After the needs assessment has been completed, the next element of the strategic plan involves developing the strategic issues. Key tasks associated with the strategic issues include conducting a gap analysis, performing an environmental scan, and developing stakeholder surveys. The actions are performed so that you can conduct a SWOT analysis. SWOT stands for STRENGTHS, WEAKNESSES, OPPORUNITIES, and THREATS. A SWOT analysis is used to help an agency, organization, or community better understand the business and environment in which it operates. The goal of developing strategic issues is to list or map out all of the strengths and weaknesses, and then to do the same for all of the opportunities and threats. This helps the organization to identify a strategy for planning. Opportunities that match the strengths are things that should be pursued. Threats that particularly align with weaknesses should be especially avoided when developing a strategic plan.
For this Assignment, you complete a SWOT analysis for your Capstone Project agency, organization, or community.

To prepare:

• Review Final Project: Developing a Strategic Plan –S.W.O.T Analysis media in the Weekly Resources.
• Consider the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and challenges related to your Capstone Project agency, organization, or community.
• Think about the environmental factors you might review in preparation for addressing the strategic issues component for your Capstone Project. The environmental factors may include: political, economic, demographic, regulatory, philanthropic, donor trends, and other organizations providing similar services.

 (4–6 pages):

1. Conduct a SWOT analysis. This analysis focuses on assessing the present state or condition of the organization and determining where the organization would like to be. The difference between the two represents the gap, or the difference between where the organization is currently and where the organization would like to be. This gap could provide direction for the major focus of the strategic plan.
2. Describe plans for conducting an environmental scan. The environmental scan is a process in which stakeholders gather and interpret relevant data on an agency, organization, or community to identify external opportunities and threats.

   Identify and describe internal conditions that might impact the implementation of the strategic plan.
   Address how you would minimize the impact of those conditions.
   Identify and describe external conditions or competitors that might impact the implementation of the strategic plan.

   Address how you would minimize the impact of those conditions.
   Consider how you might plan to work with competitors to meet the needs of your targeted agency, organization, or community.

3. Identify and describe at least three strengths of the agency, organization, or community.

   State why each item on the list is a strength.
   State how you plan to utilize each strength to positively the impact the development or implementation of the strategic plan.

4. Identify and describe at least three weaknesses of the agency, organization, or community.

   State what causes each item on the list to be a weakness.
   State how you plan to minimize the impact of the weakness.

5. Identify and describe at least three threats to the agency, organization, or community.

   State what causes each item on the list to be a threat.
   State how you plan to minimize the impact of the threat.

6. Identify and describe at least three opportunities for improvement for the agency, organization, or community.

   State what causes each item on the list to be an opportunity for improvement.
   State how you plan to incorporate the opportunity in the implementation of the strategic plan.

Support your Application Assignment, citing all resources in APA style, including those in the Learning Resources.

 
Nonprofit Answer Guide. (n.d.). What’s the purpose of the environmental scan and how do we get this? Retrieved from http://nonprofitanswerguide.org/strategic-planning/
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