How to Do SOAR Analysis (with Free Template)

What is SOAR?

SOAR stands for Strengths, Opportunities, Aspirations, and Results. It is a strategic planning framework that helps organizations focus on what they do well and how to build on those strengths. Unlike SWOT analysis, which examines weaknesses and threats, SOAR takes a strengths-based approach rooted in appreciative inquiry, making it particularly effective for teams that want to move from strategy to action.

The SOAR framework was developed by Jacqueline Stavros and Gina Hinrichs as an alternative to traditional strategic analysis. It is used by businesses, nonprofits, and teams of all sizes to align around a positive vision and create measurable outcomes. Use our free SOAR analysis template to run the process with your team in a deliverables workspace.

Introduction

What is SOAR Analysis?

SOAR Analysis stands for Strengths, Opportunities, Aspirations, and Results. It’s a strategic planning tool that helps businesses focus on their current strengths and future vision rather than weaknesses and obstacles.

Who Needs to Perform SOAR Analysis?

This tool is handy for business leaders, managers, and entrepreneurs who aim to comprehensively understand their organization’s potential and lay down an actionable roadmap for the future.

Importance of SOAR Analysis

By focusing on the positive aspects of your business, SOAR allows you to create a shared vision of the future and generate actionable strategies that drive results.

The SOAR Framework: Breaking It Down

Strengths

In SOAR Analysis, strengths refer to your existing assets and what sets you apart from competitors. The goal here is to identify these elements and consider how you can leverage them to achieve your aspirations and produce tangible results.

Opportunities

Opportunities are external factors or trends that you can capitalize on to achieve your aspirations. This could be anything from emerging markets, technological advances, or even new legislation benefiting your industry.

Aspirations

These are your desired future states, the dreams, and ambitions you want your business to realize. Aspirations should align closely with your organization’s mission and vision statements to keep your team motivated and working cohesively.

Results

Here, you identify the tangible outcomes you aim to achieve. Results are measurable and aligned with your aspirations, serving as key performance indicators (KPIs).

Differences Between SOAR and SWOT

Conceptual Differences

While SWOT focuses on both strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and threats, SOAR concentrates solely on the positive—strengths and opportunities—while also incorporating aspirational goals and expected results.

How to do a SWOT Analysis

SWOT Analysis Template

Application Differences

SWOT is generally used for situational analysis, whereas SOAR is designed for strategic planning, making it more actionable.

Benefits and Limitations

SOAR offers an optimistic approach that’s well-suited for team motivation and aligning different departments towards a shared vision. However, it might overlook potential threats or weaknesses that a SWOT analysis could uncover.

Why Choose SOAR Over Other Frameworks?

See SWOT and SOAR Analysis alternatives here

Focused on the Future

SOAR emphasizes long-term planning and helps you build a roadmap to achieve your aspirations.

Encourages Positive Thinking

This tool shifts the focus from problem-solving to appreciating your current assets and figuring out how to maximize them for future growth.

Easily Adaptable

SOAR can be adapted to fit various business types and sizes, making it a versatile option for strategic planning.

When to Use SOAR Analysis

Business Expansion

Use SOAR when contemplating entering a new market, launching a product, or otherwise scaling your operations.

Product Development

SOAR is invaluable when you’re planning to launch a new product or refine an existing one, as it helps you align the product with your company’s strengths and the market’s opportunities.

Team Building

If you’re restructuring or expanding your team, a SOAR analysis can provide insights into the strengths of your existing team and the opportunities for future hires.

Setting Up for SOAR: Preparation Steps

Stakeholder Identification

Recognize who should be involved in the SOAR process, from C-level executives to department heads, and even external stakeholders like customers or suppliers.

Data Collection

Compile existing reports, customer feedback, and financial statements that will give you a clear view of your current strengths and opportunities.

Meeting Schedules

Decide how often SOAR meetings will take place and who will be in attendance, ensuring regular updates and accountability.

