The Criticism of Planning - Paper Example

Planning is an integral part of the overall organizational success. It refers to the process of creation and formulation of comprehensive activities in line with the organizational goals and objectives to establish an overall strategy for achieving short-term and long-term organizational goals and objectives. Planning can either be formally or informally done. Formal planning involves the writing down of the plans and circulating them to the concerned parties while informal planning means mostly verbalizing the plans with little or no documentation. Organizations undertake the planning process for various reasons. Planning acts as a pointer for day to day running of the organization as well as for long-term undertakings. In the ever changing business world, planning works as a redactor of change impacts on the organization by enhancing preparedness levels. Planning also makes sure resource maximization is prioritized therefore averting waste and eliminating redundancy in the work process. Planning also acts as a benchmark against which organizational progress can be measured. However, despite all these benefits, planning critics point out weaknesses of planning including the planning equilibrium, future uncertainties, rigidity and its capacity to limit invention and innovation.

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Planning equilibrium is cited as a weakness in the competitive business world (Alexander, 2015). Since planning is a uniform technique used by every organization, it may create predictability to the business competitors (Pautsch and Steininger, 2014). Since every organization is trying to carve its niche in the crowded marketplace, this denies the organizations a competitive advantage which is a necessity for standing out to the customers bombarded by many brands offering similar goods and services (Jaffin, 2013). Planning, therefore, limits the competitiveness levels in the marketplace which negatively affect the organizations' customer attraction and limit their sales maximization

Planning is also based on a projected future which is uncertain with unknown factors that the organization has no control over (Nelson, 2012). The basis leads to organizations basing their present running on an unpredictable future which is risky to the financial as well as the human resource aspects of the process (Dzierozynski and Fleming, 2010). Economic factors like depression, inflation and the overall state of the economy are hard to predict and considering the point of planning is preparedness, these factors question the utility of the planning process. Planning also leads to over-concentration on the future eventualities leading to ignorance of the present situation which is bad for the business process (Dzierozynski and Fleming, 2010). The fact that planning is meant to create preparedness is therefore limited by the unpredictable economic, social and political environments which are hard to account for or give estimates for.

The planning process is considered a primary management function. This gives it an ivory tower perspective which means that it is exclusively a top-management affair (Dzierozynski and Fleming, 2010). This concept is susceptible to creating tension between the planning formulators and its implementers. This also makes planning a source of rigidity in the operations of the organizations. Since it sets out what is to be followed in the day to day running of the organization, it acts as a rigid set of rules to work by. The rigidity inhibits invention and innovation in the work process which leads to monotony which in turn leads to low job satisfaction levels and low levels of output from the employees (Garcia, Rodriguez, and Machin, 2013). Planning, therefore, affects the present work operations in emphasizing too much on the future (Kozub, 2011). The implementation of planning is also limited by dynamism. Since it is a set process, it cannot, therefore, work in an ever evolving and changing environment hence limiting its applicability across organizations.

How Managers Can Effectively Plan In Today Dynamic Environment

Managers can use Customer Relationship Management to effectively plan their organizational activities in today's ever-evolving business environment (Garcia, Rodriguez, and Machin, 2013). This is a strategy that involves the management of customer relationships for both present and prospective customers. This is a valuable planning tool since it facilitates the connectivity of the organization and its customers which is important in improving customer outcomes for stronger customer relations for customer attraction and retention (Dzierozynski and Fleming, 2010). Customer relationship management enhances contact management through the analysis of the client contact, sales and productivity management (Kozub, 2011). Customer Relationship Management facilitates more personalized customer service as well as stakeholder engagement which is an active pointer in planning for the meeting of their future needs.

Benchmarking refers to the assessment of the quality of an organizations policies, products, programs and strategies against established standard industrial measures or those of its competitors (Chermarck, 2011). Benchmarking can either be done competitively or strategically (Campbell, 2012). Competitive benchmarking can be an indispensable tool for managers planning when evaluating their organizations position in their respective industry as they seek to compare leadership performance practices (Catlin, Legutko, and Klingler, 2012). Strategic benchmarking is the best planning tool when the manager seeks to measure their company performance against a world-class performance outside their industry (Anderson, 2011). Benchmarking can help managers effectively plan by identifying best industrial performances for self-improvement to gain or fortify their competitive edge.

References

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