Planning
A manager is supposed to operate in a dynamic economy. Planning is the initial task of every manager who has to face challenges created by changes. Successful managers deal with foreseen challenges whereas unsuccessful managers struggle with unforeseen challenges. Every enterprise which strives to survive and grow must give emphasis on planning. A manager foresees opportunities and devises ways and means to take advantage of them. He converts adversities in to opportunities. In a competitive business world, a manager cannot wait for favourable circumstances. He has to decide in the face of uncertainties with proper planning.
Meaning and Definitions
According to Koontz and O'Donnel "planning involves selecting enterprise objective, departmental goals and programmes and determining the ways of reaching them
Nature/Features of Planning
Planning is a deliberate un conscious activity to the design and l sequence of actions through which it is expected to reach the objectives.
1. Goal oriented: Every organisation has to fulfil certain objectives. Every plan must contribute towards the accomplishment of these objectives.
2. Primary function: Planning is the basic function of management All other functions are performed to implement the plans
3. All Pervasive : Planning is required at all levels of management. Top management undertakes long-range plans and policies Middle management prepares plans various departments. Lower level management is concerned with short-range plans for daily or weekly operation
4. Forward looking: Planning is locking ahead and preparing for the future. It is never done for the past. The very purpose of planning is to meet future events effectively
5. Continuous process: Planning is a continuous process. A plan is prepared for a specific period if the At the end of that period, a new plan is prepared accordance with the requirement of future conditions
6. Intellectual process: Planning is a mental exercise requiring imagination, rational thinking, vision and foresight, sound judgement etc. It can be effectively done by intelligent persons. It is based on logical and systematic thinking and scientific studies rather than on guess work
7. Flexible and elastic: Plan are prepared in anticipation of future situation. But the actual situation may differ from what has been forecasted earlier. Therefore, planning requires modifications. So the plans have to be flexible
8. Designed for efficiency and economy: Sound planning must result in efficiency and economy. 9. Involves choice: Planning is essentially a process of choosing among alternatives. Proper planning involves right choice between the available alternatives after careful analysis and evaluation.
10. Integrated process: Planning is a structured process and different plans constitute a hierarchy. Every lower level plan serves as a means towards the end of higher plans.
Importance of Planning (Need/Objectives/Advantages)
1. Planning focuses attention on objectives: It makes objectives clear and specific and directs attention of the activities towards the accomplishment of objectives.
2. Planning makes activities meaningful: It makes workers and management understand how their activities relate to organisational goals. Everyone becomes conscious of what he has to do and his contribution towards the attainment of objectives.
3. It reduces the risk of uncertainty: Planning helps to identify potential dangers and make due provisions for them. Thus by predicting future conditions, risks due to uncertainty can be reduced.
4. It facilitates decision making: Planned targets serve as the criteria for the evaluation of different alternatives so that the best course of action may be chosen. Prediction of future planning helps in taking future-oriented decision. Without planning decision will not be effective.
5. It helps co-ordination: Individual activities are directed towards the objectives of the enterprise. As planning lays down the goals and it helps in co-ordination in attaining the goals.
6.It provides a basis of control: Plans serve as standards for the evaluation perturance. Sosind planning enables management to control the events the than be controlled by them. It permits control by exception. Exception principe state that the top level managers and not interfere on the routine affairs of the organisation. But they must have to concentrate their attention on prominent matters
It promotes creativity: It provides an opportunity to managers to give suggestion to improve their performance to achieve higher targets & Planning leads to economy and efficiency: Planning suggests the exac requirements of manpower, materials, etc. It helps to avoid wastage and inefficiency. Thus it leads to increased productivity
9. Planning reduces uncertainty and risk: Uncertainty and change are inevitable in an organisation and planning cannot eliminate them. But planning enables a organisation to cope with uncertainty and change.
10. Planning provides sense of direction: Planning directs human efforts the contribute to the accomplishment of the goals. It makes the work more meaningfand activities more orderly.
Principles of Planning
1. Principle of contribution to objectives: The purpose of long, medium, and sh range plans should be to accomplish organisational objectives effectively economically
Principle of pervasiveness of planning: Planning is found at all levels management. Strategic planning or long-range planning is related to management, but medium range and short range planning are related in the mid and operating management respectively.
3. Principle of limiting factors: Planning must take the limiting factors like m machines, money materials and management into consideration. While developi alternative plans, strategies, policies or standards, these limiting factors are considered.