Strategic Planning: A Comprehensive Guide to the Four Phases

Strategic planning is a process that provides organizations with a sense of purpose and direction. It starts with a mission that outlines the company's goals and objectives. The four phases of strategic management are formulation, implementation, evaluation, and modification. These phases are essential for transforming a strategic plan from a document on the shelf to actions that drive organizational growth.

The average strategic planning process usually takes 3 to 4 months, but this can vary depending on the organization. Developing a strategy involves determining the main business model and organizational purpose, identifying corporate values, creating an image of what success would look like in 3 to 5 years, consolidating competitive advantages, formulating strategies for the entire organization that explain its basis, and agreeing on strategic issues that should be addressed in the planning process. The four main phases of strategic planning are: formulation, implementation, evaluation, and modification. Each phase has its own purpose and must be applied to each strategy.

Decision makers must understand the purpose of each phase in order to execute the strategy effectively.

Formulation

The formulation phase is the first step in the strategic planning process. During this phase, organizations must develop their strategic framework and define long-term strategic objectives. They must also establish intelligent short-term organizational objectives and select the measures that will constitute their KPIs (key performance indicators).

Implementation

The implementation phase is when organizations align resources and actions from the bottom up to drive their vision.

This is when they start to develop their strategy and use a strategic planning template to get started.

Evaluation

The evaluation phase is when organizations assess their progress towards achieving their goals. They must analyze their processes and internal resources offered by these products in order to determine if they are on track.

Modification

The modification phase is when organizations make changes to their strategy based on their evaluation results. This is when they adjust their objectives and goals in order to stay on track. In conclusion, strategic planning is a continuous process that organizations apply to analyze their processes and internal resources offered by these products. It involves four main phases: formulation, implementation, evaluation, and modification.

Decision makers must understand the purpose of each phase in order to execute the strategy effectively.