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Strategy and planning · 8 slides

SWOT analysis template

A SWOT analysis sorts the factors behind one decision into strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats, then turns them into actions. This template has eight slides: the question, the trigger in numbers, a 2x2 matrix, the five factors that weigh most, four moves, their value, a 13-week pilot and the decisions to take.

For strategy leads, founders, managers and consultants who need to structure one decision or plan and show why the recommendation follows.

Build with this structure

Download the example deck (.pptx, 58 KB)Free for your own and client decks, no sign-up. Company and figures are invented.

Updated 21 October 2026 · Example deck with a fictional company and figures.

Value

Two retrofit moves carry €1.9m of the €2.7m a year that the four moves are worth

Retrofit facades€1.2mRetrofit advisers€0.7mTimber price deal€0.4mWinter extensions€0.4m

8 slides

SWOT analysis example, slide by slide

What each slide has to achieve and what to put on it. Scroll through, or open the deck and present it.

  1. Title: the decision as a question

    A SWOT without a decision behind it produces a list of everything. Phrase the title as the question the analysis has to answer, so every later item can be tested against it.

    • The decision as one question
    • Who owns the decision and who took part in the workshop
    • The date, so the analysis reads as a snapshot

  2. Why now: the trigger in numbers

    Readers judge from this slide whether the SWOT matters. It shows the trigger in numbers before any quadrant appears.

    • One figure that shows the trigger
    • Two facts about the starting position
    • The decision stated in one sentence

  3. The SWOT matrix

    All factors on one grid. Helpful factors sit on top and harmful ones below, internal factors on the left and external ones on the right, so strengths are top left and threats bottom right.

    • Four items per quadrant, no more
    • Factors you can change on the left, factors you can only respond to on the right
    • Large dots on the five factors the next slide weighs

  4. Prioritize: the five that matter

    Sixteen equal-looking items do not guide a decision. Weighing five of them, each with evidence, shows which ones carry it.

    • Five factors with type, evidence and impact
    • Evidence as a number or a fact, not an opinion
    • Impact shown as a Harvey ball from empty to full

  5. Combine: four moves

    A SWOT ends when the quadrants meet. Strengths with opportunities give a move to grow, weaknesses with opportunities one to fix, strengths with threats one to defend and weaknesses with threats one to protect.

    • One move per pairing
    • Each move written as an action with a verb
    • No move without a quadrant behind it

  6. Value: what each move is worth

    Moves need a size to be ranked. A value in one unit per move, with its source, shows which to start with and keeps the debate on numbers.

    • A yearly value in one unit for each move
    • The total and the share of the top two moves
    • The source and the basis of the estimate

  7. Next 13 weeks: a pilot

    Boards rarely approve a whole strategy on one SWOT. A time-boxed pilot with a review date asks for a small commitment and builds the evidence for the larger one.

    • Four steps with weeks
    • A review date
    • What the pilot has to prove

  8. Decisions for today

    Ends the analysis on actions the audience can take now, each tied to one of the moves.

    • Three decisions at most, each with an owner
    • The budget, if there is one
    • What happens at the review

Brief

SWOT analysis: build your version with AI

Copy the brief or open it straight in the editor. Replace the highlighted parts with your own facts, or attach your files and the numbers come from them.

Brief

Create an 8-slide SWOT analysis presentation for [the management board of Karrow Timber Homes, a regional prefab timber house builder]. The decision: [should we add an energy retrofit line?]. Slide 1: title phrased as that question. Slide 2: why now, with the trigger in numbers: [63 retrofit inquiries declined in 2026, new-build orders −18%, new build 80% of revenue]. Slide 3: a SWOT matrix with four items per quadrant, internal on the left and external on the right, helpful on top and harmful below: [paste your items, or write “draft them from my notes”]. Slide 4: a table of the five factors that weigh most, with type, evidence and impact. Slide 5: four moves from crossing the quadrants. Slide 6: a bar chart of each move's yearly value in €m: [1.2, 0.7, 0.4, 0.4]. Slide 7: a 13-week pilot plan in four steps. Slide 8: three decisions for the board, with the budget [€0.3m]. Use action titles and a calm green style. Use only the figures I give you and mark anything you had to assume.

Fill in the [highlighted] partsOpen in the editor

What makes the SWOT analysis template work

  1. Write the question first

    “SWOT of our company” gives a list, “Should we add a retrofit line?” gives an answer. Phrase one decision and test every item against it.

  2. Sort by control, not by mood

    Internal means you can change it within a year, external means you can only respond to it. Interest rates are external even when they hurt, and a thin sales team is internal even when it feels like bad luck.

  3. Cap each quadrant at four items

    Twelve strengths hide the three that matter. Make the workshop rank the items, then cut. The rest can sit in an appendix.

  4. Give every item evidence

    “Strong brand” is an opinion, “63 inquiries declined” is evidence. An item without a number or a fact goes to the appendix or out.

  5. Finish with the cross, not the lists

    The step that turns a SWOT into a strategy is pairing the quadrants, often called a TOWS matrix. Each pairing yields one move, and each move gets a value and an owner.

Mistakes that cost you the room

  • Mixing internal and external factors, such as a weak economy under weaknesses
  • Generic items that fit any company in the sector, such as “good team” or “strong competition”
  • Stopping at four lists, with no weighting and no action
  • Strengths that are really opportunities, or the other way round
  • One person filling the matrix alone, so the SWOT shows one function's view

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Can ChatGPT do a SWOT analysis?

An AI assistant can draft a SWOT from a description of your company, but without your data the items come out generic and fit any company in the sector. Give it the decision, your figures and your own notes, then cut the list to the factors you can support with evidence. The AI builds the slides from such a brief, with the matrix, a weighted table and the moves, and labels its assumptions; the figures stay yours.

Is there a SWOT template in Word?

Yes. A SWOT is a two-by-two table, so a four-cell table in Word does the job, and many free SWOT templates for Word are available online. For a written SWOT as a document, the A4 portrait format exports as a Word file (.docx) with real headings and tables. For a presentation, the slide formats export as PowerPoint (.pptx).

How many points should a SWOT have per quadrant?

Three or four. Fewer than three suggests you did not look hard, more than four hides the factors that matter. This template shows four per quadrant and then weighs the five that move the decision.

Can I build this in my company's PowerPoint template?

Yes. Upload your company's .pptx and the AI builds the new slides in that design, with its fonts and colors. The result is an editable PowerPoint file made of ordinary text boxes, shapes and tables.

Are the numbers in this template real?

No. Karrow Timber Homes and all figures are fictional. The arithmetic is consistent: the four moves are worth €1.2m, €0.7m, €0.4m and €0.4m, which is €2.7m a year, and the first two make up €1.9m, about 70%.

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Where to go next

  • ProductAI PowerPoint generator

    Give the AI your brief, approve the page plan and export a .pptx you can keep editing.

  • ConvertNotes to slides

    Paste, attach or speak rough notes, answer a few questions and approve a page plan.

  • GuideStructure a presentation

    How to structure a presentation for work: lead with the answer, match the order to your purpose, use skeletons for decisions, updates, pitches and proposals.

Your SWOT analysis, in your design

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