Strategic planning examples for use in business for each step of the process

What is strategic planning for use in business, what is it for, and how can it be successfully applied? Let’s look at some strategic planning examples for use in business for each stage in this process.

Strategic planning for use in business can be defined as the formal document by which a company maps its path to success.

It is a key process for all management, who must design an appropriate strategic plan in which to formalize the business strategy in order to make it clear for the whole organization.

It is the right place to enter various useful information about the market, expected trends and strategies on how the company will move in the coming years.

In other words, strategic planning for use in business is the process by which management tries to define the future scenarios of a company and understand what the action plan will be for achieving its objectives.

Based on analyzes made by various tools, such as the SWOT matrix, Porter’s 5 forces and others, an organization must define its objectives, which will then be used in the other hierarchical levels.

Good examples of business strategic planning models define what the objectives are by first looking at what needs to be done, if the process is feasible, which actions are indispensable and what benefits are derived from them.

Objectives must be quantifiable and measurable according to the SMART objectives rule: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-based.

Strategic planning examples for use in business: divisions by hierarchical level

There are several types of organizational strategic planning:

• Strategic business planning translates the mission of a company into strategic objectives to be achieved in the long term, or that prepare the way for what will be the future of the company itself;
• Tactical business planning is when the objectives and actions refer to a medium-term period of approximately one to five years, in areas of the company, such as HR, marketing, finance, etc.;
• Operational planning is when the objectives and actions relate to a short period, usually not exceeding one year and relate to people or teams.

Strategic planning is therefore long term and is not a simple extrapolation of data and statistics on a company’s past performance.

However, good examples of strategic planning models use information from the past as a basis to help plan future goals and strategies as well as information gathered in real time through good business management software.

Therefore, it is important to analyze company strategic planning examples, for each hierarchical level of this process.

4 step strategic business planning process (model)

1. Define and clarify company mission, vision and values

The first step in organizational strategic planning should be to establish a mission, vision and values.

• A company mission is basically a statement of why it exists.
• A vision is where you want the business to go in the long run, and it can change over time, depending on when the organization really finds itself.
• Company values are the guiding principles of business decisions and what the company seeks to give its customers. These are truths in which the company believes and does not give up on.

2. Define the strategic objectives

Strategic objectives, as we have said, are broad goals that a company intends to achieve.

They must be directly related to the mission and vision of the company and will guide the definition of the other objectives: tactical and operational.

3. Define tactical objectives

Tactical goals are like organizational goals. They are goals for each sector of the company.

They should define what each sector of the company should do and establish in a way so that strategic objectives are achieved.

4. Define operational objectives (action plans)

Operational objectives are those focused on the execution of the operations and refer to each task specifically.

An action plan is an organized way, with a defined methodology, to establish goals and objectives, activities to be carried out, to point out those responsible for them and to monitor progress.

In addition to these company strategic planning examples, it’s important to talk a bit more about creating action plans.

They are the front line and final practical actions of everything that was defined by looking at the mission and vision of the company and using the strategic tools to set goals.

Topics to put together an action plan:

1. Know where you want to go;
2. Create measurable goals;
3. List the tasks to be performed;
4. Divide big tasks into smaller, more manageable parts;
5. Decide on deadlines for everyday deliveries;
6. Create a visual representation of your action plan;
7. Track your actions often.

Now that you have examples of good strategic plans, as well as the key points to put them together, get practicing!

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