How to Do SOAR Analysis: Conducting The Analysis

Ready to roll up your sleeves and dig into the SOAR Analysis? We’ll walk you through each crucial component—Strengths, Opportunities, Aspirations, and Results. We’ve laid out easy-to-follow steps, sprinkled in some handy tips, and even thrown in real-world examples to make things crystal clear. Use Xtensio’s FREE online template and follow along.

Total Time: 1 hour

1. Define Strengths

   

   Start by identifying what your organization excels at. This can range from a dedicated team to a unique selling proposition (USP) that sets you apart from the competition.
   Tips:
   Involve a diverse set of stakeholders, as different perspectives can bring new insights.
   Use data, like customer reviews and performance metrics, to quantify strengths.
   Best Practices:
   Document all identified strengths in a centralized location, making it easier to reference them later.
   Always tie strengths back to real business outcomes.
   Example:
   If your customer support team is highly rated, that’s a strength that can directly impact customer retention.

2. Pinpoint Opportunities

   

   Look at the external factors that could favor your organization. These could be market trends, consumer behavior, or even legislative changes.
   Tips:
   Conduct market research to identify these opportunities.
   Be as specific as possible, so you can tailor your strategies accordingly.
   Best Practices:
   Prioritize opportunities based on potential impact and feasibility.
   Review these regularly, as opportunities can change over time.
   Example:
   If you’re in the renewable energy sector, growing environmental concerns could be a massive opportunity for your business.

3. Set Aspirations

   

   Aspirations are the long-term goals you wish to achieve. They should align with your organization’s mission and vision.
   Tips:
   Engage in brainstorming sessions with key team members.
   Make sure these aspirations are attainable but challenging.
   Best Practices:
   Use SMART criteria (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) to define your aspirations.
   Make sure they align with your strengths and opportunities.
   Example:
   If you’re a tech company with strengths in innovation, an aspiration could be to become the industry leader in artificial intelligence solutions within five years.

4. Realize Results

   

   Here, you’ll define the tangible outcomes—often KPIs—that will measure the success of reaching your aspirations.
   Tips:
   Make sure your results are quantifiable and time-sensitive.
   They should be realistic given your identified strengths and opportunities.
   Best Practices:
   Involve team members who will be responsible for these outcomes in the setting process.
   Use a variety of KPIs that capture different aspects of your goals, like revenue targets and customer engagement metrics.
   Example:
   If one of your aspirations is to expand globally, a measurable result could be to enter three new international markets within the next two years.

Supply:

• Internet connection

Tools:

• Xtensio.com

Materials: None

Understanding the Role of Teamwork

Cross-Departmental Collaboration

To get the most out of your SOAR analysis, involve different departments like marketing, sales, and R&D to gather diverse insights.

Leadership Involvement

Senior leadership should be heavily involved to ensure the strategic alignment and resource allocation needed for successful implementation.

External Facilitators

Sometimes bringing in an external facilitator can provide a fresh perspective and help avoid internal biases.

How to Collect Data for SOAR Analysis

Surveys and Questionnaires

These can be circulated among employees, customers, and other stakeholders to gather qualitative data.

Interviews

One-on-one interviews with team members and external stakeholders can offer deeper insights into your organization’s strengths and opportunities.

Focus Groups

These are helpful for brainstorming and can reveal shared aspirations among different stakeholders.

Analyzing Your SOAR Data

Qualitative Analysis

For textual or non-numerical data, methods like thematic analysis or sentiment analysis can be applied.

Quantitative Analysis

Use statistical methods to analyze numerical data, comparing trends over time or between different departments.

Gap Analysis

Identify the differences between your current state and your aspirations, and plan how to bridge these gaps.

Creating a SOAR Action Plan

Task Allocation

Break down the strategies into tasks and assign them to relevant team members.

Setting Milestones

Create a timeline with significant milestones for each strategic initiative.

Monitoring and Control

Regularly track progress using the predefined KPIs and adjust the plan as necessary.

Implementing the SOAR Action Plan

Roles and Responsibilities

Ensure everyone is aware of their roles and responsibilities in implementing the action plan.

Risk Management

Identify potential risks and prepare contingency plans.

Flexibility in Execution

The plan should be flexible enough to accommodate changes, as no strategy can accurately predict all future events.

