and 2-3 Threats Opportunities and threats are factors outside of business operations that can contribute to either the make the organization stronger or be troublesome. The ability of a business to identify, control, and adapt to these external factors can make it more profitable:

• Market expansion

• Complacent/aggressive competition

• Changing customer needs and tastes

• Economic swings

• Changing government deregulations

Step 3: Write the SWOT Analysis Now that you have identified the organization you will analyze and completed a SWOT table listing the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats for the organization, it is time to write the analysis paper that will be submitted to your instructor/classroom. The paper should include all of the following:

1. Title page – the title of paper, company/organization name, your name, course, and date of submission.

2. Purpose – briefly describe what the SWOT methodology is and the business/organization you are focusing on.

3. SWOT Analysis – include a SWOT Analysis table and describe each quadrant (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) for your organization. Each quadrant should be clearly identified in the analysis and the description should include the importance of the attributes to the organization.

4. Conclusion – synthesize the findings from the SWOT analysis.

5. References – cite at least two resources with APA formatted citation and reference.

Format • Double spaced. Any 11- or 12-point font.

• Paper should be approximately 3-4 pages in length, excluding title page and references.

• Cite at least two resources with APA formatted citation and reference. Incorporate at least two resources correctly; one reference should be from the course materials and one reference should be external. An external resource is a resource other than those provided in the class or textbook. Incorporate properly formatted APA citations in the

text of your document for each reference used. Then, place an APA style reference page at the end of your document.

• Consider your audience – you are writing in the role of a business analyst and your audience is upper management of the organization.

• Compare your work to the Grading Rubric below to be sure you have met content and quality criteria.

• Submit your paper as a Word or PDF document to the appropriate folder under Activities and Assessments > Assignments in the classroom.

SWOT Analysis – Examples Read the following: Heineken and Walt Disney World SWOT Analysis Now, let’s take the information from the article and create SWOT tables for Heineken and Walt Disney World. SWOT Table – Heineken:

SWOT Table – Disney World:

GRADING RUBRIC:

Concepts and Applications of Information Technology (IFSM201)

Class Project

Purpose of this Assignment

The Class Project is the most significant assignment in this course, Concepts and Applications of

Information Technology. As such, it accounts for 58% of the course points. This assignment is

comprised of two deliverables: a SWOT Analysis and a Presentation. The SWOT Analysis is due

in Week 4 (worth 33% of course grade), and the Presentation is due in Week 8 (worth 25% of

course grade).

This assignment gives you the opportunity to demonstrate your ability to research, evaluate, and describe business strategy focused on information technology tools and services. This assignment specifically addresses the following course outcomes:

• Identify the basic components of the information system: hardware, software, data, processes, and people, and how these components are used to support strategic decision making.

• Apply information technology tools for research, data gathering and information analysis, problem-solving, decision-making, and communicating information that aligns with business needs and objectives.

Start Here

The Class Project for this course focuses on the evaluation of a business or organization and how they might strengthen their operations through technology, including their information systems. There are two parts to the Class Project: the SWOT Analysis and the Presentation. You will use the same business/organization for both parts; however, the grade received on the SWOT Analysis will not affect the grade for the Presentation (they are separate assignments). Step 1: Choose a Business or Organization To begin, choose a business or organization that you would like to evaluate – it can be where you work, a school (UMGC), a place of worship, government entity (e.g., DMV, Secretary of State, courthouse, etc.), or any other type of organization. Since the focus of the analysis will involve information technology, the best type of organization to choose is one where you can envision technology playing a key role in improving products, processes, or services. *From this point on, the instructions focus on the second deliverable, the Presentation*

Step 2: The Presentation (due week 8) Now that you have chosen a business or organization for your Class Project and completed the SWOT Analysis, it is time to complete the second deliverable – the Presentation. As you demonstrated, the SWOT analysis is a framework for identifying and analyzing an organization's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats — SWOT stands for: Strength, Weakness, Opportunity, Threat. Commonly used by businesses, this tool focuses on factors that are important to strategic decision making. These factors include both internal and external influences on the viability of the organization. The Presentation is a methodology for illustrating and explaining information to stakeholders in an organization. You will use the Microsoft PowerPoint tool to create a presentation for the leadership of the organization you chose for this Project. The SWOT Analysis you did provides the context for the presentation, and you will use the attributes you identified in your SWOT Table to justify the recommendations you will make for improvements to the organization. The goal of the Presentation is to inform your audience, the senior leadership of the organization, of the internal and external factors most critical to the health of the organization, and recommend alternatives based on Information Technology that can help mitigate weaknesses and threats. For more explanations on a PowerPoint Presentation, go to the following resources, available in the week 8 Content:

• Getting Started with PowerPoint

• POWERPOINT FOR MAC

• PowerPoint: Managing Slides

Step 3: Create the PowerPoint Presentation Now that you have completed a SWOT Analysis on the organization you chose, it is time to create a PowerPoint presentation that will be submitted to your instructor/classroom. The presentation should include the following and be a minimum of 10-12 slides in length (not including Title or Reference slides):

1. Title slide – the title of presentation, company/organization name, your name, course, and date of submission.

2. Purpose – briefly describe the purpose of the presentation and a summary of the organization, including the business the organization is in (e.g., retail, production, technology services, education, etc.)

3. SWOT Findings – 6-7 slides including a slide with the SWOT Table you created. Use slides and notes to explain the business’s strengths and weaknesses, as well as the opportunities and threats it faces in the marketplace. In addition to the SWOT Table, each quadrant (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) should have its own slide and in-depth Notes. Last, answer the question: how are the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats interconnected?

4. Focus on Information Systems – 2-3 slides describing recommendations based on the SWOT analysis; how can the information system components (hardware, software, data, people, processes) contribute to overcoming external barriers and bettering the health of the organization?

5. Summary/Conclusion – synthesize the presentation – what were the most important points?

6. References – cite at least two resources with APA formatted citation and reference. a. Remember to correctly cite and reference all sources. Any direct quotes should be indicated within the slide text with appropriate quotation marks and an in-text citation (however, direct quotes should be short and used sparingly, if at all). Complete references for sources should be included in the corresponding Notes section. Paraphrased material can just be referenced within the Notes section of the slides without an in-text citation on the slide. This deviates from APA style but keeps the slides more readable.

*ALL Slides MUST Have Notes – provide a comprehensive explanation of what is on the slide. Since there is no oral presentation, the Notes serve to explain what the audience sees on the slide* The bullet points in your presentation will be supported by relevant details in the Notes section of the slides, which contain the actual words you would say to the stakeholders as you present each slide. Since you cannot present the slides in person, the Notes will show what you would say. This is an important part of your presentation. Presentations with limited or no “Notes” will receive much lower grades because the bullets cannot tell the whole story. Tips for a good PowerPoint Presentation:

• Include relevant graphics, including the SWOT Table.

• Each slide should have a title and a limited amount of text. The presentation should capture key bullet points and not include complete paragraphs and detailed text. The Notes feature will provide that explanations/narration for what the audience sees on the slide.

• There are options in PowerPoint to make a presentation stylish and unordinary, including background colors, but keep it professional looking – remember your audience.

• Font size should be readable, as in at least 16 point and good contrast with background.

• Use animations sparingly to enhance your presentation.

• Keep Your Slides Simple.

• Proofread and Spellcheck (including what you write in the Notes section)!

GRADING RUBRIC: