Industrial Engineering Letters www.iiste.org ISSN 2224-6096 (print) ISSN 2225-0581 (online) Vol 2, No.2, 2012 46 Implementation of Strategic Planning in Organizations Ahmed Asakereh 1* Taher Bahrani 2 1. Department of Education Sciences, Shadegan Branch, Islamic Azad University, Shadegan, Iran 2. Department of English, Mahshahr Branch, Islamic Azad University, Mahshahr, Iran * E-mail of the corresponding author: asakereh1016@yahoo.com Abstract The purpose of this paper is to review the implementation of strategic planning and the need to plan, develop, implement and evaluate the organization placed on the research. Moreover, it tries to investigate how managers in organizations need to be equipped with strategic planning. They also need to know how to develop and schedule the strategic planning to run properly. Having a type of so-called strategic thinking which consists of deep thinking beyond the macro, the macro, and the micro is a necessary requirement for strategic planning. This way of thinking is a dynamic, changing and changeable in planning and implementation. As a result, in the present paper, we have tried to take into consideration the effective factors which influence the implementation of strategic planning. More importantly, we will highlight the point that effective implementation of strategic planning is not feasible unless the managers follow a regular and a planned schedule. Keywords: strategic management, strategic approach, the process of strategic implementation, strategic assessment 1. Introduction Strategic management which is based on dynamic thought, futurist, and comprehensive can be one of the most important solutions for many of the organizations. Strategic management is essential because it can turn possible threats and fears into potential opportunities by utilizing necessary requirements. Based on this type of strategic thinking, the managers should always evaluate their work and try to utilize what they find out to develop an effective plan for enhancing the stability of the organizations. In the same line, developing an effective plan requires having a professional strategic plan. In view of the above, the present century is called information age because of the fact that life and science have been integrated with one another. Accordingly, the illiterates of the 21 century are not those who cannot read or write. In fact, the illiterates of the 21 century are those who cannot learn and teach. Accordingly, the role of human being is significant the success or the failure of any organization. Since the early 20 th century onward, based on organizational control and assessment, the overall strategy of the organizations was directed towards the assumption that the future is something similar to the past. However, after the Second World War, the long term planning was considered more than before and became the basis for making management decisions. Today, thanks to the new technological and scientific developments, many organizations have undertaken basic changes. The managers of huge companies have realized the fact that, unlike the past, political, economical, and social environments have changed a lot. The insatiability caused is also ever-increasing. 2. Strategic management and planning Strategic management and planning is defined as directing individual and group activities toward group objectives. In the same line, Sedaqatgoyan (2005) describes strategic management as any integrated activities and decisions that aim to develop effective strategy to implement and control the results. Moreover, strategic management covers issues about activities related to investigation, assessment, and the selection of strategies which leads to making any internal or external decisions for the organization. Accordingly, strategic management is a process based on which one can make sure that the organization will achieve the pre-determined objectives based on utilizing suitable strategy. Strategic management is the process of making proper decisions which lead to arriving at a suitable strategy to achieve the overall objectives of an organization. Kafen and Herman (2006) underscored the point that strategic management is the process of monitoring and controlling the actions, tactics, and the functional planning of a given strategic planning. More importantly, a good strategic management can undergo any necessary amendments of the first taken decisions while being implemented. In other words, the art of making, implementing, and evaluating decisions is a responsibility which enables the organizations to achieve its long-term objectives.