Planning

Requires decisions on …..

• What should be done • How it should be done • Who will be responsible • Where the action is to be taken • Why is it done

Planning is the first step of management process concerned with the establishment of objectives and analysis of present limitations

for attaining such goals

Advantages

• Increases the organization’s ability to adopt future eventualities • Helps crystallize objectives • Ensures a relatedness among decision• Helps the company remain more competitive in its industry

• Reduces unnecessary pressures of immediacy • Reduces mistakes and oversights • Ensures a more productive use of resources • Makes control easier • Increases effectiveness of a manager • Helps the organization progress in a manner considered most

suitable

Limitations

• Effectiveness depends upon correctness of assumptions

• Planning is expensive

• Planning delays actions

• Encourages a false sense of security

Guidelines for effective planning:

• Involve top management only at key points in the planning process

• Involve line execs in developing the plans

• Do not look for the perfect answer

• Planning should provide realistic targets & alternatives ways to achieve them

• Plans should start on a small scale and e expanded only when the execs have learned the technique & have become convinced of their usefulness

Steps ….• Crystallizing the opportunity • Securing and analyzing necessary information• Establishing planning promises and constraints • Ascertaining alternative courses of action or plans • Selecting the optimum plan • Determining derivative plans • Fixing timing of introduction • Arranging future evaluation of effectiveness of the

plan

Types of plans

According to time dimension:

• Short term: Upto one year

• Medium Term: >1 yr but <5yrs

• Long term : >5yrs

Types of plans • Objectives/goals • Strategies & tactics • Standards• Budgets • Policies • Procedures • Programmes • Rules • Methods

Goals /objectives

• End results to be achieved • They give direction to activities• Require creative thinking and foresight

Strategies and tactics

• Strategies are aimed at counteracting the actions of the opponents

• Tactics are immediate decisions based on the executive’s judgement and experience whilst facing an actual situation

Standards

• Measure of level of achievement

• Very helpful in evaluating deviations from the plan

Budgets

• Used as both- planning and control device

• May be expressed in units of product, finance etc

Policies

• General statements aimed at guiding thinking whilst making decisions

Eg: “promotions should be from within the company or the existing staff”

Procedures

Involves a selection and establishment of a logical series of tasks within the framework of predetermined policies and objectives

Programmes

• Programme integrates policies, procedures etc required for effecting a certain course of action

Rules

• Rules are related to procedures as they guide action but there Is no time sequence involved

Eg: Procedure for handling mail may require a rule “all letters received should be replied to on the same day”

Methods:

• Prescribes specifically and in detail how a task is to be done

• Constitutes the best method of performing a task