Strategic Planning Quiz

Engineering Management Introduction

• Engineering management is the introduction to the subject
• The introduction of the subject matter is about defining Engineers, Management, Managerial Skills, Managerial Roles, and the definition of Engineering Management.

What is an Engineer?

• Ingenium (Latin) — skillful, talented, natural capacity or clever invention
• Early applications of clever inventions based on military
• Builders of talent military machines.

What is an Engineer?

• Modern Definition of Engineering— a body of specialized knowledge gained through study, experience and practice of technical, mathematical, and natural sciences to utilize materials and forces of nature for mankind's benefit.

What is an Engineer?

• Engineer: A person applying mathematical and science knowledge properly for mankind.

What is Management?

• Directing the actions of a group to achieve a goal in the most efficient manner
• Getting things done through other people
• Process of achieving organizational goals by working with and through people and organizational resources

What is Management?

• Top-level management (president, executive vice president)
• Middle-level management (chief engineer, division head, etc)
• First-line management (foreman, supervisor, section chief)

What is Management?

• First-line management— Directly supervise non-managers, carry out higher management plans and objectives, operate short-range operating plans, assign tasks to workers, and evaluate worker performance.
• Middle-level management— Manage through other managers; establish departmental policies to achieve long-range goals; evaluate subordinate units and managers; orchestrate the decisions and activities of first-line management.
• Top-level management— Represent the whole enterprise; define character, mission, and objectives of the enterprise; establish and review criteria for long-range plans; evaluate the performance of major departments.

Managers Need Three Types of Skills

• Technical skills— Specific subject-related skills such as engineering, accounting, etc
• Interpersonal skills— Skills related to dealing with others, leading, motivating, or controlling them
• Conceptual skills— Ability to realize the critical factors that will determine organization's success or failure; ability to see the forest despite the trees.

Managerial Skills

• Managerial Level: First-Line, Middle, Top
• Technical Skills (%): First-Line (40%), Middle (45%), Top (15%)
• Interpersonal Skills (%): First-Line (45%), Middle (45%), Top (40%)
• Conceptual Skills (%): First-Line (15%), Middle (15%), Top (40%)

Managerial Roles

• Interpersonal roles— Figurehead, Leader, Liaison
• Informational roles— Monitor, Disseminator, Spokesman
• Decisional roles— Entrepreneurial, Disturbance Handler, Resource Allocator, Negotiator

Interpersonal roles

• Outward— Figurehead role: Outward relationship
• Downward— Leader role: Downward relation
• Horizontal— Liaison role: Horizontal relation

Informational Roles

• Monitor Role— Collects information about internal operations and external events.
• Disseminator Role— Transforms information internally to everybody in organization (like a telephone switchboard)
• Spokesman Role— Public relations

Decisional roles

• Entrepreneurial Role— Initiates changes, assumes risks, transforms ideas into useful products
• Disturbance Handler Role— Deals with unforeseen problems and crisis
• Resource Allocator Role— Distributing resources
• Negotiator Role— Bargains with suppliers, customers, etc., in favor of enterprise

Functions of Managers

• Planning— Selecting missions and objectives; Requires decision making
• Organizing— Establishing the structure for the objective
• Staffing— Keeping filled the organization structure
• Leading— Influencing people to achieve the objective
• Controlling— Measuring and correcting the activities

Management Categories

• Organizational or administrative process
• Science, discipline, or art
• Group of people running an organization
• Occupational career

Function of Managers

• Management has a body of specialized knowledge
• This knowledge need not be obtained in formal disciplined programs
• Somewhere between art and science

What is Engineering Management?

• Directing supervision of engineers and/or engineering functions
• Definition of Engineering Manager: An engineer with abilities to apply engineering principles and skills in organizing and directing people and projects.

Why Engineering Managers?

• Competition is global. Companies need these people to successfully compete.
• Advantages of having an engineer as a manager:
  • Ability to think systematically
  • Technical, mathematical, and natural sciences talents
  • Seizes research and development as an opportunity, not a cost.

