Influence Of Industry and Competitive Analysis on Business Planning and Strategy.

A poorly-prepared business plan would definitely fail.This can be blamed on anyone or more of the following factors: .Inadequate information about the industry;Competitors;lack of knowledge about the business unit's position;and setting of unrealistic goals.Good or effective business planning could be the means to achieve this. Fail to plan and you are planning to fail.

Business planning could be described as part of an on-going continuous activity concerning the direction of the whole organisation. It contains the mission, objectives, strategies, tactics, and policies that will serve as a guide to the organisation in adapting to the environment for a specified period of time. A business plan is thus considered as the back bone of a business unit ; an attempt to follow the vision to reach the corporate goal. However, a business planning should be flexible and accommodative so that it could be changed from time to time if need be to become adapted to the general environment not only the business environment. To get an effective business plan, a critical analysis of the industry and competitors' analysis is inevitable.

Strategy is the determination of the basic long-term goals and objectives of an enterprise, the courses of action to be taken and the allocation of resources that would be needed for carrying out these goals.Thus,strategy is not an end in itself but rather a means to an end.It is this which makes it vital 'must have'ingredient in any business. It is normally included in the marketing and business plans of organisations.

It is also a process and normally considered under three broad aspects or stages namely strategy analysis, which is the stage where through analysis the strategist identifies the opportunities, strengths, weakness and threats in the environment; strategy formulation, which is the stage where a choice is made from among numerous and potential ones; and strategy implementation which is when the chosen strategy is translated into organisation action.

Strategy is, therefore, developing and shaping organisation's goals and objectives providing the needed response to the environment (for competitive advantage) and providing good corporate governance. As had already been pointed out strategy and business planning are somewhat linked.

'Strategy' is normally part of the business and marketing planning processes.

Industry

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