Measuring Success: Key Performance Indicators

Financial Metrics

These could include ROI, profit margins, or revenue growth as indicators of success.

Customer Feedback

Customer satisfaction surveys or Net Promoter Scores can provide valuable insights into how your strategies are affecting your user base.

Employee Engagement

A motivated team is often a sign of a successful strategy. Track employee engagement levels before and after the implementation of your SOAR plan.

Fine-Tuning Your Strategy Post-SOAR

Regular Updates

Update your SOAR analysis regularly to adapt to any changes in the internal or external environment.

Stakeholder Feedback

Regularly collect and analyze feedback from all stakeholders to continuously refine your strategy.

Market Analysis

Keep an eye on market trends and adjust your strategies accordingly to maintain or gain a competitive edge.

Common Pitfalls and How to Avoid Them

Unrealistic Aspirations

Ensure that your aspirations are achievable by setting SMART goals—Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound.

Data Overload

Don’t get bogged down with too much data. Focus on what’s most relevant to your strategic goals.

Poor Communication

A lack of communication can derail your SOAR analysis. Ensure all stakeholders are on the same page by maintaining open lines of communication.

Ignoring Results

Ignoring or not accurately measuring results can be detrimental. Always have mechanisms in place for tracking KPIs and adjusting your strategy accordingly.

SOAR Analysis vs SWOT Analysis: When to Use Each

SOAR and SWOT are the two most common strategic analysis frameworks, but they serve different purposes and produce different outcomes. Understanding when to reach for each one prevents you from applying the wrong lens to a strategic question.

SOAR is strengths-based and future-focused. It asks: “What do we do well, what could we do, and what do we want to become?” The entire exercise orients a team toward possibility. It is rooted in appreciative inquiry, a methodology that builds strategy around what is already working rather than what is broken.

SWOT includes threats and weaknesses. It asks: “What are we good at, where are we vulnerable, and what external forces could help or hurt us?” This makes it better suited for competitive analysis, risk assessment, and market-entry decisions where ignoring downside risk would be irresponsible.

Here is a side-by-side comparison:

When to choose SOAR: Annual strategic planning, organizational culture work, team off-sites focused on vision, post-merger integration where morale matters, and any situation where the goal is to build consensus around a positive direction. SOAR works well when teams are stuck in a cycle of problem-solving and need to shift toward possibility.

When to choose SWOT: Entering a new market where competitors are entrenched, evaluating whether to launch a product with significant downside risk, conducting due diligence before an acquisition, or any scenario where ignoring threats could lead to material losses. If you need a SWOT analysis template, Xtensio has one you can edit live and share as a link that stays current.

Using both together: Many organizations run a SWOT first to understand the full landscape, then follow with a SOAR session to build strategy around the strengths and opportunities the SWOT identified. This two-pass approach gives you realistic awareness without letting threats dominate the conversation.

SOAR Analysis Examples by Industry

Seeing SOAR in context makes the framework concrete. Below are four industry-specific examples showing what each quadrant might contain for real organizations. Use these as starting points, then customize with your own data inside the free SOAR analysis template.

Healthcare: Regional Hospital Network

• Strengths: Award-winning patient satisfaction scores, established community trust, specialized cardiac and oncology programs, 2,400 trained nurses across 6 facilities.
• Opportunities: Growing demand for telehealth services, aging population increasing need for chronic care management, state grants for rural health expansion.
• Aspirations: Become the region’s top-rated health system for patient outcomes within 3 years. Launch a telehealth platform that reaches 50,000 patients in underserved counties.
• Results: Patient readmission rate below 8%, telehealth adoption rate of 40% among eligible patients, top-quartile CMS quality star rating.

Technology: B2B SaaS Company

• Strengths: 97% uptime SLA, NPS of 72, engineering team with deep API integration expertise, 3,000+ active enterprise accounts.
• Opportunities: Expansion into European markets ahead of new data compliance regulations, growing demand for AI-assisted workflows, partner ecosystem with 15 complementary tools.
• Aspirations: Reach $50M ARR by end of fiscal year. Establish a marketplace for third-party integrations that generates 20% of new revenue.
• Results: Net revenue retention above 115%, 500 new enterprise accounts from EU market, marketplace generating $2M in partner-driven revenue within 12 months.

