What Is Strategic Planning Strategic planning is a group of processes and analysis and analytical processes that allow a company to understand where they are within their market, and create a clear path to their future. Companies usually have short term goals and have set some long term plans, these goals or plans should be a part of the mission statement. The mission statement should clearly state who the company is, what they do, why they do it, and what they plan on doing. Strategic planning assesses both long and short term goals within the planning process. There are three questions that all managers, no matter what organization or sector of the market, have to ask themselves:
• Where are we now?
• Where do we want to go?
• How are we going to get there?
(Gamble, J., & Thompson Jr, T 2011).
Along with answering these questions, one must also determine what type of strategic strategy their company is following.
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Most of the time the company is operating day to day and there is not much thought put into how the company is doing today. Hind- sight is 20/20 it is easy for everyone to know today what went wrong last week, sometimes it is hard to identify today what is being done wrong today, unless the managers step back and take an honest look at operations. It is important to look at all aspects of the business when evaluating the historical path of the company. What caused the company to do well? Was it new products, a strong economy was it because of a trendy product or a specific demographic causing the company to succeed? What caused the company to struggle? Was it a recall of a product, a failed product line, weak economy or poor marketing? These are questions that must be answered to effectively evaluate the historical success and failures of the company. Only looking at the good or the bad will not produce a fair evaluation of what the company has
Background Information In implementing a strategic plan for Coastal Medical Center, our consulting team has conducted many analyses and formed numerous strategies in order for Coastal Medical Center to be successful. Such assessments include an internal analysis, external analysis, gap analysis, and SWOT analysis. In conducting these analyses, our consulting team was able to better understand the internal environment, external environment, where the organization currently stands in terms of performance, and the major strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats that oppose the Coastal Medical Center. From our inquiry, we will be able to establish a strategic plan that best fits the organization’s needs.
After analyzing the Coastal Medical Center, it is apparent that the employees and staff have no conception of the mission, vision, and values of this health care facility. In addition to this lack of structure, CMC has many projects in the midst of production that lack support of a common goal, employees are unsatisfied with their jobs, the two boards lack ability to agree on strategic decisions for the organization,, and the medical center has a dismal reputation when it comes to quality care.
(Yoder-Wise, 2015) During the process of planning you need to assess your internal and external environment, identify any opportunities and threats. Then you want to create your plan and identify your goals and objectives, implement the plan and lastly you evaluate and make any necessary changes. In strategic marketing, you want to identify your target market and research it. When planning you identify your strategies and objectives you identify what services you will provide and at what cost an how you’re going to market your plan. You can evaluate by getting feedback from consumers through different
New businesses will take longer to thrive with the United States falling economy. The faltering job market and the deepening slump in housing threaten to hurt consumer spending. Consumers are becoming more conscious of their spending and therefore using cash to pay for smaller necessary purchases. The cost of entertainment and other presumed luxuries may be pushed to the background by most families, when having to choose whether to pay for a bill or treat the family out. Thriving businesses will understand the need to provide a service or product at affordable prices.
A strategic plan is a tool that delivers guidance in achieving a mission or goal with maximum proficiency and control for an organization. Strategic planning is used to transform and revitalize organizations. The plan helps provide an inclusive understanding of opportunities and challenges both internally and externally for the organization. The plan delivers an assessment of the strengths and limitations that are realistic within the company. A well-developed strategic plan will offer a comprehensive approach and empowerment for the stakeholders involved. It is an opportunity for learning and understanding priorities that will drive the business to succeed. Jones (2010), describes how in health care organizations, strategic plans characteristically concentrate on operational and organizational goals such as when to obtain new technology, how to meet competitive challenges, and what staffing, tools, or facilities are needed to ensure organizational survival. The mission and value statements are significant in determining the quality of a strategic initiative. Forcing the organization to look toward the future creates proactive objectives in which both short-term and long-terms plans and goals are necessary in order to succeed.
