Not only can strategic planning be applied to managing HR, it should be applied. Otherwise,

HR managers may not run their departments (and, by extension, contribute to the overall

organization) as smoothly as possible. This assignment will help you see how strategic

planning needs to be entwined with HR planning.

According to the text, strategic planning is the process of defining an organizational strategy, or

direction, and making decisions on allocating the resources of the organization (capital and

people) to pursue this strategy. Successful organizations engage in this core business process on

an ongoing basis. The plan serves as the roadmap that gives the organization direction and aligns

resources (Mathis & Jackson, 2011, p. 38).

The process involves several sequential steps that focus on the future of the organization.

•Which stage of the strategic planning process do you think is most exciting and why?

I find the stage of SWOT analysis the most exciting. SWOT analysis is a beneficial and

necessary tool for appraising an organization and its environment focusing on strengths,

weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Strengths and weaknesses are internal factors.

Opportunities and threats are external factors. This analysis assists the management team in

formulation of the strategic plan of an organization and considers the ability of the organization

to deal with the situation at hand. (Mathis & Jackson, 2011pp. 39-40). SWOT analysis will assist

in making decisions in regard to the best direction for the organization and opportunities for

success.

•Which stage do you find most challenging and why?

I think evaluating the strategic plan could be most challenging. Because the strategic plan is

evaluated from time, there may be certain conditions that possibly change and HR management

must react to the continuously changing environment and act appropriately. After parameters to

be measured are defined, target values for those parameters must be defined, then the

performance is measured, and lastly, comparing the measured results to the pre-determined

standards making any changes in the strategic plan.

•Describe two or three concerns about the strategic planning process that are specifically

related to HR. How might you address such concerns?

Talent acquisition, talent deployment, talent development, and rewarding talent are all strategic

HRM approaches that can impact the organizational ability to achieve its strategic objectives.8

The focus of HR initiatives is evolving from a traditional emphasis to a strategic emphasis,