Vol. 5, Issue 6, Part A (2019)

Abstract
Strategic planning and management is the way to go for organizations to prepare themselves to sustain and overcome competion in market places. It is important to all organizations in private sector, private sector and nonprofit organizations. It is a process that begins with self-assessment and realization and then reorganization to compete in a business environment. Business strategies form the basis of survival in a competitive environment and should therefore be well developed by the right people and the right organizational levels. Strategy formulation and implementation should be linked by an evaluation strategy to realize strategy success otherwise the strategies remain useless paperwork. Strategy implementation challenges include political interference, limited resources and global economic situations that may be beyond the organizations’ control and so organizations should monitor the internal and external environment and make changes or adjustments to prevent strategy failure. This can be realized by effectively evaluating strategy implementation process. A good strategic plan will give significant benefits to organizations like increased profitability and better corporate governance. Strategic management however is expensive, requires significant resources and investment in market research and other resources yet does not always succeed. To be successful in strategic planning and implementation organizations should invest in market research and forecasting, adequate budgeting, recruitment, training and motivation of qualified personnel and having a holistic approach in strategy formulation and implementation by bringing everybody in the organization to contribute. Strategies should be creative and innovative while the execution should be both effective and efficient. Quick and effective feedback will enhance monitoring and evaluation and facilitate successful strategy implementation. Organizations should be customer oriented to deal with competition and hence proper strategy formulation and implementation. It should however be noted that having a strategic plan does not guarantee success, but a well-crafted, innovative and creative plan that is well executed will guarantee success. An effective strategy should start with a SWOT analysis which will enable the organization to build on its strengths and utilize opportunities while controlling or managing threats and weaknesses.