Strategic planning requires a few steps. The steps would be to appoint a strategic planning committee, interview key stakeholders, conduct an analysis that measures strength, weakness, opportunities, and threats, develop a plan, and communicate the plan
With the constant changing and progressing in the healthcare field, it is important to have a strategic plan, strategic planning is a systematic process of envisioning a desired future and translating this vision into broadly defined goals or objectives and a sequence of steps to achieve them. Initiatives in
Strategic management is the ongoing process of ensuring a competitively superior fit between the organization and its ever-changing environment (Kreitner, G13). Strategic management serves as the competitive edge for the entire management process. It effectively blends strategic planning, implementation, and control. Organizations that are guided by a coherent strategic framework tend to execute even the smallest details of their mission in a coordinated fashion. The strategic management process includes the formulation of a strategy/strategic plans, implementation of the strategy, and strategic control. A clear statement of the organizational mission serves as the focal point for the entire planning process. People inside and outside the organization are given a general idea of why the organization exists and where it is headed. Working from the mission statement, management formulates the organization's strategy, a general explanation of how the organization's mission is to be accomplished. Then general intentions are translated into more concrete and measurable plans, policies, and budget allocations. Implementation is the most important part of the strategy. Strategic plans must be filtered down to lower levels to be success. Strategic plans can go astray, but a formal control system helps keep strategic plans on track. In the strategic management process general managers who adopt a strategic management perspective appreciate that strategic plans require updating and fine-tuning as conditions change. Given today's competitive pressures, management cannot afford to let strategic plans sit as is. A strategic orientation encourages farsightedness. Sun Microsystems Inc. is one company that developed a strategy to become the competitive leader and become the most reliable in the net business. I will explain how Sun's strategy integrates their marketing, management, technology, and service functions into one effective strategy. First I'll discuss who Sun is and what encouraged them to develop their strategy.
Strategic Plan: Strategic plan is a complete packege of statements which describes the purpose and ethical conduct for a company together with the focused strategies designed to reach the targets. It is normally have conduct for few years. The main objectives of strategic plan is to take the company towards the expected vision. It can be defined as, 1. A set of procedures for making decisions about the organization’s long-term goals and strategies 2.
Strategic Planning is looking at where you are now, knowing where you want to be in the future and planning the steps to get you there.
An organization must use a strategic marketing process to distribute its marketing mix resources to reach its target markets. The elements of a proper marketing mix are price, product, place, and promotion. They are the four P’s of the marketing process (Goi, 2009)
Strategic thinking is a strategy that most, if not all, people should familiarize themselves with. This skill involves the ability to view, analyze, and conceptualize situations (beyond immediate goals) with the objective creating a better future for themselves and others (Ebersole 1). Strategic thinkers work diligently to maximize their potential and opportunities in all aspects. People with this ability are considered problem solvers. In a broader concept, strategic thinking can promote better decision-making. Additionally, this skill can help ensure that organizations are working at their optimal level. Many companies and corporations today are looking for people to be strategic and analytical thinkers. This is a necessary tool to further advance companies and organizations. In addition, it offers a more competitive advantage in the work place.
Each and every organization should have a strategic plan in place. It does not matter whether the organization is big or small. The importance of the strategic plan may vary from the different goals the organization has in place. The staff members should understand each department or division has their own goals to accomplish. Some goals may be long term and others are short term.
If asked what strategic planning is one could interpret it as simply a road map that can guide the organization in the right direction. It is very unlikely that an organization would know which direction to take without a sense of direction. Managers are faced every day with decisions that have a major impact on the direction the organization must take, therefore, strategic planning can play an important role in guiding managers in the right direction. In other words strategic planning is a tool that management can use to give them a sense of direction that will guide them in doing a better job and to ensure that all the members of the organization are working toward the same goals
Strategic planning is an organizational process in which it looks towards developing and sustaining success or balance in its ever changing environment.