Pitfalls of strategic planning

Strategic Planning

Strategic planning[1] is a management tool that helps organizations to perform well, and concentrate its energy and resources towards a commonly shared goal, to act as a light- house to track and adjust the direction in which the organization is moving in response to changing times. It is a disciplined exercise to formulate the roadmap which decides what organization is and what it will be. What it does and what it will do.

He who fails to plan, plans to fail. But what when the planning fails!

It has been found in many a times that in spite of the intellectual and operational effort put in the strategic planning fails. There are various reasons this failure can be attributed to a few of which are illustrated in this blog.

Lack of motivation and commitment [2]: Success of any venture presupposes commitment and faith, both from top and grass-roots as well. Strategic planning is not different. Lack of inspiration to strive towards the goal turns planning to shambles. Lack of communication and unidirectional mandates of planning on employees takes its toll.
It is true to say that “To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream; not only plan but also believe”[6].

Delegation Error: Wrong Planners cannot do right planning. More often strategic planning fails due to selection of wrong people to plan. Wrong people need not mean in-competent or less skilled people, it means people not best to undertake the activity on account of either their too close association with the present state of affairs which bars them from seeing a different perspective or due to their absolute un-awareness about the crux of matter.

Strategic Stubbornness[3]: In presence of anti-change stubbornness in the self-infatuated organization either at management level or at executive or employee level, any planning process is destined to fail. If the organization is fool-hardily clung to its present strategy which seems to be a mis-fit with its overall vision and changing environment, the strategic plan will surely fail.
The key is “Expect the best, plan for the worst, and prepare to be surprised”[6]

Garbage In; Garbage Out: if the resources and effort fed into the planning system is no good, the output can be no better. If the organizational know-how, the understanding of its mission and vision, assessment of its present state of health and its environment are not garbled to start with, the same can be expected for the outcome of strategic planning. Basing strategies on flawed assumption will prove the theorem wrong.


Myopic Opportunism: Strategic opportunism[3] is to be extremely focused towards present on the premise that environment is too dynamic to plan for the future. This is not bad. But too much attention to the “is” makes the planning myopic of what “will be” or “can be”.

Lack of Structure and control[4]: Lack of proper guidelines for implementation and operations of the plan results in poor understanding and operational hazards in execution. Unrealistic goals and unsupportive implementation mechanisms result in poor strategic planning.

Apart from these pitfalls there can be reasons like lack of foresight of multiple probable futures, one dimensional strategy, arbitrary goals and failure of using plans as a measure of performance management.

Though the pitfalls are numerous, but sure they are curable and avoidable. To start with a proper leadership support, with un-restricted two-way communication of information, can produce shared vision of the future. “Cathedral thinking”[5] can ensure the commitment to perform, to strive towards a clear goal, will ensure that mechanisms work and outlook is far into the horizon.

References:
1. What is strategic planning? Frequently asked questions, retrieved September 8th 2008, from http://www.allianceonline.org/FAQ/strategic_planning/what_is_strategic_planning.faq
2. Picken, J. C. and Dess, G. G. (1996). Mission critical: The 7 strategic traps that derail even the smartest companies. Irwin Professional Publishing
3. Wiley, John (2005). Creating Advantage – Synergy and vision versus Opportunism, p 8-15
4. Mintzberg, H. (1994). The rise and fall of strategic planning. New York: Free Press
5. What is cathedral Thinking?, retrieved September 8th 2008, from http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-cathedral-thinking.htm
6. Planning quotes, retrieved September 8th 2008, from http://thinkexist.com/quotations/planning/3.html