Threats and Weaknesses - Threats can come in many different forms. They are issues that have the ability to threaten your business, to impact your sales and profits, to change the marketplace in which you compete, to either put you at a disadvantage or to put you out of business.

Weaknesses are the internal threats, those issues that are generally contained within the company, such as

• your own aging workforce
• aging equipment
• too low inventory when you expect an increase in business
• shortage of cash
• loans that may be coming due
• problems within the company that are left unresolved
• indecision
• lack of planning
• affects of selling the company
• family member owners disagreeing

And threats are generally external, ranging from your industry to the market as a whole, such as

• new competitor
• existing competitor getting bigger
• change in regulation affecting your products
• economic recession
• rising interest rates
• global parts shortages

Internal weaknesses are the most manageable as you have some ability to control the problem and the ability to create a solution.

External threats are the least manageable as the problem is outside of your control. The best way to deal with external threats is the ability to control your response and your ability to adapt to a changing environment.