The article describes the principles of conducting gap analysis, its structure. The article also discusses the stages of carrying out gap analysis, advantages and disadvantages of this method of marketing research. At the end, an example of the application of the method in a particular enterprise is given.

conceptgap analysis

Gap analysis or gap analysis - a method of comparing formulated, desired goals with actually achieved ones, is used during strategic planning. gap analysis allows you to determine the magnitude of deviations, adjust the strategic goal, contributes to the development of specific measures to reduce gaps.

The use of gap analysis helps to properly organize the search for additional sources of efficiency to achieve the set goals, and it also determines the trajectory along which the company must move in order to move from the achieved result to the target one.

The main condition for applying the gap analysis is the fact that there is a difference between the achieved and target results.

All reasons for the differences are grouped into several main categories:

• sales market;
• product and service quality;
• business management principles;
• internal business processes;
• information Technology

Main types gap-analysis:

• evaluation of communications - based on determining the magnitude of the discrepancy between the goods sold and the services provided, and communication about their quality;
• customer perception of product quality – this compares the organization's expectations, based on its experience or customer research, with the current level of positive perception of the quality of the purchased product or service provided;
• Implementation analysis - examines the discrepancy between the service regulations described in the strategy and those actually existing during the sale or provision of the service. This also includes the difference between the opinion that customers have about any product of the company and the actual consumer characteristics;
• image - defines the difference between the image of the organization and the client's perception of its services and products;
• performance assessment - used to determine the gap between the indicators planned by management and those actually achieved at the moment.

Stagesgap analysis

1. Forecasting the state of the organization at the end of the planning period using the method of expert assessments or other mathematical forecasting methods The purpose of this stage is to assess the position that the organization could occupy and calculate all options for competitive advantages that can be obtained as a result of the implementation of a certain set of decisions.
2. Calculation of deviations of strategic planning indicators from the opportunities that really exist on the market at a given time - identifying gaps. Here it is necessary to get an answer to the question: is there a possibility of overcoming the gap? If overcoming it requires attracting a critically large amount of the organization's own resources, then it is necessary either to reconsider your vision of the future, or to introduce several intermediate stages into the business to achieve strategic goals, or to postpone the implementation of the strategy for a longer time period.
3. Selection of criteria for conducting gap analysis. At this stage, you need to break the gap into separate components, each of which is responsible for its significant industry, functional, territorial or other area of ​​activity. The group of components can be grouped into the following types: marketing, financial, information, technical, administrative and communication.
4. Formation of a plan or set of initiatives aimed at achieving indicators that will reduce or eliminate the gap completely. These can be measures to improve internal efficiency, diversify production, and implement integration processes. The sources of growth in business efficiency are own employees, improvement of distribution channels, analysis of competitors, interaction with government services, etc. Some of these sources are directed to the market, where opportunities are analyzed based on the study of consumer behavior. Others focus on different areas of research and development, during which new products and services are created.

Gap analysis is an important strategic management tool. But it is used to evaluate the effectiveness of a ready-made business. If you are at the beginning of the journey and are just planning to open your own business, then you can download a ready-made, fully structured business plan from us, which contains calculations of all significant financial indicators and will allow you to start your business.

A correct gap analysis will make it possible to carry out a competent one, which will become the basis for further practical work.

Advantages and disadvantagesgap analysis

Advantages gap analysis:

1. The study allows managers to assess the reality of achieving their goals.
2. Simple and clear logic for using gap analysis, which allows you to build a sequence of implementation of its stages;
3. A wide degree of versatility with respect to practical task areas of application.

Flaws gap analysis:

1. A complex multifactorial structure that is not always easily identified. All the factors identified in the study can be both manageable by the organization and not amenable to influence, which narrows the possibility of reducing a large number of gaps.
2. There is no methodological basis for developing ways to reduce deviations for problems of various subjects.
3. A large proportion of deviations from the planned results, as they are predicted using predictive and expert estimates that do not have great accuracy.

In addition to expert assessments, when conducting gap analysis the method of extrapolation forecasting is often used, when, based on existing experience and assumptions about the evolutionary development of objects and processes, forecasts of their states for future periods are made.

