This sample Career SWOT analysis for job-seekers is designed to help you with your career SWOT analysis.
If you haven't already done so, please read Using a SWOT Analysis as a Career-Planning Tool.
Preview of a Stellar IT Career
A SWOT Analysis of Ken Erickson
By combining the top GPA in the business school with excellent work experience and campus involvement, I am poised to begin my career with a boom. Although the information technology field is highly competitive, with countless talented people holding a multitude of technical skills, the huge demand for skilled professionals allows a new college graduate to succeed.
Strengths
With a finance major and minors in information technology and economics, I hold the top GPA in the business school -- 4.00. I have been working part-time for two years as a systems consultant earning a respectable salary at a $36 billion (gross revenue) conglomerate, ABB, Inc. I have worked for several departments on campus, managed the EWU student newspaper, played in the wind ensemble, won numerous scholarships and have been inducted into five honor societies at EWU. In addition to academic achievement and leadership skills, my computer skills include four hardware platforms, five operating systems, a programming language and dozens of software applications. The above are just some of my strengths as a student and potential employee. However, being married for two years has taught me the value of effective communication and the power of teamwork.
Weaknesses
Even an unblemished academic record at the prestigious Stetson University cannot substitute for years of relevant work experience. In the information technology field, technical skills are the most important factor in job success, if not career success. Though I have abundant hardware and software experience for an undergraduate, a computer science major holds much more technical knowledge than an information systems minor. People working in the field for four or five years typically know many programming languages as well as ERP software. Thus, lifelong learning and continuous improvement must be applied to my life for continued success.
Opportunities
Systems analyst and computer engineer are two of the fastest growing job titles in the United States. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, both are expected to grow more than 90 percent by 2018. Salaries continue to be relatively high because of an imbalance in supply and demand for skilled professionals.
Threats
A great deal of publicity has surrounded the phenomenal growth in the information technology field, and more people are enrolling in training programs to take advantage of the trend. Many children have the technical skills in computer systems of entry-level analysts. Today's standard of technical competence will be tomorrow's level of incompetence. The technological landscape changes so quickly that being successful requires constant upgrading of skills and proficiencies.
Marketing Plan
- Objective(s)
- New job: Information technology specialist/systems analyst
- Marketing Strategies
- Determine the top companies for IT professionals;
- Examine the potential of employment with dot-com companies;
- Find an employer with a corporate culture that aligns well with my values;
- Build and strengthen my network.
- Action Programs
- Generate a list of the top fifty companies for IT professionals through a search of Web sites and periodicals, as well as word-of-mouth. Research name and title of IT hiring managers;
- Join one or more tech-related discussion lists to determine the pros and cons of working for a start-up. If more pros, develop a list of the best start-ups to work for.
- Visit each potential company's Website and obtain other information as it relates to the company's corporate culture. Obtain at least one per day.
- Develop, nurture, and grow at least three network contacts per week.
