The Strategic Planning Process

What are the strategic initiatives?

As the name suggests strategic initiatives are steps or programs that are initiated by the company which will help it in achieving its various goals and objectives timely. They are also able to enhance a company’s performance as well and impact the remaining ones too. Strategic initiatives are also known as measurable changes contributing to the performance of the organization greatly.

Strategic initiatives are not just planed randomly, there are problem steps in deciding the strategic initiatives and then taking them forwarding and observing if they were ever any good.

The process of planning

To see if a strategic initiative has been successful or not a proper process is followed to analyze the situation and conditions before and after

• Analysis

Before deciding on the initiative, it is important to analyze the current situation of the company. Have a look at the existing needs of the company and its employees, and identifying the drawbacks and deficiencies accordingly. Also, looking at the various competitions in the market and if the marketplace is going accordingly to your wants or not. Then you can know about the strategic initiative that would be best to go forward with.

• Development and planning

The next step is development and planning. After the first step is completed successfully, companies or individuals brainstorm, setting the strategic initiatives that they would be able to play to their strengths and achieve success accordingly. Finances are also looked at to make sure the company can hold itself together and not collapse.

• Execution

Training is done and the planning is put into action. Important and necessary steps are made to see the company can achieve the initiative and the required assistance is also provided accordingly. A quality check is also done to ensure the best experience. It is made sure that the execution is perfect in every way.

• Review

This is the last step in the process. After all the efforts are made, everything is reviewed. All the efforts and the work done are reviewed and a quality check is preferred to see if the quality was kept intact, the timelines and schedules were followed properly. Moreover, if everything went according to plan or if there were any modifications made during the entire time. This helps in giving a realistic view of the strategic initiative set and if more need to be set accordingly and what changes would be suggested in the next initiatives.

Business Development v/s Economic Development

What is the difference in both?

Business Development talks about the development of a company’s progress and the growth opportunities that it should avail for its development and growth. Business development is done by meaningful activities by small or large organizations and helps in developing the business in one way or another.

Economic development on the other hand is also related to growth and an increased outcome but is more connected to the improvement in the social and political welfare of the people of a country as well. While business development is centered on a particular business, economic development talks about growth and the wellbeing of people as well.

There are other differences between the two as well which separate one from the other.

• The difference in the driving force

While business development is done to generate profits, economic development is done to create more jobs, taxes and promote the maximum amount of economic activity in a country or even in a region

• The difference in the focus area

Business development focuses on opportunities in the market and is located in areas where they can generate business and profits. They search and exploit various business opportunities as well. In economic development, the focus lies in a particular geographical area where continuous efforts are made to create economic activity. Aiming for profits is considered as a secondary goal in this.

• Difference in business

While in business development the aim is to gain massive amounts of profits by doing business and doing business in those particularly researched and defined areas where the business would eventually turn out to be successful. Economic development is done in a specific area by promoting business. It is done by promoting the geographically defined area and its characteristics.

• Difference in origin

There is a huge difference in their origin as well. Business development originates in the private sector and the economic development originates in the public sector. In business development, the people owning the business are individual owners present in the private sector of the country.

However, economic development is different because the beneficiaries benefiting are the people who are living in that particular area so the development starts from the public or government organizations of that same area.

• Difference in authorities

In business development, the businesses and the business owners have to report directly to the investors who are spending money in the business while in economic development the community is the one who demands answers. So the public in this regard holds importance as well.