Strategic Planning in Organizations

Description
Strategic planning is the process of looking into the future and identifying trends and issues against which to align the organizational priorities of the Department of Office (UN, n.d.). This strategic plan will provide a clear guideline for the leadership training agency to embrace future opportunities and overcome possible threats. In this context, the main strategy is to become a tech-savvy agency that is adaptive to innovations and technologies, with the mission of getting all stakeholders on board for technology adoption and optimization. For this strategy to work, the agency must recognize and adopt technology as one of the ways to ensure success and advancement in the organization.
External Environmental Assessment
The agency for which the strategic plan is written operates in the education sector, the external environmental assessment revolves around the latest market trends and situations that may shape the agency’s future. In this regard, several scholars and institutions outlined that innovations and new technologies dominate the latest trends in the sector. Specifically, Cypher Learning (2024) presented how the advancement of generative artificial intelligence (AI) demands learning and training agencies to provide personalized and interactive learning experiences by creating accommodating curricula. The agency must utilize and optimize generative AI to maintain its competitive advantage.
Another technology that may complement the provision of personalized learning experiences is the learning experience platform. This platform personalizes the user’s learning experience by providing “intelligent recommendations based on usage, engagement, and training reach data” (Castelan, 2023). In this context, the agency should consider developing an interactive website and mobile app that its clients can access to keep track of their development progress. It is understood that the agency needs to embrace and optimize AI utilization to provide personalized learning experiences to all of its clients as the technology can retrieve, manage, and analyze big datasets with prominent accuracy.
Vision and Mission
The leadership training agency’s vision is to provide quality learning experiences which accommodate every learner’s optimal leadership skills development. To accomplish such a vision, the agency’s mission includes the following strategies:
• Ensure that all learners are in a conducive learning environment specifically crafted for their development.
• Provide tailored services that accommodate all learners’ development needs to maximize the growth of their leadership skills.
• Preserve diversity and equality among all staff and learners to ensure that everyone has equal opportunity to develop.
• Facilitate the professional development of all staff to prepare them for the pursuit and adoption of strategies.
• Maintain positive communication with all stakeholder groups to ensure full support and avoid unwanted disruption to the agency’s future endeavors.
Goals
According to (OMB, 2016) strategic planning goals should reflect the broad, long-term outcomes the agency aspires to achieve by implementing its mission. That said, the goals of this strategic plan are aligned with its mission, which are as follows:
• to develop a learning experience platform that provides personalized learning experiences to clients within the first semester of this plan implementation;
• to provide regular performance observation and evaluation to all staff every three months;
• to hold weekly and monthly meetings with stakeholder groups to maintain effective communication with them; and
• to provide training and coaching programs to all staff members every semester based on the tailored observation of each staff member.
SWOT Analysis
Strengths
• The agency has a solid foundation of capacity due to its qualified team of trainers and program developers.
• The agency has managed to maintain positive relationships with its clients through the delivery of effective communication and regular engagement.
• The agency has established impactful marketing and promotional campaigns that have patented its position in the market, currently among the top five training agencies in the local market.
Weaknesses
• The agency has not had an adequate digital presence because it has not maintained its website for over a year and has not optimized its digital marketing initiatives.
• The agency’s organizational structure is too hierarchical to the point that there is a lack of effective communication between departments and staff, leading to poor engagement between the management and staff.
Opportunities
• Develop a personalized learning experience platform that may help learners keep track of their learning progress and identify AI-generated suggestions for optimizing their self-development.
• Optimize AI utilization to manage big datasets and deal with repetitive administrative tasks to enhance the team’s efficiency.
• Expand its marketing and promotion to new market segments to embrace new business opportunities.
• Adopt a flat organizational structure that better accommodates effective communication within the team.
Threats
• The agency’s competitors may have adopted the personalized learning experience platform earlier, thus making the competition stricter.
• Retention from the internal team upon the adoption of new technologies, most notably AI.
• The lack of resources required for optimizing AI adoption at the agency.
• Stricter competition from more competitors as the agency seeks to expand to new market segments.
Revenue Projections
Table 1
Revenue Projections
2025 2026 2027
Revenue 97,103 111,669 125,069
Cost of Goods Sold 40,783 45,784 50,028
Gross Profit 56,320 65,885 75,041
Expenses
Marketing, advertising & promotion 15,537 17,867 20,011
General & administration 7,000 7,000 7,000
Depreciation & amortisation 4,203 4,512 4,760
Interest 1,344 1,344 1,344
Total Expenses 28,083 30,723 33,115
Earnings Before Tax 28,237 35,161 41,927
Taxes 9,036 11,252 13,417
Net Earnings 19,201 23,910 28,510
Figure 1
Revenue Projections
 
References
Castelan, J. (2023, November 24). 6 educational technology trends you should implement in your company. iSeazy. https://www.iseazy.com/blog/educational-technology-trends/
Cypher Learning. (2024, March 7). 10 Learning and development trends shaping the 2024 training landscape. https://www.cypherlearning.com/blog/business/learning-and-development-trends-2024
OMB. (2016). Agency strategy planning. https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/sites/default/files/omb/assets/a11_current_year/s230.pdf
UN. (n.d.). Strategic planning guide for managers. https://hr.un.org/sites/hr.un.org/files/4.5.1.6_Strategic%20Planning%20Guide_0.pdf