Strategic Planning is the element of success and achieving the general vision of any institution.
It (Strategic Planning) also contributes to the success of the institution and the company in competition with major companies and works to increase the market share of the institution in the market.
It is also characterized by organization and accuracy in the way it works, to achieve the desired goals of the institution or company, and it is of particular importance in building institutions and companies.
Through this piece, Enterpership KSA magazine sheds light on several elements of strategic planning, its importance, and its benefits.
What is the Strategic Planning?
It is planning to define and write long-term goals, and it divides the goals of the organization into a set of detailed goals, and then works on dividing the detailed goals into programs and tasks, and includes knowing all the requirements that each goal needs.
It also includes a performance measurement indicator for work, and it identifies the time limit for its implementation, then distributes tasks to employers to implement them to reach the desired goals of the institution, which represents its general vision.
Strategic planning includes all realistic ways to reach the general vision of the institution. It also includes analyzing the internal and external environment of the institution, anticipating the risks that may be exposed to it, and how to solve them when they occur. It also identifies the strengths and weaknesses of the institution to help it reach its goals.
Why Strategic Planning is so important?
Strategic planning is of great importance, as it is one of the most important administrative processes in the work environment, and its importance is because it helps to preserve capital as it works on reviewing the financial performance of the work, and is always keen to provide permanent developments that contribute to achieving the best results, as it contributes to The plan is on the right track for the general vision.
Strategic planning also contributes to defining the period for implementing the plan set in its work body and also contributes to designing the steps for work and converting these steps into actual steps that are measurable and applicable, so that sufficient information is known to obtain results.
It also contributes to the service industry and the financial means that help in knowing the changes affecting work, whether at the general or state-specific economic level.
The importance of strategic planning is due to its precise method used in applying planning in the practical aspect of work within the institution or company, and it helps in setting the general features of the way the institution is going to achieve its goals, and it also assists managers in their work as it shows a clear general picture of the institution’s situation.
Strategic planning includes all elements that include the nature of work, employees, and the environment surrounding it, as well as clarifying the resources available to the institution to exploit them appropriately.
It also helps to create innovation within the employees and officials in the departments of the organization, to develop the work and in cases of exposure to various risks, to maintain the plan to implement the goals, and to maintain and increase the market share of the institution and increase its sales.
What are the benefits of strategic planning for any corporate?
1- It clearly defines the goals to link them together to the administrative organization.
2- Providing a basic basis for changing the mechanism and nature of work when exposed to any threat.
3- Exploiting the resources available in the institution in the best possible way.
4- Building a coordination system that combines the strategic plan and the process of its implementation based on directing the energy of the participants in the work.
5- Studying the data by relying on its status in certain areas, and linking the strategic plan of the institution with the external environment.
Strategic Planning also provides a way to think in wonderful methodological ways that review the direction of institutional work and measure its level of performance.
Therefore, strategic planning is one of the most important factors and key elements in the success of any organization and ensuring that it reaches its desired goals.
Steps towards Strategic Planning
To achieve the objectives of corporate planning, the strategy is formulated. The formulation of the strategy is the basic aspect of corporate planning. The success of corporate planning depends on the success of strategy formulation.
Determining corporate planning objectives and developing strategies – are carried out based on SWOT analysis.
Strategies are translated (or transformed) into tactical plans (or operational plans), which are detailed in nature.
Tactical plans are made in time, as decided by the management; this is the practical aspect of corporate planning.
The performance of tactical plans is evaluated in light of corporate planning objectives; So that the necessary adjustments can be made in the corporate planning process and the better planning of the company may be done in the future.
Corporate planning has a long-term perspective; whereas, operational plans have a short-term future.
David Hussey (Corporate Planning: Theory and Practice) defines corporate planning as:
“Corporate planning includes setting goals, organizing work, people, and systems to enable the achievement of those goals, motivating through the planning process and plans, measuring performance and thus controlling the progress of plans and developing people through better decision and formulation of clearer goals and more participation and awareness of progress.”
Corporate Planning Process:
The major steps involved in corporate planning are as follows:
(1) Environmental Analysis and Diagnostics:
The first steps (which is, in fact, the background step), involved in corporate planning are environmental analysis and diagnostics. (A detailed account of this step is attempted later, in the discussion on corporate planning.)
(2) Identification of objectives:
All planning begins to identify the objectives of the plan; corporate planning is not an exception this year. Incorporate planning, after environmental analysis and diagnosis, planners set the company’s objectives as a whole and each section; which became the starting point for corporate planning.
All institutional planning objectives must represent an integrated or coordinated objective. To make institutional planning an approach to achieving goals; put the target to plan companies in the light of analysis and environmental diagnosis.
(3) Strategy formulation:
Strategy formulation is the primary aspect of institutional planning. The strategy is the planned weapon developed to achieve institutional planning objectives.
There is no doubt that the success of strategies is the success of corporate planning; vice versa. Strategy formulation is also done in the light of environmental analysis and diagnosis.
(4) Development of tactical plans:
Strategies are translated into action plans called tactical plans or operational plans. Tactical plans are essential for implementing strategies that lead to institutional planning objectives. For example, if the company’s strategy is to develop skills and talents of manpower to achieve goals; then the design will be proper training programs as tactical plans.
Planning companies and developing strategies have a long-term perspective; while tactical plans have a short-term perspective, as these plans will be implemented immediately, in the usual context of organizational life.
(5) Implementation of tactical plans:
Planning is just a paper no layout; unless it is put into practice. As such, tactical plans are placed in the implementation process, in time completely, according to the administration. For implementation purposes, communication is provided to employee staff; which is also provided with facilities for the implementation of tactical plans.
(6) Follow-up:
After placing tactical plans; a review is made for progress, ie the examination of the results obtained from the implementation of the plan and the need for comments, to improve the institutional planning process.