Advantages of Understanding Technology in Top Management

• Understanding the business thoroughly
• Understanding technology driving the business today and technology that will change the business in the future
• Treating research and development as an investment not an expense to be minimized
• Spending more time on strategic thinking
• Dedicating a customer's problem (true marketing via customer relations)
• Place a premium on innovation

Key Takeaways and Things to Discuss

• Importance of planning
• Mission and vision
• Roles of goals and objectives
• Types of planning
• SWOT analysis

Types of Planning

• Operational planning
• Strategic planning

Operational Planning

• Define specific tactics and action steps needed to accomplish goals
• Break down company goals into short-term objectives
• Specify events and tasks that can be implemented with the least amount of resources within the shortest period of time
• Ensures that the company applies its resources efficiently to achieve its stated goals.

Operational Planning

• A process of analysis where a corporate goal is broken down into steps; steps are formalized for easy implementation
• Focuses on preservation and rearrangement of established categories
• Programming tasks aimed at making various given strategies operational

Operational Planning

• Also called platform-based planning
• Results are predictable because they are based on solid knowledge rather than assumptions
• Easier for engineers to accomplish because past experience and examples are usually available as references.

Strategic Planning

• Planning from top to bottom; sets goals, purpose
• Top managers set mission, tactical plans, overall direction
• Middle managers set tactical plans
• First line managers set operations plans, single-use plans

Starting at the Top (Vision and Mission)

• Vision— statement of a company's purpose; brief, inspirational, clear, and consistent with company beliefs and values
• Mission— flows from the vision; specific, unifying goal that stretches and challenges the organization and has a timeframe

Strategic Planning

• Once a mission is chosen, an organization needs to achieve that mission
• Strategic planning is the organized process for selecting these strategies
• Strategic planning defines how the organization plans to move from its current state to the state envisioned in its mission and vision frameworks.

Tools for Planning

• Market research, SWOT analysis, financial what-if analysis and modeling, performance benchmarks, technology forecasting, product life-cycle analysis

SWOT Analysis

• Strengths— What do you do well? What unique resources can you leverage?
• Weaknesses— What needs improvement? What do competitors do better? What resources do you lack?
• Opportunities— What market opportunities are present? How can you leverage your strengths? What trends can you take advantage of?
• Threats— What is your competition currently doing? Do your weaknesses expose your business? What threats can hurt your business?

Strengths and Weaknesses (Internal Factors)

• Strengths— Specialist marketing expertise, new product/service, location, quality processes/procedures
• Weaknesses— Lack of marketing expertise, undifferentiated products/services, location, poor quality goods/services, damaged reputation

Opportunities and Threats (External Factors)

• Opportunities— Developing market such as the internet, mergers, joint ventures/strategic alliances, new market segments, vacated market
• Threats— New competitor, price wars, competitors with new product/service, competitors with superior access to channels of distribution, taxation

Simple Rules for Successful SWOT Analysis

• Be realistic about strengths/weaknesses
• Distinguish between current and future organizational state
• Be specific; avoid grey areas
• Apply SWOT in relation to competition (better or worse)
• Keep SWOT short and simple

Key Takeaways

• Explain the importance of planning
• Define Mission and vision
• Explain the role of goal and objectives
• Identify types of planning involved
• Describe SWOT analysis

Nature of Planning

• The general who wins a battle makes many calculations in his temple before the battle.
• The general who loses a battle makes few calculations beforehand.
• It is by attention to this point that you can see who is likely to win or lose.
• Planning is the most important managerial function.
• Without it, organizing, leading, and controlling have little purpose — it provides focus and direction.

Planning to decide in advance

• Who will do what. Where, when and with which resources.

Types of Planning

• Operational planning
• Strategic planning

Operational Planning

• Definition of specific tactics and action steps needed to accomplish a goal
• Breakdown of company goals into short-term objectives
• Specification of events/tasks that can be implemented with least resources in shortest time
• Ensuring efficient resource allocation and achievement of stated goals

Operational Planning

• A process of analysis to break down a corporate goal into steps formalized for easy implementation
• Focus on preserving and rearranging categories
• Programming tasks to make various strategies operational
• Platform-based planning: Predictable results from solid knowledge.
• Easier for engineers due to readily available past experience/references.

