In Order To Achieve Success, One Must Plan Accordingly

Introduction

Planning is the first and the most important step of any organization. Without planning the organization cannot move forward as it has no aim in the back of the mind. Planning can be defined as, “A basic management function involving formulation of one or more detailed plans to achieve optimum balance of needs or demands with the available resources. Not only the organization but also the environment is taken into consideration of a planning process. The planning process:

• Identifies the goals or objectives to be achieved
• Formulates strategies to achieve them
• Arranges or creates the means required
• Implements, directs and monitors all steps in their proper sequence.”

In an organization, each department has different plans. But the main plan is done by the CEO of the company along with some board of directors. For example the CEO of Amazon Mr. Jeff Bezos. He offered the market to the people through internet. He planned well about how to go with the organization, he studied the demands of people and now amazon is a very successful online retailer all over the globe. Thus planning is a process where an objective is been made and the further process will go on. Henry Fayol took planning as a part of rules or duties of management. Planning can be short term as well as long term. The business has to make short term and long term plans for the organization. Planning is divided into four types.

Short term planning

Short term planning is when the goal or target is achieved in a year or in a lesser time. The achievement of that plan might be today, tomorrow or any day but only before a year gets over. A short term plan can help to achieve a long term plan to. They both are interrelated. For example increasing the advertisement budget a little higher for the next 4 months can result in more advertisement which will result in a long term plan of selling more of the products. Short term planning has both negative and positive aspects in an organization and in personal life too.

Positive aspects

Measurable success: short term plans or goals provide you with measurable success. It encourages us to continuously set up goals after finishing the previous goals. For example, a decision to impose bureaucracy in the rules of an organization and then to see them getting fulfilled, which is healthy for the organization to grow up well is an example of how it measures the decision role of an organization. Another example is if a person wants to lose on some pounds in 1 month he will work more hard and then change will come and then he may set some other goals. In this way the development of success can be seen through short term and fast goals.

Motivation: The behavioral management theory focuses on the motivation given by the employers to the employee and encourage them to perform at high levels and to be committed and achieve the targets of organizations. In short term plans motivation is very much needed as the goal has to be completed within a specific time limit. Motivation helps the goals to be done at a faster pace. For example I was heading an event in church and we had a one month time given to plan everything and start organizing. With the help of the seniors and their extreme motivation towards me I could complete the task of planning very well in advance.

Direction: The best part of short term plan or goals is that they direct us to the right path. In an organization a short decision like increasing the salary of the employees can result in a way where the employees work more hard to complete a certain task. Setting up short term plans can help the organization to know what all long term changes might occur in the organization. Changes can be made in short term plans.

Negative aspects

Less time: Short term planning is where the duration is less for the task to be completed. It becomes difficult to complete many things is just a small span. This is one of the top negative aspects of short term planning. In some cases theory X will be applied a sin short term planning the time is less and work load might be more so workers might be forced to work for more hours.

Miscommunication: in short term plans communication might not be in a proper circle. There might be some miscommunication during the plan as the whole communication cycle cannot be completed. Communication may be done directly to the respected departments as the duration will be less.

Resources; though it uses less resources it is difficult to mobilize the resources in short term planning. As there is hardly time to complete one goal it becomes difficult to mobile the resources.

Long term planning

Long term planning is sometime supported by the short term plans. Short term plans sometimes are the starting point for the long term plan. Long term goals shape the overall direction of an organization. They are inherently strategic. These plans are the goals which can be achieved more than a 5 year span. For example, the plan of doing graduation or having one’s own business are long term plans. Even long term planning has both positive and negative aspects in an organization as well as in a personal life.

Positive aspects

Time: In long term planning the time or the duration for the goal to be achieved is longer than short term planning. In long term planning the implementation is of those plans are done properly as there is no urgency to complete a task. There is sufficient time to plan and do research on what we have planned, how to do those plans, what are the resources available, etc. For example I want to complete my graduation from Australia so I must have planned this well before in advance. I did some researches of the best universities of Australia. And now I am working on the direction of the graduation. I took the help of many student counselors, did many researches and then fixed up on my plan to graduate from Australia.

Confidence and moving towards goals: Long term planning gives us a self-confidence to work more hard and reach that goal we have made for ourselves. Self-confidence is needed for a manager to sustain the organization. Theory Y is applicable here as in many cases employees do their work by themselves as there is sufficient time. Fayol’s principle of division of labor would be applicable as a long term plan is where workers have to work hard according to their departments. It helps us to work towards our goals. The support and togetherness of all departments is needed as a long term planning sets such a goal where team work is needed to move towards the goal. For example: an organization has planned to increase its sales by the next 3-4 years then the advertisement department, marketing department, sales department and the product department have to work a lot towards this plan of their organization. Increasing sales is not an easy task!

Changes and effective control: In a long term planning changes and frequent evaluation is possible. Through changes and frequent evaluation the weak points comes up and then the changes can take place to cover up those weak points. Long term planning includes effective control. Through proper controlling of the departments, the process plans can be fulfilled. For example: In India an organization follows the pattern of financial year. But some organization makes frequent balance sheet once in every four months to know their standing in the market and to overcome the weaknesses. Through this they will move forward towards their main goal.

Negative aspects

Prediction: The prediction of the future uncertainties is difficult as we cannot predict as such of what is going to happen next in the organization. The future is full of uncertainties and difficulties will come in an organization. For example: A person who wants to do graduation will study hard but still will have some or the other difficulties in the path of the graduation. Difficulties like managing part time job, college life and personal life together is a task and a difficulty. In personal life predictions can be made but in an organization prediction can rarely be made.

Resources: Resources are required a lot for long term planning process. In the long term plans the objectives of the organization is high and so the more resources are required to achieve that target set by the organization.

Targets and Objectives: In long term planning, the objectives and targets might not be achieved. It is because when a long term planning is done not only one objective is formed but many other more objectives are made.

Manager’s role

In all the decisional role that a manager plays in an organization, the decisions should be efficient and effective. Based on the decisions of the manager the organization will move forward. The decisions of the manager is very important. It depends on the manager to take a short term plan or a long term plan. But in both cases the manager has to think a lot and do a lot research before he declare his decisions about a plan. For example the McDonald’s case of India. When McDonald’s started an enterprise in India they did not know about the culture and the people of India. They started with serving beef. But as beef was banned in India and the Indian’s looked forward for vegetarian burgers, the manager did not do a proper research before planning to set up an enterprise in India and that is why they failed. But later on he did the proper research and came up with different varieties of burgers and became successful. So for a planning process a proper research and collection of resources is needed. Planning should be done efficiently and effectively by the manager. In planning communication skills is very much needed. Technological and knowledge is needed for the process of planning. The manger should acquire such skills for a good planning process.

Conclusion

Thus we conclude that planning being the first step for any organization it is needed to segregate planning between short term and long term. Planning process end with the achievement of the goals set up by the organization or by a person. Different skills are needed to do planning. Thus without planning an organization is just making wishes. After planning process the leadership process comes in. Thus planning is the heart of the organization.