Nowadays business leaders need to understand environment which is going to be more complex. Organisations are open system so that organisations need to adapt environment which they operate in. Matridakis, Hogarth and Gaba (2010) argued that traditional tools did not fit well to new complex environment. Although complex environment and level of uncertainty cannot be explained by forecasting, most of the traditional method including strategic planning and organizational development method are tried to use past trends and forecast future. Therefore, scenario planning gets more recognition from the manager whose company operates in such kind of volatile, uncertain environment. Kahane (1992) (Cited in Charmack et al 2001) scenario planning is an effective method for understand critical future uncertainties and investigating drawbacks of the organisations.
There are so many aspect and definition of scenario planning. “Scenario“ means an outline or synopsis of a play. The word scenario is derived from the Italian word scena, scene, that comes from the Latin scaena. According to Schwartz (1998:6) scenarios present alternative of future. Kahn and wiener (1967) defined “ Scenarios are narrative description of future”(Cited in AC/UNU Millennium Project) Porter (1985) defined scenarios “an internally consistent view of what the future might turn to be – not forecast but one possible future outcome” There is big argument on the scenarios, whether it is static or dynamic. Becker (1983) defined that scenarios are people imaging for future like photo. Although Wack (1985), Schoemaker (1991), van der heijden (1996) supported dynamic view of scenarios and they stated that Scenarios are the process of evolution that was linked to strategic devel...
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In conclusion, scenarios are related to future, according to some of the authors scenarios have a static vision, but for the others scenarios include dynamic aspects. Scenario planning is process of positioning plausible scenarios. Some of the author in this field using different name for scenario planning such as scenario thinking, scenario based planning. It includes two sides, first scenario development and then strategy development. O’brien (2003) stated that scenario planning is a soft problem structuring method and qualitative approach. Schoemaker (1997) stated that scenario planning allows more subjective element and macro environment variable than computer simulation programs. Also these methods include system dynamics and risk analysis. It is easy to conclude that scenario planning is a managerial tool of strategic thinking (Bood and Postma 1998).
Strategic planning is crucial for the success of all business endeavors. Analyzing currents trends in technology, consumer markets, competition, and the workforce can play a pivotal part in whether or not the organization can survive. Overtime, strategic planning strategies must be modified in order to compensate for changes in the industry. Goals and strategic planning often necessitate change to ensure that the organization is performing at peak level, while offering the most beneficial and quality services to consumers.
As per Henry Mintzberg, former president of the Strategic Management Society, “strategy cannot be planned because planning is about analysis and strategy is about synthesis. Strategic planning involves a structure or framework, a set of procedures both formal and informal, and of course content. Beyond these basic elements, the underlying assumptions about strategic planning are that the future can be anticipated, forecasted, managed or even controlled, and that the best way to do so is to have a formal and integrated plan about it in place. The process of planning itself may turn out to be more important than the results, and that process requires both analysis and synthesis. Planning simply introduces a formal “discipline” for conducting long-term thinking about an institution, and for recognizing opportunities in and for minimizing risks from the external and internal environments.
Dynamic strategic management encompasses the approaches, tools and activities organizations utilize to determine direction, increasing the likelihood of organizational goal attainment. It is an approach that suggests organizations operating in uncertain environments require a flexible plan to minimize risk and take advantage of opportunity As a tool developed to analyze a firm’s position within its operating environment, a Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) analysis provides insight into how internal and external factors are inhibiting or facilitating advancement toward reaching organizational objectives within a dynamic environment. This paper aims to understand how a SWOT analysis assisted the Calgary International Airport Authority create a competitive business plan for their future in an uncertain environment.
The past is often said to be the best predictor of the future. In planning and forecasting for future labor needs, based on gaps in employment levels due to advancements, demotions, or exiting employees within a company, a review of a Markov Analysis chart can reflect areas of opportunity for the organization based on past employment movements (Dartmouth, n.d.). The Doortodoor Sports Equipment Company is unique in their industry, being in the only company to sell door to door. However, this tactic as well as other HR practices could be examined to determine if changes employed increase retention or improve internal promotions. A review of the Markov Analysis for the Doortoodoor Sports Equipment Company will now be considered.
