Bite-Sized Training

Personal PEST
 Personal PEST Analysis Bite-Sized TrainingTM | Mind Tools

Personal PEST Analysis

Bite-Sized Training
This e-book is published by:

Mind Tools Ltd.

Copyright Mind Tools Ltd, 2008-2012. All rights

reserved.

Version 2.3

This e-book is protected by international copyright

law. You may use it only if you are a member of
the Mind Tools Club. If you have any queries,
please contact us at
members.helpdesk@mindtools.com.

Cover image iStockphoto/ermingut

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 Personal PEST Analysis Bite-Sized TrainingTM | Mind Tools

Contents

1. Introduction .................................................................................................................................... 4

2. What is PEST Analysis? ................................................................................................................ 5

3. Whats Next? ............................................................................................................................... 10

4. Key Points.................................................................................................................................... 11

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1. Introduction
In this session we're looking at PEST Analysis, a
useful tool for understanding more about the
environment in which you operate. It follows on
from the Bite-Sized Training on Personal SWOT,
which helps you to develop a better
understanding of yourself.
PEST examines the factors at work outside of
ourselves over which we typically have little
control. By examining these items, we are better
positioned to align our goals and objectives with
the forces at work in the world. This puts us in a
better position to take advantage of opportunities,
and steer clear of actions that have little chance
of success, no matter how much effort we put into
them.
The acronym PEST represents the Political,
Economic, Socio-cultural, and Technological
environments in which we all operate. When
performing a personal PEST Analysis we're
looking at the macroeconomic factors that affect
our strategies for professional success.
Macroeconomic and external factors are outside
of our control and are therefore plagued with
negative connotations. Interest rates are going up
so loan payments will increase, technology is
advancing so lots of jobs will change, the
population is ageing so more of our taxes will go
toward senior support programs, and so on.
The truth is, however, that many of the same
factors can be viewed as opportunities as well.
Great houses can be bought for much better
prices than a couple of years ago, increased
technology means lower costs and economic
growth, and the ageing population opens doors
for many highly-targeted products and services.
Some people prefer to expand upon the basic
PEST Analysis and include different factors for
different situations. Other forms of PEST include:
PESTLE/PESTEL: Political, Economic,
Sociological, Technological, Legal,
Environmental.
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PESTLIED: Political, Economic, Social,
Technological, Legal, International,
Environmental, Demographic.
STEEPLE: Social/Demographic,
Technological, Economic, Environmental,
Political, Legal, Ethical.
SLEPT: Social, Legal, Economic, Political,
Technological.
Whatever the specific external factors you choose
to use in your Personal PEST, make sure that
you look at the impact from all angles to
determine sources of threats and opportunities.
A PEST Analysis in conjunction with a Personal
SWOT Analysis provides a very robust picture of
the prospects you have to work with and the risks
you have to mitigate along the way. Although,
unlike SWOT, there isnt much that you can do to
change the macroeconomic and other external
factors affecting you, ignoring them is foolhardy.
And understanding the environment that youre in
allows you to identify options that work with it
instead of against it. The path to professional
success will cover all different kinds of terrain;
with a full analysis of your environment you can
hopefully avoid some of the more treacherous
bits.
This Bite-Sized Training session focuses on the
essentials of conducting a Personal PEST
Analysis. In about an hour or so, once you finish
the training session, you will have learned how to:
Identify professional opportunities
presented by current external forces.
Identify professional risks presented by
current external forces.
Use your PEST Analysis in conjunction
with a Personal SWOT to begin
developing a professional success
strategy.
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2. What is PEST Analysis?
A PEST Analysis is set up in a grid much like a
SWOT analysis. It is designed to help you quickly
identify the factors in your external environment
that have a significant impact on the professional
choices you make.
This analysis is not concerned with you as an
individual in terms of your talents and interests.
Rather, it looks at the larger picture and helps you
Political Factors
YOU
Socio-Cultural Factors
Note:
These forces have to be reviewed on a regular
basis as the macroeconomic environment
changes. Every country will also have different
PEST forces. This can also be true of different
regions or cities within a country, so if you relocate,
you should update your Personal PEST.
Lets now look at each quadrant of the PEST grid.
Political Factors
Political factors are those things of a political or
legislative nature that could have an impact on
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identify how you can best operate within it. To
depict this externality, you are represented as a
circle in the middle of the grid.
Tip:
To find out more about how you can use PEST
Analysis in a business context (and to use the free
worksheet), see our article here.
Economic Factors
Technological Factors
your career decisions. Remember to consider all
the political arenas relevant to you. For example:
Municipal.
State/provincial.
National.
Global (the Kyoto Protocol, for instance).
Many professions also have their own specific
political and legislative or regulatory pressures.
Remember to look at whats happening in
professional organizations or other governing
bodies.
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Questions to ask yourself regarding all levels of
political influence include:
Are there any new laws or regulations
coming up, and what changes resulting
from recent legislation have yet to have
full impact?
Are there any changes in government
spending or taxation that are likely to
occur? Will these affect project viability, or
provide opportunities?
Is there an impending change in
leadership that may affect the direction
and stance that the governing body takes?
Political Factors
Opportunities Threats
Socio-Cultural Factors
Economic Factors
When we think economic factors, the first items
that come to mind in terms of money are wages
and benefits. True, these are important economic
factors to consider when making career decisions
but they have to be looked at in the proper
perspective. Is it better to take a job that pays
$15,000 more a year, but that may be gone within
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How will these changes affect the
profession Im in, or the one I want to be
in?
Are there any employment or wage laws,
regulations, restrictions, and so on, to be
aware of?
Action: Take some time now to fill in the Political
section of your Personal Pest Analysis. What are
the opportunities you see? What are the threats?
(You may also want to schedule a slot in the next
week or so to do some further research on the
political environments affecting your professional
strategy. Then add the information to your
Personal PEST.)
Economic Factors
YOU
Technology
Factors
two years because of political changes that you
have already identified?
When thinking about economic factors, ask
yourself the following types of questions:
What is the wage trend?
6

