~ 27 ~ ISSN Print: 2394-7500 ISSN Online: 2394-5869 Impact Factor: 5.2 IJAR 2019; 5(6): 27-32 www.allresearchjournal.com Received: 16-04-2019 Accepted: 20-05-2019 Moses Jeremiah Barasa Kabeyi Lecturer, Department of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, University of Nairobi, Kenya Correspondence Moses Jeremiah Barasa Kabeyi Lecturer, Department of mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, University of Nairobi, Kenya Organizational strategic planning, implementation and evaluation with analysis of challenges and benefits for profit and nonprofit organizations Moses Jeremiah Barasa Kabeyi Abstract Strategic planning and management is the way to go for organizations to prepare themselves to sustain and overcome competion in market places. It is important for all organizations in private sector, public sector and nonprofit organizations. It is a process that begins with self-assessment and realization and then reorganization to compete in a business environment. Business strategies form the basis of survival in a competitive environment and should therefore be well developed by the right people and the right organizational levels. Strategy formulation and implementation should be linked by an evaluation strategy to realize strategy success otherwise the strategies remain useless paperwork. Strategy implementation challenges include political interference, limited resources and global economic situations that may be beyond the organizations’ control and so organizations should monitor the internal and external environment and make changes or adjustments to prevent strategy failure. This can be realized by effectively evaluating strategy implementation process. A good strategic plan will give significant benefits to organizations like increased profitability and better corporate governance. Strategic management however is expensive, requires significant resources and investment in market research and other resources yet does not always guarantee success. To be successful in strategic planning and implementation organizations, should invest in market research and forecasting, adequate budgeting, as well as recruitment, training and motivation of qualified personnel and having a holistic approach in strategy formulation and implementation by bringing everybody in the organization to contribute and participate. Strategies should be creative and innovative while the execution should be both effective and efficient. Quick and effective feedback will enhance monitoring and evaluation and facilitate successful strategy implementation. Organizations should be customer oriented to deal with competition and hence proper strategy formulation and implementation. It should however be noted that having a strategic plan does not always guarantee success. However, a well-crafted, innovative and creative plan that is well executed will guarantee success. An effective strategy should start with a SWOT analysis which will enable the organization to build on its strengths and utilize opportunities while controlling or managing threats and weaknesses. Keywords: Strategic management, strategic plan, strategy monitoring, benefits of strategic management, strategic planning for nonprofits, strategy evaluation, limitations of strategic planning and management. 1. Introduction to strategic management Strategic management is defined as the art and science of formulating, implementing, and evaluating cross-functional decisions that enable an organization to achieve its objectives, while strategic planning is the process of defining an organizations direction, and making decisions on allocating its resources to pursue this strategy. Strategic planning is also defined as organizational management activity that is used to set priorities, consolidate energy and resources, strengthen operations capability, ensure stakeholders and workers are working toward common goals, and assess and align organization's direction in with changing environment (David, 2011; Dyer, Godfrey, Jensen, & Bryce, 2016) [5, 6] . Business strategy is a company’s plan to get, competitive advantage in its markets. It is based on the theory that the company’s leaders know how to succeed in a market and involves predictions about which markets are more attractive and how an organization can offer distinctive value to customers in those markets in a way that is difficult to copy by competitors (Godfrey, Jensen, & Bryce, 2016) [6] . Therefore, strategic management is a process that begins with self-realization followed by positioning an organization to realize success in a competitive business environment. International Journal of Applied Research 2019; 5(6): 27-32