Strategic planning is a critical process for any successful business. It outlines the framework in which the organization operates. Therefore, each area of the process should be carefully considered and developed, with the understanding that some areas are relatively static, whereas other areas change and grow depending upon the environment. By far, the most important part of the strategic planning process is its implementation. If the process is never implemented, its development is just wasted energy.
Rees, J. (2012). Prescriptive strategic planning in the current economic climate and possible alternative approaches. 1-6.
There are different types of strategic planning that are currently in use, since this is a widely debated area of management. However, it is concluded that there are two main schools of thought, the prescriptive approach or the emergent approach (Lynch, 2012). As defined by Lynch, (2012) prescriptive strategic planning is the term given to a strategy whereby the objective of the strategy is defined in advance and the main elements are designed and develop...
In regards to contingency planning, there are two key definitions. A contingency plan itself is “A plan used by an organization or business unit to respond to a specific systems failu...
Strategic planning has a focus on stabilizing the current environment, and it also support the organization's business plans and goals. Strategic planning helps to implement new projects, new technology, consolidation of data centers, data warehouses, exponential data growth, cost of ownership, and resources available in an organization to assess the future requirements. Strategic planning analyzes the business plan, potential blockage or other issues in the current architecture, processes and their implementation in new initiatives, and processes. Strategic planning helps to formulate the ideas about the key factors that are affecting the present and future development of the organization and the opportunities offered by the environment and the competence of the organization.
The word scenario appears in the dictionaries with two main meanings. The first, as reported by the Cambridge Dictionary, is “a written plan of the characters and events in a play or film” so it assumes the sense of plan. For instance, in the context of movie, a scenario is, more precisely, the part of the screenwriting process which precedes the screenplay, so it is a synoptical collage of events or series of actions. In this acceptation, scenarios are used in project and product planning to represent hypothetical sequences of happenings constructed to take into account the causal interrelations.
This is the open-system view of the organization. Prior to the accident, BP was concerned with its procurement process, technology development, infrastructure and human resource. BP was also using SWOT Analysis through which the company examined strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Internal analysis here refers to BP’s capabilities and resources, which define her strengths, and weaknesses while opportunities and threats derive from the external context of BP operations. However, after the accident, BP became more aware that the external environment is where opportunities and threats exists and must be constantly monitored and scanned. This can be explained with The ‘PESTEL’ model which identifies the key elements of Political (Legislation/ Ideology, government expenditure and legislative factors); Economic (Macro-economic factors and business cycles); Socio-demographic (Changing societal attitudes towards ethical standards and life style choices); Technological (technologies that can affect an organization); Ecological / Green issues (Opportunities and threats, impact of pollution or reclying and carbon reduction) and legal factors (legislative or regulatory framework under which the company operates that create opportunities and threats). The essence of using the PESTEL model here is to identify the key drivers that allows scenario planning to occur in relation to market
In order to gain a successfully marketing plan, it is important to marketing decision makers to understand the current situation comprehensively and trends affecting the future of the organization. There are two major reasons to explain why situation analysis plays a vital role in developing marketing plan.
The strategic planning process is the formulation of the company’s major objectives and execution plans. This process is of particular interest in GE. Strategy formulation is the process of choosing the best methods for a company where customer needs; competitive position and internal capability are the three factors that play the main role in strategic planning. Every manager needs to have at least a simple notion of strategic planning to formulate his strategic plans. Strategic Planning is a wide and complex subject. Strategic Management background is an essential basis of any organization.
Strategic planning is the continuous and systematic process of guiding members of an organization to make decisions about its future, develop the necessary procedures and operations to achieve that future, and determine how success will be achieved.
Within an organization, different types of planning are necessary to help establish the visions and goals a company has. Strategic and operational planning is essential for the success of a business. For example, Sports Authority has recently filed for bankruptcy, which is likely due to a lack of planning skills. With the addition of strategic and operational planning, the risk of going bankrupt could be significantly reduced. The many planning steps and strategies involved in these types of planning are what eventually produce the most success.