The disadvantage of extrapolation forecasting is the uncertainty - whether the existing trends in the development of an object or process will continue in the future. This allows for a significant degree of error in forecasts.

However, when used competently and professionally, extrapolation is an effective tool, subject to the following assumptions:

• short-term forecast interval;
• application to well-studied processes;
• calculation of optimistic and pessimistic values ​​of indicators.

Thus, despite all the advantages and disadvantages, gap analysis is used in practice as an effective indicator to determine the reality of achieving certain values ​​of the planned strategic indicators.

For example, when gap-analyzing the volume of sales, the experts obtained a certain predictive value that can be achieved taking into account the current environmental conditions. The task of management is to answer the following main questions:

- whether the sales volume corresponds to the strategy;

— if yes, then no significant changes in the strategy are required;

- if not, then a plan is needed to use all available tools of the organization to reduce the gap by influencing the external environment in terms of those components that are amenable to influence.

- no, there is a gap and it is necessary to use marketing and other tools, as well as try to influence certain environmental factors that can be indirectly affected.

By the way, when developing business plans, this research method is also often used. In general, you can also familiarize yourself with from our selection.

Examplegap analysis

Consider holding gap analysis by example a confectionery company that is developing a strategy to increase its share of the Moscow market in the short term.

According to the stages of the gap analysis:

1. We predict the state and potential of the market. Taking into account the population of Moscow and the number of potential consumers of conductor products, we get a potential market capacity of 7 billion rubles, from which the company plans to “bite off” 20%.
2. We determine deviations from the forecast share and external circumstances that form this deviation: low purchasing power, consumer dissatisfaction with product quality, lobbies of other brands in large federal chains. .
3. We select the components with which we will work: costs, suppliers of raw materials, technological re-equipment, analysis of ingredients and development of new flavors, distribution.
4. Based on the results of the gap analysis, we form a plan in the form of a table of initiatives:

This example demonstrates the simplicity and clarity of the gap analysis. But it is not always enough to predict indicators and determine ways to achieve them. The right decision in this case would be to download a full-fledged ready-made business plan, which already contains all the calculations required to attract investments. You can also order an individual turnkey business plan created specifically for your project..

GAP analysis — is an analysis of the strategic gap, which allows you to determine the discrepancy between the desired and the real in the activities of the enterprise. The purpose of a GAP analysis is to determine if there is a gap between a firm's goals and its capabilities and, if so, to determine how to "fill" it.

The specific application of gap analysis means the following.
Determination of the main interest of the company, expressed in terms of strategic planning (for example, in increasing the number of sales).
Finding out the real possibilities of the company in terms of the current state of the environment and the expected future state (in 3.5 years).
Determination of specific indicators of the strategic plan, corresponding to the main interest of the company.
Establishing the difference between indicators of strategic and opportunities dictated by the real situation of the company.
Development of special programs and methods of action necessary to fill the gap.
Another way to apply GAP - analysis - is to determine the difference between the highest expectations and the most modest forecasts. For example, if top management expects a real rate of return on capital employed of 20%, but analysis shows that 15% is the most realistic, discussion and action is required to close the 5% gap.

Filling can be done in several ways, for example:
by increasing productivity and achieving the desired 20%;
by abandoning more ambitious plans in favor of 15%.

SWOT analysis -

The abbreviation SWOT owes its origin to 4 English words: strength - strength, weakness - weakness, opportunities - opportunity and threats - threat. It is on them that the SWOT analysis is built.
SWOT analysis includes an analysis of the situation within the company, as well as an analysis of external factors and the market situation. All data is subsequently summarized in one table, consisting of 4 main fields: strength, weakness, opportunities and threats. Such a table is called a SWOT analysis matrix.
Analyzing the data located in the table, a list of possible actions is compiled to neutralize the weaknesses of the company, including at the expense of strengths. Similarly, possible options for the development of the company when external factors change, ways to use strengths to reduce risks, etc. are developed.

gap analysis is a comprehensive analytical study that studies inconsistencies, gaps between the current state of the company and the desired one. This analysis also allows you to identify problem areas ("bottleneck") that impede development, and assess the degree of readiness of the company to make the transition from the current state to the desired one.

