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SESSION D.4: (a) HANDOUT

STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT

WHAT IS STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT?

Planning is vital for any organisation, but it is of even more importance for many voluntary groups where there is little or no professional backup.

Strategic planning is the process of deciding where you want to be in the future, and how you are going to get there It is the process of identifying the best future for your community radio station and the best route from where you are now to where you are now to where you want to be then. Such planning means making fundamental and sometimes difficult choices about the future of your organisation ñ choices about:

  • The Community Radio stationís mission and objectives
  • The type of service you will offer in order to realise these objectives
  • How you are going to attract and use the resources of people, money, skill and equipment which you will need.

Developing a strategic plan is not just something you do at the start of your project. You need a strategic planning cycle. Strategic management is the continuous process of analysing your current position, and pursuing appropriate strategies in order to achieve defined objectives. Strategic planning means looking at the project as a complete entity and is concerned with the long-term viability of the media project.

Generally a strategic plan is devised for a substantial period of time, say, three to five years. Within this overall plan, work for shorter periods of time usually one year, are also drawn up, according to the objectives set out in the strategic plan. These various plans will require regular review and adjustment.

The four key components of a strategic plan are:

  • Clarifying the mission and overall purpose of the project.
  • Developing a vision for the future of the organisation.
  • Assessing the impact on the organisation of current and future developments, both internal and external.
  • Reviewing priorities and how resources are targeted.


Such forward planning is vital for voluntary and community projects as people can get so busy with day to day work that it is easy to forget or deviate from your goals.

When all involved feel a sense of ownership of the objectives then it is easier to motivate and involve them. Strategic planning through a wide-ranging consultative process is crucial.

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