This is Part 3 of a continued series of articles revolving around explaining what a SWOT Analysis is, and how it can help you grow your business. In this issue, Chuck Holt continues his workshop style article by focusing on the second letter of the acronym, W is for Weaknesses. Use the blank paper to actually write down your Weaknesses, and then keep this copy of The Dog Journal handy for the next parts of this.
Get creative, think long and hard, and get anyone involved in your business to gather around and help you. By the time this series of articles is complete, hopefully you can emerge with a clearer picture of where you are going, and what it will take to get you there. In the meantime, if this looks like something you should do, but are stuck on the details, reach out to Chuck and schedule a session with him!
Written By: Chuck Holt
Have you ever heard of the phrase, “Watch out for your blind spots?” This phrase refers to the bend on the road or the crest of the hill when it is hard to see what is over the other side. It also refers to areas on our lives where we might not see a weakness, but it has the potential to impact us greatly. They are called blind spots because they are not easily detected. Being aware of our blind spots is crucial in both personal and professional aspects of life. In our kennel businesses, recognizing areas that may be overlooked or less efficient can indeed be a strength. It allows for targeted improvement and growth. Acknowledging these blind spots is the first step towards addressing them and ultimately enhancing the overall operations. We are in part 3 of a 5-part series talking about something called a SWOT analysis. Why should you, as a breeder even bother with this? Well, a SWOT analysis looks at all the things, both inside and outside, that affect running a kennel. It’s like a big picture view that helps to focus and plan ahead. This tool is super useful because it helps breeders make smart choices and figure out the best ways to make their kennel better and more productive and profitable.
In our last discussion, we focused on the “S” for Strengths. We discovered that identifying your strengths is fundamental. Before you invest time, energy, and resources in making changes, it’s crucial to understand the strengths that you and your team can leverage.
The “W” in SWOT stands for Weaknesses. For many of us, this will be easier than assessing our strengths. As one breeder said during a recent SWOT meeting, “I am keenly aware of what I am not doing well.” While our desire is not beat ourselves up and feel like failures, it is paramount for us to get a handle on areas of weakness. As we will learn in future articles, weaknesses that are not addressed become threats quickly.
If you are following along in each part, what you want to do now is to make a list like how you did it for strengths. List anything that you are not doing well that needs to be done better or not doing at all that needs to be done. As we did in the Strengths article, make sure you include every aspect of your breeding program: facilities, staff, marketing, branding, systems, customer relations, dogs, post-sales support, etc. Once you’ve compiled all your weaknesses into a master list, categorize them under the above-mentioned categories. As before, go through the list and identify your top two or three weaknesses in each category and circle them.
Then, like before, pick out the top two or three problems in each group. Next, take each of these circled problems and think about why they’re problems. This is super important. Be honest with yourself. Is it because of specific things like not having enough staff or money? Or is it more about how you feel, like being confused or worried about something? Understanding why these things are problems will help figure out how to fix them. At this point you should have a list of weaknesses and why it’s a weakness. Your chart might look something like this chart:
Encourage input from multiple people to give you a more complete analysis of your weaknesses. One last step. To address these weaknesses effectively, consider the following checklist:
1. Easily addressable weaknesses: Initiate steps to solve these immediately.
2. Weaknesses requiring external support: Identify and reach out to an expert, mentor, or organization for assistance.
3. Beyond immediate control: Draft a step by-step plan to tackle these issues gradually. Where, there you go. You have identified potential blind spots that might be getting into the way of growing your kennel business. In the upcoming articles, we will see how capitalizing on strengths and opportunities while simultaneously addressing weaknesses and threats, our kennel business can navigate challenges more effectively and take advantage of potential growth areas. It’s a proactive way to ensure a healthy and robust future for the kennel business. Stay tuned!
For more information on having New Now Services provide business coaching for your kennel program, contact Chuck at 610-223-2008 or at [email protected]
Bio: Chuck Holt is the president of New Now Services which exists to help plain community business and breeders become successful in today’s ever changing world. He is also the founder of the Responsible Dog Breeder Network. Chuck has been a consultant and coach for over 20 years and for the past 5 years brings that to the community by providing business coaching for breeders and businesses, photo and listing services, Responsible Dog Breeder Network, and pawTree Dog food. Chuck is married to Claudia and has had 24 foster kids and raised 5 adopted kids, three with special needs. He and his family love to camp and enjoy raising King Charles Cavaliers.
Ever heard of the SWOT Analysis? Well, it’s a super valuable tool that can help any business grow and thrive, and Chuck Holt, with New Now Services, is taking the time to contribute a continued series of “workshop” articles, designed to help you implement this tool into your dog breeding business.
In the last issue, Part 1 of this article revolved around explaining what a SWOT Analysis is, and in this issue, Chuck Holt continues his workshop style article by focusing on the first letter of the acronym, S is for Strengths. Use the blank paper to
actually write down your Strengths,
and then keep this copy of The Dog
Journal handy for the next parts of
this. Get creative, thing long and
hard, and get anyone involved in
your business to gather around and
help you.
