Strategic Planning

The history of strategic planning goes back to the military. According to Webster's New World Dictionary, strategy is "the science of planning and directing large-scale military operations, of maneuvering forces into the most advantageous position prior to actual engagement with the enemy". Although our understanding of strategy as applied in management has been transformed, one element remains key: aim to achieve competitive advantage.

Strategic planning in organizations originated in the 1950s and was very popular and widespread between mid-1960s to mid-1970s. At that time, corporate America was "obsessed" with strategic planning. Following that "boom", strategic planning was cast aside and abandoned for over a decade. The 1990s brought the revival of strategic planning as a "process with particular benefits in particular contexts" (Mintzberg, 1994).

These days, Iranian companies are facing an ever increasing pressure of competition at the local and global level. The globalization stream has changed the nature of competition, has blurred the geographical borders and has facilitated the flow of information, financial, technological and human resources.

Regarding this fact, organizations need to formulate a world class strategy considering proper alliances and partnerships, benchmarking with proper partners, implications of globalization, implications of global division of labor and geographical advantages.

Farineh uses a robust methodology in strategic planning that provides extensive information about internal and external environment. Followings are some distinctive features of this methodology:

    1- An integrated view of organizational processes, systems, structure, human resources, technology,

        culture and leadership.

    2- Using global and local benchmarking to identify the gaps.

    3- Scrutinizing the environment with an extensive approach.

    4- Using collaborative decision making tools to envision the future.

    5- Using a well structured methodology for action planning.