The attention of our managerial staff, is drawn to the importance of strategic planning, for the growth and efficient working of an organisation.
Strategy of long range planning, (more frequently referred to as Corporate Planning) is interwoven into the entire fabric of Management. Good Corporate Planning and Good Management go together – a combination that leads to successful business operations. Strategic Planning, therefore is the function of all Managers. Their planning responsibilities will however, vary according to the type, level and the size of the organisation.
Corporate Planning could be surmised as follows “A Company could make trends, not follow them.” “With a well staffed management team, in which an aggressive risk–taking Spirit is backed up by cool-headed analytical planning, there will be no problem too tough to be solved.”
Corporate Planning means, “Designing a desired future and identifying ways to bring it about”. The fate of any Company, will normally depend on a couple of key decisions and getting them right – that is what Corporate Planning is all about. These decisions are however, crucial and momentous to the Company.
Though the Concept of Corporate Planning, has been with us in India for over four decades, quite a few Managers do not have a clear picture of what Corporate Planning is, what it is not, what to expect and what to avoid in Corporate Planning. The credit for this confusion goes to some Technocrats and Management Consultants, who have entangled the idea of Corporate Planning in so many myths and misconceptions, that they prevent one seeing the wood from the trees.
A Manager of a Company can, to a great degree, determine where he / she wants to go, in the future and do the things necessary, to ensure that these aims are achieved. This is more essential especially, when the Companies are growing larger, becoming more complex to manage; competition is becoming more intense; and threats and opportunities in the evolving environment are getting more difficult to foresee.
While it is not necessary, that every Manager should be an expert, in every discipline touching upon the Corporate Planning process, it is essential that every Manager, should be able to identify those major elements, methods, and practices of disciplines, that effect his area of planning and should have at least, a conceptual understanding of them.
One of the most important responsibilities of Top Management, is to formulate the basic purposes and missions of the Company – what is our business, what it should be and how it will be operated. It is only upon the foundation of the basic objectives and purposes of the Company, that more detailed goals, strategies and tactical plans can be worked out.
Goals set by an organisation must be feasible, achievable and should be expressed in concrete terms, for specified periods of time, so that their achievement can be measured, reasonably objectively. However, goals that are tough, a little aggressive but achievable, seem to be the best.
Corporate Planning, is the responsibility of the Chief Executive and he cannot delegate it, to any one - not even to a Corporate Planner. Parts of the tasks can be delegated, but not all of it. He should not only give full support to it, but also ensure that others in the organisation understand his depth of commitments.
Quite often, the concept of Corporate Planning, is wrongly mixed up and equated with budget planning. Many Companies come out with projected profit and cash-flow statement, assuming that they have prepared a Corporate Plan.
A budget is a detailed comprehensive exercise, wherein all individual plans fit together. It is a highly useful and essential part of Management, but it is nothing like a Corporate Plan. A budget is limited to the short term, where detail is meaningful because forecasting is viable. A Corporate Plan is essentially a long-range plan; it is therefore, to be necessarily broad, conceptual and flexible.
The Corporate Planner, not only makes anticipatory decisions, but also reviews them, in the light of decisions made, subsequent to them. The Corporate Planner, monitors the progress and designs an efficient communications system, to watch the important trend and events and to take timely corrective action if any.
Corporate Planning has to be participative and requires a high measure of involvement, at all levels. This will give an opportunity, to everyone to inject their views and needs, into the systems design and eliminate or significantly reduce, causes of dissatisfaction and resistance.
Top Management, should not be so engrossed on the current problems, but should spend sufficient time on long-range planning. One should not forget that, between the long-range statistical planning and short-range tactical planning, the former is of far greater importance. The ideal situation, of course, is a proper blend of long and short range planning; an organisation should design brilliant strategies and implement them efficiently and effectively.
There is no such thing as “The Corporate Plan”, which every organisation should adopt. What will work best, in one setting at one time, may not be effective in the same setting at another time and place. A Corporate Plan has, therefore, to be tailor-made, to fit the particular characteristics of their Company and its Management.
The need for Corporate Planning, is so obvious that it is hard to be against it. Corporate Planning has achieved remarkable results, for some of the organisations, that have adopted the Corporate Planning system, are completely satisfied with their results. This, however, does not mean that there is anything wrong with the concept. If some of the Companies are not happy with their experience, it is more likely, that they must have failed to avoid some of the pitfalls, or taken the whole exercise in a routine, mechanical fashion.
Corporate Planning is not a fad. It is today and will be tomorrow, inextricably interwoven into the management process, for effective management. Managers will recognise more than today, that planning permits people to participate in a meaningful way, in the operation of their organisation. This will increase worker satisfaction and thereby better performance.
