Types of Plans

Given the variety of the areas that organizations plan for, it is obvious that plans fall into different categories. Plans can either be described in terms of different levels of scope or different time frames. Described by different levels of scope we have:

 a)    Strategic Plans

Which are the broad plans developed by top managers to guide the general direction of the firm. They follow from the major goals of the firm and indicate what business the firm is in or what business it intends to be. Strategic plans therefore indicate how or where the firm will position itself within its environment (They are of large scope and extended time frame).

b)    Tactical Plans

These have a moderate scope and intermediate time frame. They are concerned with how to implement the strategic plans that are already developed. They deal with specific resources and time constraints. They mainly focus on people and action. Tactical planning is mainly associated with middle management.

c)    Operational Plans

They have the narrowest focus and shortest time frame. They fall into many types that include:

•    Standing Plans:

Plans developed to handle recurring and relatively routine situations. They include policies which are general guidelines governing relatively important actions within the organization. Standard operating procedures which are more specific guidelines for handling a series of recurring activities. Finally rules and regulations which are statements of how specific activities are to performed.

•     Single Use Plans

This is the second category of operational plans. These are plans set up to handle events that happen only once. The two types are programs and projects.A program is a single use plan for a large set of activities while a project usually has a narrower scope than a programme otherwise they are similar.