Definitions of Planning in Management
Planning is the cornerstone of effective management and business success.
It involves setting objectives, anticipating challenges, and devising strategies to achieve goals efficiently.
Renowned thinkers like Peter Drucker, Henry Fayol, and Philip Kotler have defined planning as a systematic, forward-thinking process that bridges the gap between present actions and future outcomes.
This article explores the 25 top definitions of planning by influential management scholars, offering deep insights into its role in decision-making, resource allocation, and organizational growth.
Whether in business or leadership, understanding these perspectives is crucial for strategic success.
Let’s look at them:
1.) Peter Drucker – “Planning is the continuous process of making present entrepreneurial decisions systematically and with the best possible knowledge of their futurity.”
2.) Henry Fayol – “Planning is deciding the best alternatives among others to perform different managerial operations in order to achieve the predetermined goals.”
3.) Koontz & O’Donnell – “Planning is deciding in advance what to do, how to do it, when to do it, and who is to do it.”
4.) George R. Terry – “Planning is the selection and relating of facts and the making and using of assumptions regarding the future in the visualization and formulation of proposed activities believed necessary to achieve desired results.”
5.) Louis A. Allen – “Planning is a trap laid down to capture the future.”
6.) Philip Kotler – “Planning is deciding in the present what to do in the future. It is the process whereby companies reconcile their resources with their objectives and opportunities.”
7.) Richard Steers – “Planning is the process by which managers define goals and take necessary steps to ensure that these goals are achieved.”
8.) Billy E. Goetz – “Planning is fundamentally choosing, and a planning problem arises when an alternative course of action is discovered.”
9.) Alford & Beatty – “Planning is the thinking process, the organized foresight, the vision based on fact and experience that is required for intelligent action.”
10.) James Stoner – “Planning is the process of establishing goals and a suitable course of action for achieving those goals.”
11.) Stephen Robbins – “Planning involves defining the organization’s objectives or goals, establishing an overall strategy for achieving those goals, and developing a comprehensive hierarchy of plans to integrate and coordinate activities.”
12.) Harold Koontz – “Planning is the primary function of management that involves setting objectives and determining a course of action for achieving those objectives.”
13.) Michael Porter – “Planning is the conscious determination of a future course of action to achieve a desired result.”
14.) Robert N. Anthony – “Planning is the process of deciding in advance what is to be done, when it is to be done, how it is to be done, and who is to do it.”
15.) John M. Ivancevich – “Planning is the process of determining objectives and assessing the way these objectives can best be achieved.”
16.) Russell L. Ackoff – “Planning is the design of a desired future and of effective ways of bringing it about.”
17.) Charles W. L. Hill & Gareth R. Jones – “Planning is the process by which managers identify goals and select actions to attain them.”
18.) James Higgins – “Planning is the process of setting objectives and determining what should be done to accomplish them.”
19.) Lester R. Bittel – “Planning is the first and most important function of management. It is the process of thinking before doing.”
20.) David Hunger & Thomas Wheelen – “Planning is the systematic development of action programs aimed at reaching agreed business objectives.”
21.) William H. Newman – “Planning is deciding in advance what is to be done; that is, a plan is a projected course of action.”
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22.) Fred Luthans – “Planning is the process of setting objectives and determining how to accomplish them.”
23.) Samuel Certo – “Planning is the systematic process of establishing a need and then working out the best way to meet the need within a strategic framework.”
24.) Heinz Weihrich & Harold Koontz – “Planning is the most basic of all managerial functions, involving selecting missions and objectives and the actions to achieve them.”
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25.) Dale McConkey – “Planning is the process of bridging the gap between where we are and where we want to be in the future.”
26.) Henry Mintzberg – “Planning is not strategy. Strategy is a pattern in a stream of decisions, while planning is the formalization of strategy—an attempt to program it.”
Hence, these planning definitions provide a comprehensive view of planning from different perspectives, highlighting its role in goal-setting, decision-making, and strategy formulation in management and business.
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Sujan Chaudhary is an MBA graduate. He loves to share his business knowledge with the rest of the world. While not writing, he will be found reading and exploring the world.