Which of the following best defines an opportunity in SWOT analysis?

• A. Possible chances a business could take that arise due to something happening outside the organisation's control.
• B. Something that might negatively affect the business achieving its aims.
• C. A plan for how to cut costs.
• D. A fixed resource requirement.

Answer: (A)

In SWOT, an opportunity means an external, favorable condition that the business can exploit to improve its performance. These arise from changes in the external environment—things outside the organization that the firm can respond to or capitalize on. The choice that describes possible chances arising from external events that the business could seize fits this idea best, because it highlights both the external origin and the potential for benefiting the business.

The other options describe threats (external factors that could harm achievement), internal actions like cutting costs, or internal constraints such as a fixed resource requirement, which are not opportunities.