Text 9. Setting Objectives and Planning

Planning is the function of management that involves setting objectives and determining a course of action for achieving these objectives. In the new business environment of rapid changes, heightened risk and uncertainty, developing effective strategies is critical. They prepare executives to face the strategic uncertainties ahead and serve as the focal point for creative thinking about a company's vision and direction.

Many companies get little value from their annual strategic-planning process however. To meet the new challenges, this process should be redesigned to support real-time strategy making. Strategic planning takes place at the highest levels; other managers are involved with operational planning. The first step in operational planning is defining objectives - the result expected by the end of the budget (or other designated) cycle. Operations generate today's value, while ventures create tomorrow's opportunities. The primary difference between operations planning and venture planning is uncertainty. There are four keys to good venture planning: 1.Focus on one venture at a time in one business area at a time. 2. Discover the opportunity first, and then evaluate how to exploit it. 3. Develop three cases good, bad & likely for each scenario of a venture concept. 4. Identify what type of venture you want. Each type has an entirely different model, implementation and end result. Each demands a different entrepreneurial approach.

The major outcome of strategic road-mapping and strategic planning, after gathering all necessary information, is the setting of goals for the organization based on its vision and mission statement. A goal is a long-range aim for a specific period. It must be specific and realistic. Long-range goals set through strategic planning are translated into activities that will ensure reaching the goal through operational planning.

A goal is an end that the organization strives to attain. However, the supervisor cannot "do" a goal. Supervisors break down processes, analyze them, set objectives and then drive hard to achieve them. Doing the same thing and expecting different results doesn't work. The supervisor must write an objective for what he or she is trying to accomplish. Thus, an objective is the object or aim of an action. It implies an explicit direction for the action to take and a specific quality of work to be accomplished within a given period of time. Objectives reflect the desired outcomes for individuals, groups and organizations. They provide direction for decision-making and a criterion against which outcomes are measured. Thus, objectives are the foundation of planning.

An objective is a specific step, a milestone, which enables you to accomplish a goal. Setting objectives involves a continuous process of research and decision-making. Knowledge of yourself and your unit is a vital starting point in setting objectives. The objectives must be: be focused on a result, not an activity; be consistent; be specific; be measurable; be related to time; be attainable. They are expected to be SMART: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Rewarding and Timed.

Setting right objectives is critical for effective performance management. Such objectives as higher profits, shareholder value, customer satisfaction may be admirable, but they don't tell managers what to do. They fail to specify priorities and focus. Such objectives don't map the journey ahead - the discovery of better value and solutions for the customer.

 

Exercise 6 6 . Answer the questions.

1. What does planning involve? 2. At what level does strategic planning take place? 3. What is operational planning? 4. What does the success of venture planning depend on? 5. What is a goal? 6. What is the role of a supervisor in the goal-setting process? 7. What does an objective differ from a goal?

 

Exercise 6 7 . Give Ukrainian equivalents.

Business environment, heightened risk, strategic uncertainties, focal point, annual strategic planning process, venture planning, at a time, operations planning, long-range aim, explicit direction, research process, performance management, to specify priorities, to map the journey.

 

Exercise 68. Find English equivalents.

Майбутні обставини, підприємницький підхід, встановлювати цілі, збирати інформацію, перелік цілей та цінностей компанії, керівники, стратегічна гра в реальному масштабі часу, використовувати, очікувати результат, класифікувати процеси, бажаний результат.

 

Exercise 6 9 . Find in the text past participles in the function of right or left attribute. Make up sentences with them.

 

Exercise 70 . Learn the following definitions.

 

Strategic planning	involves long-term frame (3 years and more) analyzing competitive opportunities and threats, strengths and weaknesses of the organization, and then determining how to position the organization to compete effectively in their environment.
Tactical planning	is intermediate-range planning (from 1 to 3 years) designed to develop relatively concrete and specific means to implement the strategic plan.
Operational planning	is a short-range planning (from 1 week to 1 year) that generally assumes the existence of objectives and specifies ways to achieve them. It is designed to develop specific action steps that support the strategic and tactical plans.
Mission statement	tells what the company is now. It concentrates on the present and defines the customer and the critical processes, informs of the desired level of performance.
Vision statement	outlines what the company wants to be. It concentrates on the future and is a source of inspiration, provides clear decision-making criteria.

Exercise 71 . Translate into English.

1. Планування, пов’язане з майбутнім впливом сьогоденних рішень. 2. Місія стосується масштабу бізнесу і того, що відрізняє компанію від подібних компаній. 3. Стратегії є результатом стратегічного планування. 4. Менеджери компанії залучаються до процесу встановлення цілей і визначення курсу дій для досягнення цих цілей. 5. Планування може бути довгостроковим, середньостроковим та короткостроковим. 6. Перш ніж прийняти рішення, менеджерам необхідно зібрати інформацію. 7. Планування може бути поділеним на дві категорії залежно від шкали часу та цілі планування. 8. Стратегічне планування є процесом визначення місії компанії, визначення загальних цілей організації та розміщення ресурсів для досягнення цілей. 9. Оперативне планування полягає у контролі менеджерами середньої ланки та контролерами щоденної роботи відділів. 10. Для того, щоб досягти довгострокових цілей, необхідно повідомити концепцію компанії підлеглим.

 

Exercise 72. Read, translate and give the gist of text 10.

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