Training course in strategic planning for the 21st century

Strategic planning is the process by which the organization determines its strategy or direction and decides to allocate its resources to implement that strategy. The concept can also be extended to control mechanisms to guide policy implementation. Strategic planning became prominent in companies in the 1960s and remains an important aspect of strategic planning and strategic management. It is implemented by strategic planners that include many parties and research sources when analyzing an organization and its relationship to the competitive environment.

The strategy contains many definitions, But it generally includes setting strategic objectives, and identify the necessary procedures to achieve them, Mobilize resources to implement actions. The strategy describes how to achieve goals (goals) through means (resources). The top leadership of the organization is usually responsible for the development of the strategy. Strategies can be planned (for Maqsood) or can be considered an (emerging) activity pattern where the organization adapts to its environment or competition.

The strategy includes the drafting and implementation process, Strategic planning helps coordinate the two. However, Strategic planning is analytical in nature (i.e. includes “finding points”), The formation of the strategy itself includes aggregation through strategic thinking (i.e. “linking points”). So, Strategic planning revolves around the activities that shape the strategy.

Overview

Strategic planning is a process, So it has input, activities, outputs and results. As with all operations, This process has limits. It can be official or informal, It is usually repetitive, with feedback loops all the time. Some elements of the process may be continuing, Others may be implemented as separate projects with a clear beginning and end in a given period. Strategic planning provides input for strategic thinking, Which in turn guides the formation of actual strategies. The model strategic planning work includes assessing the organization’s mission and strategic issues to strengthen current practices and identifying needs for new planning. [2] The end result is the organization’s strategy, Including this includes the diagnostic environment, And the competitive situation, The organization’s planned guidelines, Key initiatives or action plans to achieve the guidelines[3].

Michael Porter wrote in 1980 that there are four key elements to consider when formulating a competitive strategy:

1. Strengths and weaknesses of the company.
2. Personal values of the main executors (i.e. management and board).
3. Industry opportunities and threats.
4. Broader community expectations.

The first two elements are related to the company’s internal factors (i.e. the internal environment), The latter two elements are related to the company’s external factors (i.e. the external environment). These elements are considered during the strategic planning process.

Input

Data is collected from a variety of sources, Like interviews with key executives, and reviews of public documents on competition or markets, Initial research (such as visiting or monitoring competitors’ sites or comparing prices), And industry research, And so on. You may be part of a competitive intelligence program. Collect inputs that help understand the competitive environment, opportunities and risks. Other inputs include understanding the values of key stakeholders, Such as the Board of Directors, shareholders and senior management. These values can be obtained from the organization’s mission and data vision.

Activities

Strategic planning activities include meetings and other contacts between organizational leadership and staff to develop a common understanding of the competitive environment and how the organization should respond to that environment (its strategy). The various strategic planning tools (shown in the sections below) can be complemented by strategic planning activities.

When developing strategies and collecting inputs, Regulatory leaders may have a set of questions to answer, Such as:

• What does the organization do or care about?
• What is “value” for the customer or the public?
• What products and services should be included or excluded from the package?
• What is the geographical scope of the organization?
• How is the organization different from its competitors in the eyes of customers and other stakeholders?
• What skills and resources should be developed within the organization?

Output

Strategic planning outputs include documents and communications describing the organization’s strategy and how it will be implemented, sometimes referred to as a strategic plan. The strategy may include a diagnosis of competitive position, guidance to achieve regulatory objectives and specific action plans for implementation. Strategic plans can cover several years and are updated with normal continuousity.

Organizations can use a variety of methods to measure and monitor progress towards strategic objectives and established measures, Such as a balanced scorecard or strategy map. Companies can also plan several years of financial statements (such as balance sheets, profit and loss data and cash flows) when planning. Strategy, in goal-setting activities. The term operating budget is often used to describe the organization’s expected financial performance for the coming year. Capital budgets are often the backbone of strategic plans, In particular, they are increasingly linked to ICT.

Results

As mentioned above, While the planning process produces outputs, Implementing a strategy or making a strategic plan results. These results are always different from strategic objectives. Proximity to objectives and strategic vision will determine the success or failure of the strategic plan. It also has unintended consequences that consider them and their understanding of the formulation and implementation of the strategy as a real learning process.

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