What is the management process that means selecting the best course of action in anticipation of future trends?
Role of Planning in Management
Role of Planning in Management Show Planning is the primary and most important function of management and occupies a very high position in the management process. It is the starting point of the whole management process and involves the determination of future course of action. Why an action is required, how to take an action, and when to take action are main subjects of planning for the management. Planning is a determined course of action for achieving a specific objective. It is deciding in advance what to do and how to do. It is needed at every level of management. In the absence of planning all the business activities of the organization become meaningless. The importance of planning has increased all the more in view of the increasing size of organizations and their complexities and because of uncertain and constantly changing business environment. In the absence of planning, it may not be impossible but certainly difficult to guess the uncertain events of future. Planning is one of the basic management functions. In fact it occupies the top position in the management process. It is the starting point of the management process as other management function can take place only through this function. Before doing a thing, it is necessary that the management formulates an idea of how to work on a particular task. Thus, planning is closely connected with creativity and innovation. It involves setting objectives and developing appropriate courses of action to achieve these objectives. Objectives are achieved by fixing time based goals For achieving its goals management of an organization usually works with several management plans such as business plan, production plan, maintenance plan, or marketing plan etc. Further management plans can be either short term or long term or both. Definition of planning Planning is an organization process of defining its strategy, or direction, and making decisions on allocating its resources to pursue this strategy. In order to determine the direction of the organization, it is necessary to understand its current position and the possible avenues through which it can pursue a particular course of action. The definition of planning as given by various scholars has been given below. Koontz and O’Donnel have defined planning as ‘Planning is deciding in advance what to do, how to do it, when to doit, and who is to do it.Planning bridges the gap between where we are and where we want to go. It makes it possible for things to occur which would not otherwise happen’. McFarland has defined planning as ‘Planning may be broadly defined as a concept of executive action that embodies the skill of anticipating, influencing, and controlling the nature and direction of change’. George R Terry has defined planning as ‘ Planning is the selecting and relating of facts and the making and using of assumptions regarding the future in the visualization and formulation of purposed activities believed necessary to achieve desired results’. Philip Kotler has defined planning as ‘Planning is deciding in the present what to do in future. It is the process whereby companies reconcile their resources with their objectives and opportunities’. Process of planning Planning is the process of thinking, mapping out and organizing the activities required to achieve a desired goal. Planning involves the creation and maintenance of a plan. As such, planning is a fundamental property of intelligent behaviour. This thought process is essential not only for the creation and refinement of a plan but also for its integration with other plans. It combines forecasting of developments with the preparation of scenarios of how to react to them. An important, albeit often ignored aspect of planning, is the relationship it holds with forecasting. Forecasting can be described as predicting what the future will look like, whereas planning predicts what the future should look like. In organizations, planning is also a management process, concerned with defining goals for the organization’s future direction and determining on the missions and resources to achieve those targets. To meet the goals, managers may develop plans, such as a business plan or a marketing plan. Planning always has a purpose. The purpose may be achievement of certain goals or targets. The planning helps to achieve these goals or target by using the available time and resources. Basic steps in the management planning process Management planning is the process of assessing an organization’s goals in an area of operation and creating a realistic, detailed plan of action for meeting those goals. The management planning process involves a cycle of activities. It takes into consideration short and long term strategies of the organization. The planning process ensures that important concerns and issues are not overlooked, that a range of perspectives is considered, that decisions are well informed, and that there is a real opportunity for participation for all the concerned personnel. Fig 1 Basic steps in the management planning process The following are the basic steps (Fig 1) in the management planning process which involve creating a road map that outlines each task the organization must accomplish to meet its overall objectives.
Advantages of management planning process The following are the advantages of the management planning process and its importance for an organization in conducting its business.
Which management determines the future course of action?It is the basic function of management. It deals with chalking out a future course of action & deciding in advance the most appropriate course of actions for achievement of pre-determined goals.
What are the 4 management processes?Over the years, Fayol's functions were combined and reduced to the following four main functions of management: planning, organizing, leading, and controlling.
What is the process of selecting the objectives and determining the future course of action to achieve the objectives?Planning is the process of setting objectives for a given period and formulating various courses of action to achieve them and selecting the best possible alternatives from the various courses of action available there.
What are the 5 management process?At the most fundamental level, management is a discipline that consists of a set of five general functions: planning, organizing, staffing, leading and controlling. These five functions are part of a body of practices and theories on how to be a successful manager.
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