Strategic management is the process whereby managers design and even implement tactics that help in the achievement of strategic goal of an organisation. Strategic planning is the process concerned with the setting of organizational goals and determining the most effective way of attaining them.
It is very important to plan and implement goals in an organization as helps to prevent major errors. The two processes have their similarities and differences as outlined below.
Both strategic planning and strategic management work towards building an organization that is solid and very competitive out there. Even though they differ in terms of the methods used, both are focussed on aiding the company attain a sustainable competitive advantage. Therefore, it is safe to say that despite the differences between them, the two go hand in hand
In the case of strategic management, the manager is responsible for designing of the organisation’s strategy. The manager is able to controls the entire implementation. However, in strategic planning, expert strategic planners are usually behind the establishment of plans whereby they first affirm them with the persons involved in the running of the organization. Everybody is bound by the strategic plan.
In strategic management, managers are given a high priority as far as making the strategy for the whole organisation. They are responsible for implementing the strategy and hence they are on top of the implementation. In strategic planning, managers are deemed powerless as their powers are enclosed in the plan.
Strategic management is most operative in case of a great level of improbability hence decisions are made based on unpredicted events. This could be risky in some situation as it is based on assumptions.
On the other hand, strategic planning is most operative where there is a high level of certainty and stability. This will mean that the decisions made are based on foreseen organizational events. Strategic planning tends to be more risk free.
The performance of the company is controlled by the company’s vision statement in the strategic planning while it is controlled by the company’s mission in the strategic management. The company’s mission tends to explain the reason for the existence of the company and the importance of the resolution. The vision provides an outline for strategic planning.
In the strategic planning, there is always a focus on the future which is rather different in the case of strategic management where the focus is on-day-to-day basis. This can be best explained using the mission-vision explanation as highlighted in the point above.
The strategic management uses the micro approach while strategic planning uses the macro approach. In the strategic management, it is only maintained in the internal part of the organization while in the strategic planning it goes beyond the organisation.
Strategic planning focusses on the problem in the organization while strategic management always handles the issue at hand. This means that planning is more of a problem solving strategy and can mainly be applied when a problem arises.
On the other hand, manage is open to deal with issues which may not necessarily be a problem to the organization. These could be a mere issue of company expansion but not necessarily a problem. This is yet another contrast of the two.
In conclusion strategic management and strategic planning have many differences as compared to similarities. However this does not eliminate the fact that they are both good methods of running an organization. According to the essay the two are better of used together instead of independently. Strategic planning is important for the organization as a whole.
Strategic management has a lot to with the management branch of the organization. This makes it less self-sufficient since managers may have difficulties relating with other employee- issues as a whole.
Therefore, strategic management has to rely on strategic planning which is more concerned with the organizational goals. These goals cannot be realised without looking into the employees affairs. Therefore, these two should be employed hand in hand rather than separately.