Strategic Management: plannning - Essay Example

To tackle such circumstances long-range planning was found to be an essential requirement of a sustainable business. According to Russell Ackoff, a professor at the Wharton school of business, Planning is a preventive decision making process used to arrive at the decision ahead of the situation (Cox 2005). Strategic planning is actually similar to long-range planning, however the pattern is different. Although the basic ideas governing the strategic planning process are not new. However, the process was created as a practical upgraded substitute to long-range planning. Bruce D. Cox, director of facility technology for the FM Strategies Studio of Little Diversified Architectural Consulting, Charlotte, N.C. believes that strategic planning is a top-down, vision driven technique employed to uphold the future value of the organization.

This formal definition is normally confused with the original definition of strategic planning and the term is sometimes used to refer to a large scale, macro-level space planning or long range planning processes. However, it should be clear that the original business definition of strategic planning "refers to a process that the organization's leadership undertakes to chart a course for that organization based on the organization's guiding principles that will allow that organization to reach some future organizational or business goal.

"(Cox 2005)The definition clearly implies that strategic planning is critical senior management responsibility. It is a process through which critical questions concerning the organization are answered in such a way that can be used as guidelines for further implementation. There are three important questions that should be answered about the organization. The first question deals with the direction in which the organization is heading. A clear statement should be defined to answer the "where are we going" question.

And this should include a clear mission and scope of operations statement along with a defined set of goals and objectives. The second question requires the organization to define the environment of operation. The organization is required to examine itself and its surroundings while at the same time, measure the extent of efforts and capacity required to achieve its defined goals and objectives. Once the mission and the surroundings are known, the third question would logically be: "what's the course of action" the answer to this question involves the development of specific business models and proper allocation of resources.

It is important to note, however, that strategic planning is supposed to be a continuous process. As a result of the varying nature of the business environment, the initial founding principles of the plan may not hold valid infinitely and thus they must be reviewed continuously in order to maintain proper resources allocation and introduce the necessary dynamic modifications as per circumstances and strategic management requirements. The role of strategic management is rather supportive." It is the active component of an overall strategic planning process.

It represents the method of controlled implementation of the strategic plan. It is not the plan; it is the process of implementing the plan based on continual measurement of progress against that plan" (Cox 2005). This is a value motivated process. Unlike the strategic planning