Free Essay About SWOT Analysis, Pest Analysis And Financial Statement

SWOT-analysis is a method of strategic planning for identification of internal and external factors of the environmental that affect the enterprise and their division into four categories: strengths, weaknesses, opportunities (possibilities) and threats.
SWOT-analysis is a versatile technique that can be applied in a variety of sectors of the economy and management. It can be adapted to the object of study at any level (product, company, region, country, etc.).
SWOT-analysis is effective in carrying out an initial assessment of the current situation, but it cannot replace the production of strategies or qualitative analysis of the dynamics.
PEST-analysis (sometimes referred to as STEP) is a marketing tool designed to identify political, economic, social and technological aspects of the environment that affect the company's business.
Policy is studied because it regulates power, which in its turn determines the environment of the enterprise. Political aspects that affect the situation on the enterprise are elections on all levels, changes in the policy, entrance of the country to different political and non-political structures, state management of the sectors of the economy, state regulation of competition, etc. The main reason for studying the economy is to create a picture of the distribution of resources at the state level, which is an essential condition of the company. GDP dynamics, inflation, dynamics of the state currency, employment, Central Bank refinancing rate, market and trade cycles, costs of the raw materials and the consumer’s purchase possibility are the economic factors that influence the financial situation on the enterprise. The social component of PEST-analysis defines the consumer preferences. It may consist of such factors of the people’s social life as changes in the basic values of the human being, styles and living standards, mass media activity and its influence on people, religion and tradition factors, demographic changes, people’s attitude to work and rest, ect. The last factor is the technological component. The goal of its research is considered to be the identification of trends in technological development, which are often the causes of change and market losses, as well as the emergence of new products. Trends in R & D, new patents and commodities, development of technology are the most significant and influensive factors.

PEST-analysis results allow estimating the situation on the external economy situation developing in the production and commercial activities.

Financial statement analysis is the process of research and financial condition of the main results of financial activity in order to identify the stocks for increasing its market value and provide further effective development.
The basic methods and types of financial analysis are: horizontal analysis (comparison of each reporting position to the previous period), vertical analysis (identification of the percentage weight of individual items in the totals, taken as 100%), financial ration analysis (calculation of the ratio between the individual items in the statements, the definition of the relationship indicators), trend analysis (comparison of each item with a number of previous periods and determining the main trends in the index dynamics, free from random effects and individual characteristics of the different periods) and factor analysis (it analyses the influence of individual factors (reasons) on the resulting indicator).
The results of the financial analysis are the basis for management decisions, developing a strategy for further of enterprise’s activity. Therefore, the financial analysis is a very important part of financial management.

Works cited

Norton, G. A. Pest Management: Proceedings of an International Conference, 25-29 October 1976. Oxford: Pergamon, 1979. Print.
Fine, Lawrence G. The SWOT Analysis: Using Your Strength to Overcome Weaknesses, Using Opportunities to Overcome Threats. S.l.: Kick It, 2009. Print.
Bertelsen, Beth. Everything You Need to Know about SWOT Analysis. Newmarket, Ont.: BrainMass, 2012. Print.
White, Gerald I.; Sondhi, Ashwinpaul; Fried, Dov (1998). The Analysis and Use of Financial Statements. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. ISBN 0-471-11186-4.
Dodd, David; Graham, Benjamin (1998). Security Analysis. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. ISBN 0-07-013235-6.