Exam 9: Foundations of Planning

Which type of plan is flexible and provides general guidelines?

When making editorial decisions for his newspaper,the owner/editor mostly picks issues that are in line with his political beliefs and those that his advertisers approve of despite his publicly stated goal "to be a champion for free speech and for the development of the community." This indicates that ________.

In an uncertain environment,managers need to develop plans that are ________.

What is competitor intelligence? Identify some of the sources of competitor intelligence? Discuss the legal and ethical issues related to this concept.

The Sea to Sky Collaborative (Scenario)Nadia Mainardi is the senior planner for the Whistler-Blackcomb Regional Development Council. She has met with a group of stakeholders, including the British Columbia Ministry of Transportation, Tourism B.C., and others who are interested in working together to improve the Sea to Sky Highway between North Vancouver and Whistler. To date, Nadia has successfully obtained a Technical Assistance Grant from the province to help organize several small communities along the Sea to Sky Highway into an intergovernmental unit, all sharing the same mission and goals. Nadia is now charged with developing a strategic plan for this group, called the Sea to Sky Collaborative. -Nadia has told the Collaborative's members that the more current the plans are that affect future commitments,the longer the time frame is for which managers must plan.This concept is also known as the ________.

Goals provide the direction for all management decisions and form the ________.

Plans that apply to the entire organization,establish the organization's overall goals,and seek to position the organization in terms of its environment are called ________ plans.

The Sea to Sky Collaborative (Scenario)Nadia Mainardi is the senior planner for the Whistler-Blackcomb Regional Development Council. She has met with a group of stakeholders, including the British Columbia Ministry of Transportation, Tourism B.C., and others who are interested in working together to improve the Sea to Sky Highway between North Vancouver and Whistler. To date, Nadia has successfully obtained a Technical Assistance Grant from the province to help organize several small communities along the Sea to Sky Highway into an intergovernmental unit, all sharing the same mission and goals. Nadia is now charged with developing a strategic plan for this group, called the Sea to Sky Collaborative. -While each community in the Sea to Sky Collaborative maintains its identity and independence,Nadia believes that leveraging multi-governmental applications will ultimately secure more major funding in the future.However,due to the intergovernmental nature of the organization,Nadia,although in charge of the collaborative,wields little direct power over any member community individually.Which contingency factor best represents Nadia's situation?

Developing a plan to integrate two companies after a corporate merger is an example of a single-use plan.

The Sea to Sky Collaborative (Scenario)Nadia Mainardi is the senior planner for the Whistler-Blackcomb Regional Development Council. She has met with a group of stakeholders, including the British Columbia Ministry of Transportation, Tourism B.C., and others who are interested in working together to improve the Sea to Sky Highway between North Vancouver and Whistler. To date, Nadia has successfully obtained a Technical Assistance Grant from the province to help organize several small communities along the Sea to Sky Highway into an intergovernmental unit, all sharing the same mission and goals. Nadia is now charged with developing a strategic plan for this group, called the Sea to Sky Collaborative. -After establishing the Collaborative's goals,Nadia's boss asks what contingency factors might influence the Collaborative's plans to reach these goals.Nadia responds that planning contingency factors can be broadly grouped into three categories: ________.

In traditional goals setting,goals often lose clarity and unity as they make their way from the top of the organization to lower levels.

Directional plans are clearly defined and leave no room for interpretation.

E-Biz Dreams (Scenario) Robert Lee has just completed a Bachelor of Computer Science degree at Carleton University. He now wants to begin a new Internet business selling his services as a website developer for companies in Ottawa. He estimates that within one year, if his business idea is a success, he will be employing five programmers and two analysts. -To make his business successful,Robert will first have to develop a(n)________ plan that establishes the company's overall goals and positions it in terms of its environment.

In today's global business environment,obtaining competitive intelligence is relatively easy.

E-Biz Dreams (Scenario) Robert Lee has just completed a Bachelor of Computer Science degree at Carleton University. He now wants to begin a new Internet business selling his services as a website developer for companies in Ottawa. He estimates that within one year, if his business idea is a success, he will be employing five programmers and two analysts. -To clarify how the overall goals are to be achieved,Robert will need to develop ________ plans.

Formal planning is associated with higher profits and higher return on assets.

A government plan that calls for a 2.45 percent increase in tobacco sales tax for the next three years would be considered what type of plan?

Are strategic or operational plans needed? Does long-term planning make sense in current business environment? These decisions are affected by three contingency variables.In a short essay,explain the three contingency factors and illustrate how these factors influence planning.

Management by objectives (MBO)is a management system in which specific performance goals are ________.

Plans that specify the details of how the overall goals are to be achieved are called ________ plans.