Planning and goal setting

As managers planning is an unquestionable responsibility, within the organizations improvisation is not well seen, it surely works in many aspects of life but it is not the case for the management of a company, therefore from the definition of the mission, objectives and operative plans it involves a great work of planning.

As stated in the book "Understanding management" "Planning is the most fundamental of the four management functions".  And without a correct planning it is not possible to achieve the desired objectives, the book presents 5 stages of the planning process:

1.Develop a plan, i.e., define the essential issues such as mission (the purpose of the organization), vision (where we want to go?) and strategic objectives, these objectives are broad and define how we are going to reach the planned future.

2.Translate the plan, define the objectives and tactical plans, these definitions are related to the results and plans at the level of departments or divisions of the company that have to do to achieve the overall objectives, that is more specific; a strategic map and contingency plans according to the scenarios.

3. Operation plan, define operational plans and objectives, these are specific and measurable results (KPI) that are expected from departments, work groups and individuals; crisis planning, this part is very important because all internal and external risks that may affect the operation of the company must be evaluated.

4. Performance management, performance dashboards, single use plans, in this stage all the results of the variables and indicators are obtained, this works as an x-ray of the company and gives us a forecast of how the management is going.

5.Monitor and learn, planning and operational review, this phase is translated as the analysis of the indicators, check if it is complying with the objectives.

Planning and goal setting is both necessary and beneficial as it serves as a motivator for the entire company, generates a map and guide to allocate physical, technological, knowledge and human resources and helps to establish a standard for performance measurement, although it should not be forgotten that it can also have certain negative effects as it can generate pressure on workers, even if ideal but unrealistic goals are defined in the context of the company, it can affect the performance of workers and demotivate them.

In this week of study I feel very identified with this topic because I am a very organized person who hates procrastinating, I usually organize my personal and academic tasks, I like to use schedules to organize myself day by day, I think that what I need to improve the most is the importance of implementing measurement, just as a good manager should implement smart goals I should do in my personal life, so this will be my task, I will make short-term goals for December and start setting long-term goals for the next year.

Reference:

SOURCE: Based on Robert S. Kaplan and David P. Norton, “Mastering the Management System,” Harvard Business Review (January 2008): 63–77.

Marcic, D., & Daft, R. (n.d.). Understanding management (11th ed.). cengage.