Nonprofit: Environmental Conservation Organization

• Strengths: 25-year track record of land preservation, strong volunteer base of 8,000 members, relationships with 40 corporate sponsors, recognized brand in coastal conservation.
• Opportunities: Corporate ESG commitments driving new sponsorship budgets, federal infrastructure funding for wetland restoration, growing public interest in climate resilience.
• Aspirations: Protect 100,000 additional acres of coastal habitat by 2030. Double the annual donor base from 12,000 to 24,000 households.
• Results: 30,000 new acres under conservation easement within 2 years, donor retention rate above 65%, three new corporate partnerships each generating $250K+ annually.

Education: University Business School

• Strengths: Top-20 MBA ranking, alumni network of 45,000 professionals, strong faculty research output, newly built innovation lab and incubator space.
• Opportunities: Rising demand for online executive education, employers seeking micro-credential programs, international student enrollment recovering post-pandemic.
• Aspirations: Launch 5 new online certificate programs that reach 10,000 learners globally. Become top-10 for entrepreneurship within 5 years.
• Results: Online program enrollment of 2,500 in year one, 90% graduate employment rate within 6 months, 15 new startup ventures launched from the incubator annually.

Each of these examples follows the same pattern: specific, quantified strengths feeding into clearly defined results. When you run your own SOAR session, aim for this level of specificity. Vague entries like “good culture” or “grow revenue” do not give your team enough to act on.

5 SOAR Analysis Mistakes That Undermine Strategic Planning

SOAR is straightforward in concept but easy to execute poorly. These five mistakes are the most common reasons teams finish a SOAR session with a document that collects dust rather than drives action.

1. Confusing aspirations with results

The most frequent error. “Become an industry leader” is an aspiration. “Increase market share from 12% to 18% within 18 months” is a result. When teams blur the line, they end up with a vision statement disguised as a strategic plan. Every aspiration must be paired with at least one measurable result, or it remains a wish.

2. Being too vague about strengths

“Great team” and “strong brand” appear in nearly every SOAR analysis, and they are nearly useless. A strength has strategic value only when it is specific enough to act on. Instead of “great team,” write “engineering team with 14 patents in battery technology and an average tenure of 7 years.” Specificity turns a strength into a lever.

3. Skipping the results quadrant entirely

Teams often spend 80% of the session on strengths and opportunities, rush through aspirations, and barely touch results. This inverts the priority. Results are where accountability lives. Without them, no one can tell whether the strategy succeeded six months later. Allocate at least 25% of your session time to defining, quantifying, and assigning ownership of results.

4. Running the analysis without cross-functional input

A SOAR session run by the leadership team alone will reflect the leadership team’s blind spots. Sales sees different strengths than engineering. Customer success sees different opportunities than marketing. Include at least one representative from every function that touches the strategy, and consider including customers or partners for the opportunities quadrant.

5. Doing it once and filing it away

A SOAR analysis is not a one-time exercise. Markets shift, teams change, and new opportunities emerge quarterly. The most effective organizations treat their SOAR document as a living deliverable that gets revisited every quarter. Share it as a live link so every stakeholder can see the latest version without chasing email attachments or stale PDFs. When results are due, update the document with actual outcomes and adjust the aspirations for the next cycle.

How to Facilitate a SOAR Analysis Workshop

A well-facilitated SOAR workshop produces an actionable strategic plan in a single session. A poorly facilitated one produces a whiteboard full of sticky notes that no one follows up on. The difference is preparation, structure, and a clear output format.

Before the workshop: preparation checklist

• Set the scope. Define what the SOAR covers: the whole organization, a single business unit, a product line, or a specific initiative. A scoped session produces focused output.
• Gather pre-work data. Circulate customer feedback summaries, financial performance highlights, and market research at least 48 hours in advance. Participants who arrive informed spend less time debating facts and more time building strategy.
• Choose the right participants. Aim for 8 to 15 people representing different functions, seniority levels, and (if relevant) customer-facing roles. Fewer than 8 limits perspective diversity. More than 15 slows the process.
• Prepare a shared template. Set up the SOAR analysis template in your workspace ahead of time so participants can contribute in real time during the session and reference it afterward.

