The present study examines a hybrid method, referred to here as the hybrid method A 'WOT, for improving the usability of SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis. A commonly-used decision analysis method, the analytic hierarchy process (AHP), and its eigenvalue calculation framework are integrated with SWOT analysis. AHP's connection to SWOT yields analytically-determined priorities for the factors included in SWOT analysis and makes them commensurable. The aim in applying the hybrid method is to improve the quantitative information basis ofstrategic planning processes. The hybrid method was tested in connection with a Finnish forest industry enterprise's decision to invest in North America. In the case study, the results were presented in an illustrative way by utilising the quantitative infonnation achieved by the hybrid method. The results indicated that forestindustry investment was reasonable in North America. In addition, the required pairwise comparisons were found to be useful, because they force the decision-rnaker to think over the weights ofthe factors and to analyse the situation more precisely and in more depth.
Selecting the best strategy from among a number of identified alternatives is an important part of any strategy process. Often this involves a difficult choice between the values to set and the trade‐offs to be made. Even swaps is a rational and simple method for making trade‐offs that help the decision maker in considering the value of one objective in terms of another. In this study, the principles of even swaps method are presented and its use is illustrated by applying it to a case of strategy selection in a rural enterprise in Finland. The strategy was chosen from among identified alternatives and it was evaluated with respect to the defined objectives and taking a number of possible future scenarios into account. According to the experiences gained from the case study, the decision makers found the trade‐offs difficult to make. However, they noted that the even swaps method made this difficult task more understandable by indicating the concrete changes in the objectives, allowing them to focus their mental energy on deciding the real value of the alternatives. As the swapping process is transparent, the method also supported communication and learning.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.