Strategic Planning and Implementation
Abstract
The major literature on the topic of strategic planning is examined with focus given to its use in the public sector. A case study is performed in a large state agency in Texas to describe managers' views as to the effectiveness of strategic planning in meeting its mandated purposes, and to explore how well strategic planning is integrated into other agency processes.
Managers report that strategic planning effectively establishes agency vision and overall direction. They report mixed views as to the level of involvement of agency consumers and other stakeholders. They are unanimous that coordination between agency units is not good. Integration of local planning efforts with state level strategic plans was viewed as needing improvement.
Strategic planning has not been well linked to agency appropriations requests, operational plans or performance measures. Strategic planning was reported not to be effective in coordinating and rewarding interagency initiatives, or incorporating the views of agency staff. Performance measures in the current strategic plan were criticized as imperfect measures of the quality of agency services, Strategic planning was reported to help managers and the agency to set and focus on the most important priorities, and was seen as worth the effort.
Recommendations for enhancing the subject agency strategic planning process and for future research are proposed.