Strategic Planning

• Plans from top to bottom
• Top-level management setting company goals/purpose/direction
• Middle managers developing tactical plans
• First-line managers making operational plans

Starting at the Top— Vision and Mission

• Vision: Statement of company's purpose; brief, inspirational, clear, and consistent with company beliefs & values
• Mission: Flows from the vision; specific, unifying goal; stretches/challenges organization; specifies timeframe

Strategic Planning

• Once a mission is selected, an organization needs to achieve that mission
• Strategic planning is an organized process for selecting strategies
• Defines how to transition from current state to envisioned state based on mission and vision

Tools for Planning

• Market research
• SWOT analysis
• Financial what-if analysis/modeling
• Performance benchmarks
• Technology forecasting
• Product life-cycle analysis

Tools of Analysis— SWOT

• Strengths
• Weaknesses
• Opportunities
• Threats

Functional Areas of Management

• Planning
• Organizing
• Staffing
• Leading
• Controlling

Other Planning Concepts

• Responsibility for planning
• Planning premises
• Planning horizon
• System of plans
• Policies and procedures

Planning Time Frames

• Strategic plans— 2 years to 5 years
• Tactical plans— 6 months to 2 years
• Operational plans— 30 days to 6 months

Planning Roles of Engineering Managers

• Assist superiors with planning
• Seek subordinate support
• Develop active plans
  • Time management (projects, programs, corporate know-how, proactive tasks)

How to Make a Plan That Works

• Set goals
• Develop commitment to goals
• Develop effective action plans
• Track progress toward goal achievement
• Maintain flexibility in planning

Setting Goals (Vision)

• Specific: Clear, unambiguous goal
• Measurable: Concrete criteria for measuring progress
• Attainable: Realistic and attainable goals ("do-able")
• Realistic: Goals that are achievable
• Timely: Within a timeframe

SMART - Example

• Understand the purchasing process
• Refine the above statement for more effective implementation

SMART

• S: Specific, clearly stating the goal (ex: Decrease the number of steps required to complete an order by 30% by the end of this quarter)
• M: Measurable, with a quantifiable metric (ex: Number of steps per order)
• A: Achievable, realistic from a practical standpoint
• R: Realistic, aligned with resources and capabilities
• T: Time-bound, concrete deadlines

Goal (Vision) Commitment

• Determination to achieve a goal (increased by setting goals participatively)

Developing Effective Action Plans

• Specific steps needed
• Identifiable people or resources
• Defined time periods

Tracking Progress

• Proximal (short-term) goals
• Distal (long-term/primary) goals

Maintaining Flexibility

• Options-based planning
• Learning-based planning—Continual testing, changed plans, regular reassessment/revision

Setting Missions

• Targeting— Clear, specific target
• Common-enemy mission— vowing to defeat a corporate rival
• Role-model mission— Emulating a successful company
• Internal-transformation mission— Aiming to achieve dramatic change to remain competitive

Bending in the Middle

• Tactical plans— Define how a company will use resources/budgets/people
• Management by Objectives (MBO) — Developing/carrying out tactical plans
• Four steps: Discuss goals, participatively select goals, jointly develop tactical plans, meet to review performance

Finishing at the Bottom

• Operational plans— Day-to-day plans
• Single-use plans— Unique plans for one-time events
• Standing plans— Plans for recurring events
  • Three types: Policies (guides for decision-making), Procedures (sequences of activities), Rules/regulations
• Budgets— Determine basic units, estimate total resources

Special-Purpose Plans

• Planning for change
• Planning for contingencies— Scenario planning
• Planning for product development— Aggregate product plans

Test your knowledge on the concepts of strategic planning, including market analysis, objectives, and planning tools. This quiz covers key elements that are essential to developing effective strategies for organizations. Perfect for students and professionals looking to enhance their understanding of strategic management.