During the workshop: 90-minute session structure

A 90-minute session is the minimum for a meaningful SOAR workshop. Shorter sessions force surface-level answers. Here is a proven structure:

• Minutes 0 to 5: Opening frame. The facilitator states the scope, explains the four quadrants, and clarifies that the goal is an actionable plan, not a brainstorm list.
• Minutes 5 to 25: Strengths. Each participant writes 3 to 5 strengths individually (silent writing prevents groupthink), then the group discusses and consolidates to the top 5 to 7. Prompt: “What does this organization do better than anyone else? What would our best customers say is our greatest asset?”
• Minutes 25 to 45: Opportunities. Same individual-then-group format. Prompt: “What external trends, market shifts, or unmet needs could we capitalize on in the next 12 to 24 months?”
• Minutes 45 to 60: Aspirations. This is the visioning phase. Prompt: “If we fully leveraged our strengths and seized our best opportunities, where would we be in 3 years? What would success look like?”
• Minutes 60 to 80: Results. The most critical phase. For each aspiration, define 1 to 3 measurable results with owners and deadlines. Prompt: “How will we know we succeeded? What specific number will tell us?”
• Minutes 80 to 90: Prioritization and next steps. Vote on the top 3 priorities. Assign an owner for each. Set the date for the first check-in (typically 30 days out). Confirm that the completed template will be shared as a live link so everyone has access to the same version.

Facilitation questions for each quadrant

Strong facilitation questions prevent vague answers and keep the session productive:

• Strengths: “What do we consistently get praised for by customers?” / “What capabilities would be hardest for a competitor to replicate?” / “Where have we outperformed our own targets in the last year?”
• Opportunities: “What industry trend is growing fastest that aligns with our strengths?” / “What adjacent market could we enter with minimal new investment?” / “What are our customers asking for that we do not yet offer?”
• Aspirations: “If we could only achieve one thing in the next 3 years, what would matter most?” / “What would make us proud to work here 5 years from now?” / “How do we want the market to describe us?”
• Results: “What number would prove this aspiration was achieved?” / “Who owns this metric today?” / “What is the current baseline, and what is the target?”

After the workshop: turning output into a living action plan

The workshop is only the beginning. Within 48 hours, the facilitator should finalize the SOAR document and share it with all participants. The best approach is to keep it as a living deliverable rather than a static PDF. Share it as a live link that stays current so every stakeholder sees the same version and can track progress against results without requesting updates over email.

Schedule quarterly reviews where the team revisits each quadrant. Update strengths if the competitive landscape has changed. Replace achieved results with new ones. Add emerging opportunities. A SOAR analysis that evolves with the business is worth ten times more than one frozen in last quarter’s context.

Conclusion

SOAR analysis is an invaluable tool for any organization looking to identify its strengths, capitalize on opportunities, align with aspirational goals, and produce tangible results. It shifts the focus from problem-solving to strategic planning based on what your organization does well. Unlike traditional SWOT analysis, it’s a positive, future-focused approach that can energize your team and get everyone moving toward a shared vision of success.

By following this comprehensive guide, you’ll be well on your way to mastering the art of SOAR analysis, setting your organization on a path to sustained growth and success.

Written by

Alper Cakir is the founder and CEO of Xtensio, the living deliverables workspace for teams that create, deliver, and reuse professional work, a staple tool for businesses globally. He boasts over 17 years in the tech industry with expertise in UX/UI design, product management, and innovative business strategy. His passion for design led him to work with major clients like CBS Interactive, NBC Universal, and Toyota. Before Xtensio, he co-founded Fake Crow in Los Angeles, known for its innovative UX/UI approach. Alper studied music theory and jazz composition at Istanbul Bilgi University and guitar at Musicians Institute in London. Known for his hands-on approach, his philosophy is to simplify processes, cut through bureaucratic red tape, and help teams create work that’s ready to send and stays alive as projects evolve.

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