Planning (Meaning and Explanation)

We explain what planning is in an organization, its principles and other characteristics. Also, differences with planning.

What is planning?

In the organizational and business field, planning, planning or planning is one of the initial stages of the administrative process, in which the fundamental features of the organization (the mission and objectives, generally) are determined. That is to say, It is the stage in which the basic plans to be undertaken with the organization are established.

Planning is a fundamental decision-making stage to be able to chart the desired path towards the organization's objectives. For this internal and external factors are taken into account capable of influencing the achievement of the goals set, the elements of the current situation and the values that will govern the organization throughout the productive activity.

There are different forms of planning, depending on the specific area to which the activities will be dedicated.

Planning principles

Planning occurs according to the following fundamental steps:

Exploration of opportunities It involves an evaluation of the context and the resources possessed, as a starting point to be able to begin the planning of any type of process.
Establishment of objectives You cannot plan anything without first knowing what goals we must achieve, which is perhaps the most important point of all planning, since the following will depend on it.
Establishment of the premises This means the evaluation of the available resources, the possible paths and the possible mechanisms to be used to obtain the objectives already set. At this stage it is essential to take note of possible setbacks and eventualities.
Evaluation of alternatives Once the paths to take and the resources to use have been considered, it is important to evaluate the possible alternatives, even those that do not come to mind at first glance, to have as complete and broad a picture as possible.
Selection of the path to follow After a total evaluation of the possibilities, the time comes for decision-making, that is, to adopt the plan established in the previous steps and begin to implement it, taking note of unforeseen events and providing feedback to the decision-making in order to be able to do so. have control mechanisms.
Formulation of derived plans The plan prepared will inevitably require other minor or parallel plans, which will emerge from the activity itself and which must be evaluated individually, repeating the scheme detailed so far and whose resolution will bring us closer to the objectives of our main plan.

Importance of planning

successful planning — Thorough planning is not a guarantee of success, but it is a solid starting point.

Planning is a key stage in the development of any project, since allows you to lay the foundations and design the necessary strategies. This is the very foundation of the project: the determination of its fundamental elements, such as procedures, values, objectives, etc., which constitute the very skeleton of the organization's activity.

Thorough planning is not necessarily a guarantee of success, but it is a solid starting point from which to anticipate inconveniences and avoid excessive improvisation, with all the risks that the latter implies.

Planning characteristics

Planning is characterized by four fundamental features:

Unit That is, be organic, address all the organization's plans at the same time and orchestrate them within an overall plan that reflects the spirit and objectives of the organization. Coherence and cohesion between specific plans is essential for success.
Continuity Planning is not something that is carried out just once, although many things will be defined after a first stage of organizational planning. But there will be continuous planning, since new activities will continually be developed, solving problems, expanding areas, etc. Every activity must always respond to a plan.
Precision Plans must always be precise, that is, be as vague and diffuse as possible, so that when putting them into practice there are no gaps and holes that give room for improvisation and error.
Penetrability Plans should not be considered a straitjacket for the organization, but rather they should have room to incorporate information obtained along the way and should be flexible enough to face unexpected situations without completely losing their spirit and direction. This includes consideration of non-hierarchical staff in decision making.

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Types of planning

There are many ways to classify an organization's plans. For example, if we look at its development over time, we will distinguish short, medium and long term plans depending on how much time they require to be carried out: a little, more or a lot.

In a similar way we can pay attention to the frequency of use of the plans, thus distinguishing between specific plans, of specific application; technical, linked to solving problems or improving basic aspects; or permanent, which are those that constitute the core of the organization and are constantly being carried out.

On the other hand, based on its nature, we can distinguish between:

Missions. The plans to complete the basic tasks of any company or organization.
Goals Goals and purposes that are sought to be achieved in order to fulfill the missions.
Strategies Action programs that detail how the organization's resources and efforts are managed to achieve its particular goals.
Policies. Organizational premises that define the company's way of understanding itself, which in turn guides decision-making and resource management.
Procedures Plans that determine the ideal way to approach a situation or solve a problem, through chronological sequences of required actions.
Programs It is a set of rules, policies, procedures and steps to follow that guarantee compliance with certain actions, generally when they have already been carried out previously.
Budgets These are financial plans that detail the specific way in which the organization's resources will be used, always with a certain projective or ideal margin.

Planning and planning

Some authors on the subject distinguish between:

Planning It points to the future and is much more general.
Planning. It's much more specific.

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However, there is a lot of discrepancy on the matter and the Spanish language does not distinguish such nuances in the use of both words, so They are practically synonymous.

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