Are you in a recession or a boom? What
effect is that having on your profession,
and is this likely to last?
Is this profession remunerated fairly and
adequately?
What is the unemployment rate like in the
profession?
Are there job security issues to consider?
Is this profession being impacted by
globalization or offshoring?
How do supply and demand balance for
this profession (in this geographical area)?
Is there a strong demand for these skills?
Or are universities and colleges providing
far more qualified people than there are
jobs available.
Political Factors
Opportunities
YOU
Socio-
Cultural
Factors
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Does the expected compensation cover
my living expenses?
Is there a demand for this profession or is
it dying? If its dying, will there be an
ongoing demand for a small number of
people with this skill?
Do the outsourcing or buy local lobbyists
have the upper hand?
Action: Now take a few minutes to jot down what
you know about the economic forces that have an
impact on your career decision. What are the
opportunities you see? What are the threats?
(You may not be aware of the specifics wages or
statistical trends right now. Use your best
judgment and then find out the specifics over the
next week or so.)
Economic Factors
Threats
Technology Factors
7

Socio-Cultural Factors
The socio-cultural factors are those elements of
the external environment that shape the
behaviors and attitudes of people. When doing a
Personal PEST, you need to be concerned with
general people trends that have an impact on
the overall attractiveness of a career.
Are there demographic trends that will
impact professional opportunities?
What education factors do you need to
consider?
Is there any public opinion that you should
be concerned about?
Are some professions more or less
attractive due to lifestyle trends? And what
effect will this have on the number of
people entering and leaving your
profession?
The other aspect of socio-cultural factors to
consider is the influence that specific people in
Political Factors
Socio-Cultural Factors
Opportunities Threats
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your life will have on your professional decisions.
Family and friends have a huge impact on our
choices so their potential reactions to your
professional strategy need to be considered in
your decision making process.
Use the following questions to help you stimulate
your internal dialogue:
How will people react to one professional
choice over another?
Are you being influenced by family or
friends to make a certain career decision?
Will you get the support you need
regardless of the decision you make?
Action: Using your answers to the questions
above, start to fill in the socio-cultural portion on
your PEST Analysis. What are the opportunities
you see? What are the threats?
Economic
Factors
YOU
Technology
Factors
8

Technological Factors
Finally, you need to consider the impact
technology may have on your professional
strategy and the likelihood of your future success.
You dont want to invest your time and energy
pursuing a career that is inconsistent with the
technological advances going on. Technology
seems to change at the speed of light so you
need to look at professional choices that are able
to grow with the changes and adapt.
Here too you should be looking at identifying
career opportunities that can take advantage of
the technological booms and weather
technological busts. Things to consider include:
What technologies exist today that will
likely not exist five or ten years from now?
Are there emerging technologies that you
could take advantage of, or that you have
an interest in learning more about?
Political
Factors
YOU
Socio-
Cultural
Factors
Opportunities
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Is technology affecting the way people
work (telecommuting, e-commerce, and
so on)? Will that have an impact on
professional opportunities you are
considering?
Is technology going to make certain
careers redundant or obsolete?
Action: Think about what you know about the
technological changes taking place and complete
the technology factors section of your Personal
PEST. What are the opportunities you see? What
are the threats? (Here, again, you will probably
want to do some further research and identify
specific technologies that will impact the
professions you are considering. As you gain
more information, fill in the Technology section
completely.)
Economic
Factors
Technology Factors
Threats
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3. Whats Next?
Now that your environmental scan is well on its Action: Take five or ten minutes right now to list
way to being complete, you need to make some the main opportunities and threats you have
plans to move your career strategy forward. identified through your PEST Analysis.

Opportunities Identified Threats Identified

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4. Key Points
A Personal PEST Analysis gives you the external
perspective that you need to make a really strong
career plan. No person is an island and there are
many influences on our success that we have
little control over. Identifying those factors, and
looking for the opportunities and threats they
present helps to formulate a plan that has the
greatest chance of success.
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Rather than allow yourself to be blown this way
and that by the changing external forces, a PEST
Analysis helps you gain a bit of control over those
things that are ultimately beyond your influence.
By identifying these external environmental
factors, you can better manage your career and
your success.
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