These gaps in general may include:

The gap between the company's market supply (in the broadest sense) and the level of demand existing in the market

· The gap between current activities or business processes and their characteristics, and a vision of how it should be ideally or from the point of view of management.

The gap between the actual goals and objectives of the company as a whole and employees in particular on the one hand and, on the other hand, the theoretically necessary goals and objectives

Gap between current performance and the best in the industry (benchmarks)

Speaking of gap analysis, as a rule, they understand a set of activities that allow drawing conclusions about the inconsistency of the internal marketing environment with the external environment or about internal inconsistencies. This can be, for example, between management plans and understanding of performers, as well as a mismatch between the assortment and the structure of demand, a mismatch between products of similar products from competitors, a mismatch between the perception of products and their individual qualities compared with the perception of competitors' products, we can also talk about gap analysis differences between brand identity and brand perception.

Target GAP analysis is to identify those market opportunities and company opportunities that can become effective market advantages for the company.

In other words gap analysis allows you to maximize the internal potential of the company (little used, hidden), making the most of external opportunities. Besides, gap analysis allows you to remove problematic situations within the company, to resolve the conflicting requirements of departments, for example, technologists and marketers.

GAP analysis can be used both in everyday practice in order to increase the efficiency of individual areas of the company, and in the process of strategic planning. In the latter case, the application gap analysis most effectively, as it allows a realistic assessment of the feasibility and effectiveness of the planned goals and objectives before they are agreed upon, approved and financed.

GAP analysis this is a comparison of the current situation in the organizational structure of the enterprise with the desired state of affairs in the future, as well as, on the basis of the information collected, an assessment of the possibility for the organization to understand the ways to achieve the tasks and, in fact, their fundamental achievability. First, an improvement scheme is outlined, then the desired state is developed (from the point of view of external and internal buyers). At the next stage, a detailed program for the development of the company in the desired direction is developed. In simple cases, it is enough to develop a sequence of actions (1, 2, 3 ...), in more complex cases, you have to use more complex organizational forms - project teams, testing solutions, developing various options, layouts, etc.

First, a forecast is developed regarding changes in the volume of demand and (or) supply of raw materials and materials in the future. If the forecasts are ambiguous and allow for a plurality of scenarios for the development of events, then a separate scenario must be developed for each scenario.

The most commonly used variant of GAP analysis is to bridge the gap between raw material supply and sales.

Types of breaks

Quality of products, service

Organizational

・Business management

· Business processes

· Information Technology

GAP-analysis (“discrepancy model”) for assessing the quality of services

There are not as many service marketing concepts as it may seem at first glance to an inexperienced marketer or researcher. Among the most popular is the so-called " GAP analysis", or "discrepancy model". Simplified, the model looks like this:

Simplified GAP-model for assessing the quality of services

The essence of this model is to determine the strategies and processes that a firm can use to achieve excellence in customer service. A simple concept, however, turns out to be difficult to apply in practice. The service perception element is actually a function of many variables, both managed by the company and unmanaged. And it turns out that the "elementary" discrepancy discussed above is only the tip of the iceberg. In fact, the structure of the model is aggravated by the corporate environment, the elements of which are shown in the figure.

Extended GAP-model for assessing the quality of services

The central element of the gap model is the “consumer divergence”, which consists in the mismatch consumer expectations And service perception- key concepts of service marketing. Accordingly, the main task of the company is to reduce this discrepancy in order to meet the needs of customers and build long-term relationships with them. To do this, the company needs to reduce the remaining "discrepancies" that lie in the field of corporate governance:

Discrepancy 1 - ignorance of consumer expectations

Discrepancy 2 - insufficient customer-oriented service standards

Discrepancy 3 - failure to meet service standards

Discrepancy 4 - inconsistency of actions with promises

strategic analysis of the state of the company

The concept, essence, goals and objectives of GAP analysis in marketing

Definition 1

GAP analysis is a primary information analysis technique based on the study of strategic differences between desired goals and actually achieved results.

In Russian practice, GAP analysis is otherwise called GEP or GAP analysis. It is also called gap analysis. The essence of this method is to study the problem, which manifests itself in the form of a certain gap that arises in the process of implementing the plan, between the results and indicators planned for achievement and those that were actually achieved.

