Strategic Planning Portals

Abstract

The history of strategic planning begins in the military. According to Webster’s New World Dictionary, strategy is the science of planning and directing large-scale military operations, of maneuvering forces into the most advantageous position prior to actual engagement with the enemy (Guralnic, 1986). Although the way we conceive strategy has changed when applied to management, one element remains key: the aim to achieve competitive advantage. Strategic planning in organizations originated in the 1950s and was very popular and widespread from the mid 1960s to mid 1970s, when people believed it was the answer to all problems and corporate America was “obsessed” with strategic planning. Following that “boom,” strategic planning was cast aside and abandoned for over a decade. The 1990s brought the revival of strategic planning as a process with particular benefits in particular contexts (Mintzberg, 1994).