Strategic planning is a management activity used to set priorities, strengthen operation, focus energy and resources, and ensure employees and other stakeholders are working in unison towards a common goal or strategy of the organization. In contrast, operational planning is the inherent process of organizing and coordinating the resources of an organization in the most effective way to offer the best value for the stakeholders of the organization.
Similarities and differences
Differences
While strategic planning involves planning that occurs at the corporate level, operational planning entails planning that takes place at the functional level. According to Surbhi (2015), strategic planning is focused on attaining long-term objectives of a business whereas operational planning is undertaken to achieve short-term objectives of the organization. Additionally, operational planning is done to support strategic planning. Another comparative difference between the two stems from the environment they operate in. In this regard, while strategic planning deals with both internal and external environments of business, operational planning only concerns itself with the internal environment.
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Similarities
Both plans are undertaken to achieve certain objectives of a business. Also, both planning processes involve a particular predefined timeframe; while strategic planning focuses on long-term goals, operational planning focuses on the short-term objectives of a business. Moreover, given their time sensitivity, both plans affect business decisions. In addition, both planning processes are as a result of plans formulated from the usual assumptions and expected outcomes. Moreover, both planning processes affect the internal environment of a business, thus demonstrating the centrality of the business environment to both planning processes.
Managers’ Role in Operational and Strategic Planning
In essence, both planning processes, especially operational planning is crucial in managing an organization. Indeed, a manager may use this type of plan to deduce detailed information on what objectives must be achieved and the processes to be followed. Therefore, a manager in an organization must consistently check the implementation of the operational plan and subsequently exercise control of the organization energy or resources to ensure success. Among the factors to be monitored by the manager include timeliness, the budget, physical resources, performance measures, and the responsibilities of every employee towards achieving a robust operational plan.
On the other hand, a strategic planning manager is initially involved in clarifying the different progressive steps of the strategic planning process to the employee and other involved staff. The manager’s role is, therefore, to ensure completion of the process from formulation to execution. To this end, the manager can be involved in other strategies therein such as process facilitation or advising the planning team and the senior management during strategy development. In addition, upon completion of the process, the manager will ensure that the plan is appropriately implemented based on the company strategies and objectives. In a nutshell, under the strategic planning, the managers’ roles are achieved by forming planning teams, assisting, advising, and facilitating (Executive Consultancy Service, 2017).
Employees are the main resources in an organization, and as such, involving them in the management planning process results in key benefits. Since both strategic and operational planning is visionary and entails the achievement of specific objectives, involving employees by communicating the goals of the plan will give them a sense of direction and focus (Green and Hedges, 2011). Additionally, employee engagement is central to inspiring motivation and direction to complete the planning process and implementing it fully. Moreover, engaging the staff in the management planning gives them a sense of ownership to the planning process and the overall plan. Consequently, they become more willing to meet the objectives in the best interest of the organization. With a sense of ownership comes trust between the employees and the management, which culminates in a bolstered performance in meeting both the short-term and long-term goals.
Influence on Culture, Ethics, And Social Responsibility
Organizational culture has an immense impact on the performance of the organization. In essence, it could determine its success or failure. Hiring is a salient operational function that supports the organization’s strategy and objective. As such, managers such as HRs can recruit staff whose aspirations and visions align with the organization’s culture. Additionally, managers can consider changing both the internal and external strategic elements such as the organization’s purpose and values, which ultimately influence internal strategies and culture. For instance, if managers in a green-friendly organization change the values of the organization to promote environmental responsibility internally, it would affect the company’s culture and the internal strategy.
On the other hand, ethics within an organization is substantially linked with employee engagement. When management constantly includes employees in decision making or ask for their feedback in the planning process, they may feel important and subsequently depict ethical behavior. Moreover, operational planning involves the pursuit and attainment of the organization’s vision. Consequently, the managers’ incorporation of ethical standards within the vision of the company could inspire and enforce ethical behavior in the organization. Since strategic planning focuses on the internal environment, which includes employees, strategic managers can set up policies pertinent to ethics around the workplace that ensure ethical behavior. For instance, strategic managers can develop a progressive discipline policy, which addresses certain ethical practices and related penalties thus enforcing ethical behavior.
Social responsibility is a strategic function that can determine the success or failure of an organization. Strategic managers can liaise with operational managers to align employee goals and objectives with the corporate social responsibility goals. For instance, if the reduction of the environmental carbon footprint is the company’s CSR strategy, operational managers could assign employees individual goals such as process efficiency or reducing resource consumption which align with the overall objective. Moreover, operational managers can influence social responsibility of the company by communicating to the employees the CSR goals and activities thereby creating a company culture which is in tandem with the goals.
References
Executive Consultancy Service. (2017). Strategic Planning Manager. Retrieved from http://www.simply-strategic-planning.com/strategic-planning-manager.html
Green, H. & Hedges, K. (2011). Why Engaging Your Employees Is The Answer To Strategic Planning. Forbes Media . Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/work-in-progress/2011/03/16/why-engaging-your-employees-is-the-answer-to-strategic-planning/#6b06bf7f7330
Sirbhi, S. (2015). Difference Between Strategic Planning and Operational Planning. Key Differences . Retrieved from https://keydifferences.com/difference-between-strategic-planning-and-operational-planning.html