The GAP analysis technique was developed in the USA. To date, it has gained high popularity and has found its application in various fields, including marketing. In marketing, GAP analysis is often used to find ways to increase sales and sales of products, goods and services, as well as to analyze competitive advantages.

Remark 1

The basic condition for using the GAP-analysis technique in marketing is the existence of differences between the targets and the results achieved. The main task of conducting a GAP analysis is the preventive forecasting of situations that give rise to possible gaps.

The results of the GAP analysis allow you to determine the amount of deviations between the plan and the fact, as well as adjust the strategic goal. In addition, GAP-analysis serves as a basis for the development of specific measures to reduce gaps. Its correct use makes it possible to ensure the search for additional sources of efficiency in order to achieve the set goals. In addition, it allows you to determine the trajectory along which the company should move in order to make the transition from actually achieved results to target ones.

The GAP analysis itself is divided into several varieties. The main ones are:

• implementation analysis;
• assessment of communications;
• customer perception of product quality;
• performance evaluation;
• image GAP-analysis.

Each of them has its own characteristics. Let's consider them in more detail.

Implementation analysis implies the need to assess the discrepancies between the described service regulations and the actually existing principles implemented in practice, as well as the analysis of the difference between real-life consumer characteristics and the opinion that customers have about a company or a product.

The basis of the communicative GAP-analysis is the definition of inconsistencies between the products sold (services rendered) and communication, regarding their quality. During the analysis of customer perception of product quality, the organization's expectations based on marketing research or its own experience are compared with the existing level of positive perception by customers of the products (services) purchased from the company.

Performance evaluation is carried out in order to determine the gaps between the actually achieved indicators and their directive value set by the company's management. Image GAP analysis allows you to determine the difference between the image of the company and its client perception.

General methodology for conducting GAP analysis in marketing

GAP analysis is carried out sequentially. The main stages of its implementation are generally presented in Figure 1. Let us consider them in more detail.

Figure 1. The main stages of the GAP analysis. Author24 - online exchange of student papers

First of all, it is necessary to determine the specific situation that is being analyzed (for example, the sale of a company). Next, you need to study and describe the current situation in the company, and then - the planned scenario. Based on a comparison of plans and factors, gaps and their causes are determined. Further, recommendations are developed to overcome them.

Conducting a GAP analysis requires the need to predict the state in the study area at the end of the planning period. For this, mathematical forecasting methods can be used or experts can be involved. Another integral element of the GAP analysis is the calculation of the deviation of the fact from the plan, as a result of which the gaps are determined. In some cases, the maximum allowable gaps are determined. The selection of criteria for conducting a GAP analysis is important. To do this, gaps are divided into separate components, each of which is responsible for its own line of activity. Groups can be combined into several types - financial, marketing, information, communication, etc. Finally, a plan or set of initiatives is formed to achieve the desired indicators and reduce or completely eliminate gaps.

An example of a GAP analysis in marketing

Consider the procedure for conducting a GAP analysis using the example of a mini-bakery aimed at increasing market share in the short term.

First of all, it is necessary to predict the potential of the market and its state. Assume that the market capacity is 5 billion rubles, while the company plans to take 15% of the market. Next, it is necessary to determine the deviations from the predicted value and the circumstances that form this deviation. The factors may include consumer dissatisfaction with the quality of the product, low purchasing power, lobbying, etc. Finally, the components to work with should be selected. First of all, they should include technological re-equipment, optimization of ingredients, development of new flavors, distribution, change of suppliers.

Structure the results of the GAP analysis (Figure 2).

Thus, everything is quite simple.

Advantages and disadvantages of using the GAP analysis technique in marketing

GAP-analysis as a method of marketing analysis has its advantages and disadvantages. The main advantages of its use are:

• simple and clear execution logic;
• the possibility of assessing the reality (achievability) of the goals set;
• versatility of the approach.

At the same time, GAP analysis has a number of disadvantages that limit its use. First of all, we are talking about the lack of a unified methodological basis for developing ways to reduce gaps. In addition, most of the deviations (discontinuities) do not have sufficient accuracy. Finally, a complex multifactorial structure that serves as an object of study is far from always easy to identify.