Developing Action Plans example essay topic

The four basic functions of management are planning, organizing, leading, and controlling. Planning is the first and primary management function. In the planning stage, objectives and goals are set and a plan is established, to determine the best way to obtain the objectives and goals. A good plan should provide the answers to the questions: Which goals should be pursued? How should the goal be attained? How should resources be allocated?

How will crisis be handed? Levels of planning include strategic, tactical, operational and crisis management. Strategic plans are generally developed by senior management, and are detailed action steps mapped out to achieve strategic goals and usually have a time horizon of 3 - 5 years. Strategic planning consist of six steps: Developing a clear vision, creating a mission statement, developing forecasts, analyzing the competition, establishing goals and objectives, developing action plans. Once the strategic goals and objectives are set, then the company must develop an action plan, which tells how they will achieve them.

There are two types of action plans: operational and tactical. Middle management generally develops tactical plans and outline major steps to achieve objectives are more specific and concrete, which are aimed at supporting the implementation of strategic plans with a usual time horizon of 1 - 3 years. Tactical plans change more frequently than strategic plans. First-line managers and supervisors usually develop operational plans. Operational plans map out specifically what, and how, and support the tactical plans.

Operational plans has a time horizon of no more than 1 year. The planning function determines how effective and efficient the organization is and determines the strategy of the organization. Crisis Management is a company planning ahead of time to address issues such as product failure or a break down in operations from a fire. The goal of crisis management is to keep the company running smoothly during and after a crisis. The second management function is organizing. Organizing is the process of arranging resources to carry out the organization's plans.

Organizing involves determining the task that need to be done, who will do them and how the task will be managed and coordinated. In organizing, managers create the structure of working relationships between organizational members that best allows them to work together and achieve goals. Leading is the third function of management. In leading, managers determine direction, state a clear vision for employees to follow, and help employees understand the role they play in attaining goals. Leadership involves a manager using power, influence, vision, persuasion, and communication skills.

The desired outcome of the leading function is a high level of motivation and commitment from employees to the organization. Controlling is the fourth management function. Controlling is a four-step process of establishing performance standards based on the firm's objectives, measuring and reporting actual performance, comparing the two, and taking corrective or preventive action as necessary. These functions overlap and influence one other, meaning that one role or task can require more than one function.