planning

Planning

The process of setting goals, developing strategies, and outlining tasks and schedules to accomplish the goals.
Planning is the process of deciding in advance what is to be done, where, how and by whom it is to be done. Planning as a process involves anticipation of future course of events and deciding the best course of action. Thus, it is basically a process of ‘thinking before doing’.

Nature Of Planning

The nature of planning can be highlighted by studying its characteristics.

They are as follows:

a)     Planning is a mental activity(use ur mind)

Planning is not a simple process. It is an intellectual exercise and involves thinking and forethought (anticipate) on the part of the manager.

(b)Planning is goal-oriented

Every plan specifies the goals to be attained in the future and the steps necessary to reach them.

 A  manager cannot do any planning, unless the goals are known.

(c) Planning is forward looking

 It is futuristic in nature since it is performed to accomplish some objectives in future.

      (d) Planning pervade(sets up) all managerial activity

Planning is the basic function of managers at all levels.

(e) Planning is the primary function

Planning logically precedes the execution of all other managerial functions.

(f) Planning is based on facts

             It is based on objectives, facts(data) and considered forecasts. Thus planning is not a guess work.

(g)Planning is flexible

Planning is a dynamic process capable of adjustments in accordance with the needs and requirements of the situations. Thus planning has to be flexible and cannot be rigid.

(i)               Planning is essentially decision making

 Planning is a choice activity as the planning process involves finding the alternatives and the selection of the best. Thus decision making is the cardinal part of planning.

Significance of Planning

The importance and usefulness of planning can be understood with reference to the following benefits.

(a)Minimizes uncertainty.

The future is generally uncertain and things are likely to change with the passage of time.

Planning helps in minimizing the uncertainties of the future as it anticipates future events.

(b)Emphasis on objectives

The first step in planning is to fix the objectives. When the objectives are clearly fixed, the execution of plans will be facilitated towards these objectives.

(c)Promotes coordination.

 Planning helps to promote the coordinated effort on account of pre-determined goals.

(d)Facilitates control.

 Planning and control are inseparable in the sense that unplanned actions cannot be controlled. Control is nothing but making sure that activities conform to the plans.

(e)Improves competitive strength.

Planning enables an enterprise to discover new opportunities, which give it a competitive edge.

(f)Economical operation. Since planning involves a lot of mental exercise, it helps in proper utilization of resources and elimination of unnecessary activities. This, in turn, leads to economy (saving)in operation.

(g)Encourages innovation.

 Planning is basically the deciding function of management. Many new ideas come to the mind of a manager when he is planning. This creates an innovative and foresighted attitude among the managers.

(h)Tackling complexities of modern business.

With modern business becoming more and more complex, planning helps in getting a clear idea about what is to be done, when it is to be done, where it is to be done and how it is to be done.