Corporate Planning And Implementation

Question 1

Corporate plan

Answer 1

• A plan containing central objectives and the strategies to achieve them.

Question 2

Benefits of corporate planning

Answer 2

• Time targets can be motivating for staff and more likely to be achieved which could save time and costs.
• Effective corporate planning would allow a business to develop appropriate strategies to enter a market.
• Helps control expenditure and therefore reduces risk of cashflow problems.
• Limits the risk of extra costs being incurred because of delays if effective planning was not undertaken.

Question 3

Limitations of corporate plans

Answer 3

• Corporate plan should be as adaptable and flexible as possible to be useful in dynamic environments.
• It depends on whether the corporate plan is up to data and is closely monitored by managers.
• Planning is time consuming and can be expensive: more detail more time and costs.
• Efficient market research must be done for reliable information.

Question 4

Contingency planning

Answer 4

• Preparing a business for harmful events

Question 5

Benefits of contingency planning

Answer 5

• Effective contingency planning allows a business to minimise the potential impact of a disaster and ideally prevent it from happening in the first place.
• PR response likely to be quick and appropriate.
• Reassures customers and staff that their interests are being considered, thus leading to a better relationship.

Question 6

Evaluation of contingency planning

Answer 6

• It is costly and time-consuming, including the need to train employees and have practice runs of what to do in crisis situations.
• Disasters still occur
• It needs to be constantly updated as the number and range of potential disasters can change over time.

Question 7

Importance of culture to strategic decisions

Answer 7

• Culture determines how strategic decisions are made and implemented, but also the type of strategic decisions that are taken. A business with a people-based culture is most unlikely to take decisions that would damage workers’ health or the local environment.

Question 8

Project champion

Answer 8

• Project champion is a person assigned to support and drive a project forward, who explains the benefits of change and supports the team in its implementation

Question 9

How does a corporation’s culture affect strategic implementation

Answer 9

• Two-way communication may lead to employees willingly accepting change
• Strong culture promotes and facilitates successful implementation, weak culture doesn’t