Introduction
Intense competition and massive creativity characterize the modern business environment. As such, businesses are always on the lookout for ways and means to overcome competition, remain profitable, and have positive impacts on society. Strategic planning and thinking are the best ways that businesses can achieve their goals.
Description of Theories/Core Concepts
Conventional strategic planning concepts are the guides or the plans a business or organization creates to map out how it plans to reach its goals (Collins, 2011). Strategic intent thinking entails ambitious and compelling dream that provides intellectual and emotional energy for people to pursue certain objectives (Collins, 2011).Analysis
Although they are, largely related, strategic planning and strategic intent thinking address different specifications. The former provides a “recipe” or a method of achieving a given vision while the other provides clearer, well mapped out systematic way of arriving at the goal. According to Hemel and Prahalad (2005) strategic intent has three attributes namely; direction, destiny and discovery. They acknowledge that the strategic planning may have the “direction” and the “destiny” attributes, but it lacks the “discovery” attributes.
Both the strategic planning and intent give the directions of resources (money, assets, labor among others). In business, the two of them survey the market and the competition therein. They also examine how they can increase their market shares and expand their geographical presence (Tovstiga, 2010). The two also offer destiny. This comes in the form of a stated period within which a business plans to achieve a given percentage of market shares, sales volumes, number of community projects among others.
The main difference between strategic planning and intent is the “discovery” attribute. Strategic intent targets at conquering eventualities and obstacles along the way. It presents a realistic future in which intense competition is anticipated. It also sets milestones to be achieved. Managers are able to make do with minimal resources of time, money and manpower because they can alter their plans to achieve their ultimate goal in smaller but sustainable steps (Collins, 2011).
Conclusion
Strategic planning and intent thinking are intertwined in that both plan how businesses shall overcome competition and remain profitable in modern times. They both plan on the direction (the things that need to be done) and the destiny (the ultimate goal). However, strategic intent and thinking examines the discovery aspects (eventualities and challenges in resources that may come up). In all, the differences between these aspects are few as long as businesses map out the direction, anticipate some discoveries and have a clear destiny in mind.
References
Collins, J. C. (2001). Good to great: why some companies make the leap--and others don't. New York, NY: HarperBusiness.
Prahalad, C. K., & Hamel, G. (2005). Strategic Intent. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved May 23, 2014, from http://hbr.org/2005/07/strategic-intent/ar/1
Tovstiga, G. (2010). Strategy in practice a practitioner's guide to strategic thinking. Chichester, U.K.: John Wiley & Sons.
