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| Criterion |  Business Strategy TOWS Matrix |  Business Strategy SWOT Analysis |  Facilitation Stakeholder Mapping |  Facilitation Alignment Mapping |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | The TOWS Matrix connects internal strengths and weaknesses with external opportunities and threats into action-oriented strategies. It goes a step further than a pure stocktaking. | SWOT Analysis arranges strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats into a compact picture of the situation. It keeps internal capabilities and external influences separate before strategic options emerge from them. | When an initiative depends on many people, interests, and power dynamics, Stakeholder Mapping systematically orders the environment. It shows who influences, who is affected, and where relationship management or safeguarding matters first. | When several people work toward one goal but hold different mental maps, Alignment Mapping makes the discrepancies visible. It arranges goals, assumptions, and priorities so shared direction becomes verifiable. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | Low | Low | Medium |
Timedifferent | 1-2 h | 30-60 min | 60–90 min | 1-2 h |
Participantsdifferent | 3-10 | 3-12 | 2-8 | 4-12 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop | Workshop | Workshop + async | Workshop |
Outputdifferent | TOWS Matrix, Strategic Options, Priority Actions | SWOT matrix, Strategic options, Action list | Stakeholder Map, Engagement Plan, Risk Notes | Alignment Map, Open Issues, Decision Questions |
Tagsno overlap | StrategyAnalysisOptions | StrategyAnalysisMarketPositioning | StakeholdersAlignmentFacilitationChange | AlignmentStakeholdersStrategyFacilitation |