Current issues in management - Term Paper Example

Planning consists of the preparatory evaluations of strategic intentions that determine how best to structure the organization and its internal processes to meet a particular strategic goal. Planning allows the manager to observe the entire internal and external environment, look for strengths and weaknesses of human capital and tangible capital availability, and then develop an appropriate operational plan or strategic plan that will bring the business closer to achieving the long-term goals for increased market share among competition.

Why is planning one of the most critical management roles? Many organizations that provide products and services rely on innovations to ensure adequate revenue production. If an organization wishes to be a first-mover to launch a product, thereby outperforming competitive ingenuities, the manager must determine how to coordinate internal tangible and human-based resources to achieve first-to-market success. This requires synchronizing activities between research and development teams, production systems, support and technology systems, the marketing division, and procurement (Nickels, et al., 2008). At the same time, one of the fundamental differentiation tactics used by businesses to maintain competitive advantage is to establish a positive brand reputation and brand personality to gain market demand and build long-term loyalty toward the product or service brand.

Without the inter-dependencies and knowledge transfer between expert systems and tacit knowledge holders in all of these divisions, first-to-market objectives and brand-building cannot occur effectively. Planning is a critical dimension in establishing a positive and respected brand that is considered relevant and vital to many consumer target markets. Consumers maintain many diverse lifestyle characteristics, attitudes, beliefs and principles that will determine how they connect with a product or service brand and ultimately make their purchasing decisions against these criteria.

A company can coordinate internal activities to sustain first-mover advantage, however if the product or brand is not promoted properly or provides the proper incentive for purchasing it will have a limited life cycle on the market before reaching the decline stage, one where inventory control, cash management, and obsolescence costs skyrocket (Dooley, 2005). Thus, it becomes an imperative that proper planning is conducted regarding external consumer preferences and characteristics so that the internal dynamics of the organization can be coordinated to provide an effective branded offering.

Without this planning occurring, there will be little fundamental knowledge of what is driving purchasing behavior of target consumers and thus the product innovation will be a marketing and sales failure (Boone & Kurtz, 2007). Managers must be proactive in planning to assess the internal and external market in order to create a valuable brand reputation. It is the most important element of management design since it establishes the foundation of knowledge that can be transformed into relevant product offerings in the business marketplace.

Statement of Principles Kalyanaram & Gurumurthy (2008) reinforce that the majority of consumers are risk averse. They will often embrace the product or se