Strategy of long range planning, (more frequently referred to as Corporate Planning) is interwoven into the entire fabric of Management. Good Corporate Planning and Good Management go together – a combination that leads to successful business operations. Strategic Planning, therefore is the function of all Managers. Their planning responsibilities will however, vary according to the type, level and the size of the organisation.
Corporate Planning could be surmised as follows “A Company could make trends, not follow them.” “With a well staffed management team, in which an aggressive risk–taking Spirit is backed up by cool-headed analytical planning, there will be no problem too tough to be solved.”
Corporate Planning means, “Designing a desired future and identifying ways to bring it about”. The fate of any Company, will normally depend on a couple of key decisions and getting them right – that is what Corporate Planning is all about. These decisions are however, crucial and momentous to the Company.
Though the Concept of Corporate Planning, has been with us in India for over four decades, quite a few Managers do not have a clear picture of what Corporate Planning is, what it is not, what to expect and what to avoid in Corporate Planning. The credit for this confusion goes to some Technocrats and Management Consultants, who have entangled the idea of Corporate Planning in so many myths and misconceptions, that they prevent one seeing the wood from the trees.
A Manager of a Company can, to a great degree, determine where he / she wants to go, in the future and do the things necessary, to ensure that these aims are achieved. This is more essential especially, when the Companies are growing larger, becoming more complex to manage; competition is becoming more intense; and threats and opportunities in the evolving environment are getting more difficult to foresee.
While it is not necessary, that every Manager should be an expert, in every discipline touching upon the Corporate Planning process, it is essential that every Manager, should be able to identify those major elements, methods, and practices of disciplines, that effect his area of planning and should have at least, a conceptual understanding of them.
One of the most important responsibilities of Top Management, is to formulate the basic purposes and missions of the Company – what is our business, what it should be and how it will be operated. It is only upon the foundation of the basic objectives and purposes of the Company, that more detailed goals, strategies and tactical plans can be worked out.
Goals set by an organisation must be feasible, achievable and should be expressed in concrete terms, for specified periods of time, so that their achievement can be measured, reasonably objectively. However, goals that are tough, a little aggressive but achievable, seem to be the best.
Corporate Planning, is the responsibility of the Chief Executive and he cannot delegate it, to any one - not even to a Corporate Planner. Parts of the tasks can be delegated, but not all of it. He should not only give full support to it, but also ensure that others in the organisation understand his depth of commitments.
Quite often, the concept of Corporate Planning, is wrongly mixed up and equated with budget planning. Many Companies come out with projected profit and cash-flow statement, assuming that they have prepared a Corporate Plan.
A budget is a detailed comprehensive exercise, wherein all individual plans fit together. It is a highly useful and essential part of Management, but it is nothing like a Corporate Plan. A budget is limited to the short term, where detail is meaningful because forecasting is viable. A Corporate Plan is essentially a long-range plan; it is therefore, to be necessarily broad, conceptual and flexible.
The Corporate Planner, not only makes anticipatory decisions, but also reviews them, in the light of decisions made, subsequent to them. The Corporate Planner, monitors the progress and designs an efficient communications system, to watch the important trend and events and to take timely corrective action if any.
Corporate Planning has to be participative and requires a high measure of involvement, at all levels. This will give an opportunity, to everyone to inject their views and needs, into the systems design and eliminate or significantly reduce, causes of dissatisfaction and resistance.
Top Management, should not be so engrossed on the current problems, but should spend sufficient time on long-range planning. One should not forget that, between the long-range statistical planning and short-range tactical planning, the former is of far greater importance. The ideal situation, of course, is a proper blend of long and short range planning; an organisation should design brilliant strategies and implement them efficiently and effectively.
There is no such thing as “The Corporate Plan”, which every organisation should adopt. What will work best, in one setting at one time, may not be effective in the same setting at another time and place. A Corporate Plan has, therefore, to be tailor-made, to fit the particular characteristics of their Company and its Management.
The need for Corporate Planning, is so obvious that it is hard to be against it. Corporate Planning has achieved remarkable results, for some of the organisations, that have adopted the Corporate Planning system, are completely satisfied with their results. This, however, does not mean that there is anything wrong with the concept. If some of the Companies are not happy with their experience, it is more likely, that they must have failed to avoid some of the pitfalls, or taken the whole exercise in a routine, mechanical fashion.
Corporate Planning is not a fad. It is today and will be tomorrow, inextricably interwoven into the management process, for effective management. Managers will recognise more than today, that planning permits people to participate in a meaningful way, in the operation of their organisation. This will increase worker satisfaction and thereby better performance.
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