What is Planning?

Planning involves defining the organization’s goals, establishing strategies for achieving those goals, and integrating and coordinating work activities.
Planning concerns “what” and “why”.
Focus of the topic: Formal planning.
* Specific goals covering a specific time period
* Written and shared with organizational members

Why Do Managers Plan?
Although planning requires much effort, it is still necessary to do so for some reasons:

•  Planning provides direction to managers and non-managers alike.
• Planning reduces uncertainty by forcing managers to look ahead, anticipate change, consider the impact of change, and develop appropriate responses.
• Planning reduces waste and redundancy.
• Planning establishes the goals or standards used in controlling.
• When managers plan, they develop goals and plans.

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Planning & Performance
Human resource
Financial
Marketing strategies

Goals and Plans
Planning is often called the primary management function because it establishes the basis for all the other things managers do as they organize, lead, and control. It involves two important aspects/elements:
Goals (objectives): Desired outcomes or targets. Goals guide management decisions and form the criterion against which work results are measured. That is why they are described as the essential elements of planning.
Plans: Documents that outline how goals will be met. They often include resource allocations, schedules, and other necessary actions to accomplish the goals.

Types of Goals: Stated & Real Goals
Stated Goals:Official statements of what an organization says, and what it wants its various stakeholders to believe its goals are. Stated goals are however often conflicting and influenced by what various stakeholders think organizations should do. Such statements are vague and probably better represent management’s public relations skills than being meaningful guides to what the organization is actually trying to accomplish.
 
Eg. GTV’s goal is “to be the authentic and trustworthy voice of Ghana”
Real Goals:Goals that an organization actually pursues, as defined by the actions of its members.


Strategic Plans: Plans that apply to the entire organization and establish the organization’s overall goals.
Operational Plans: Plans that encompass a particular operational area of the organization.
** Operational plans are narrow while strategic plans are broad
 
Long-Term Plans: Plans with a time frame beyond three years.
Short-Term Plans: Plans covering one year or less.

Specific Plans: Plans that are clearly defined and leave no room for interpretation.
Directional Plans: Plans that are flexible and set out general guidelines.
Single-Use Plans: A one-time plan specifically designed to meet the needs of a unique situation.
Standing Plans: On-going plans that provide guidance for activities performed repeatedly.

Characteristics of Well-Written Goals
a.Written in specific terms rather than in vague
b.Measurable and quantifiable
c.Clear as to a time frame
d.Challenging yet attainable (… realistic goals)
e.Communicated to all necessary organizational members

Steps in Goal Setting

1. Review the organization’s mission. The goal must reflect the mission. In simple terms, a mission is the purpose of an organization. Why does an organization exist?
2. Evaluate available resources. Goals should be realistic although they may seem challenging, given the available resources.
3. Determine the goals individually or with input from others. The goals reflect desired outcomes and should be congruent with the organizational mission and goals in other organizational areas. These goals should be measurable, specific, and include a time frame for accomplishment.
4. Write down the goals and communicate them to all who need to know. Writing down and communicating goals forces people to think them through. The written goals also become visible evidence of the importance of working toward something.
5. Review results and whether goals are being met. If goals are not being met, change them as needed.
6. After goals have been established, written down, and communicated, a manager is ready to develop plans for pursuing the goals.

Developing Plans: The Contingency Factors

The process of developing plans is influenced by three contingency factors:
1.Organizational level: Lower-level managers do operational planning while upper-level managers do strategic planning.

2.Degree of environmental uncertainty: When uncertainty is high, plans should be specific but flexible. In a stable environment, plans should be specific.
3.Length of future commitments: Plans should extend far enough to meet those commitments made when the plans were developed.

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