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Starting right: Diagnosing institutional readiness to engage in successful strategic planning
Abstract
In the decades following World War II American higher education enjoyed a period of unprecedented growth and development. By the 1970s, however, it was clear that the growth curve was flattening. The prospect of fiscal stringency sparked interest in formal planning, and campuses experimented with Program Planning Budgeting Systems (PPBS) and other "rational" planning approaches. As the 1980s unfolded, however, the sense that fiscal problems would persist deepened, and the emphasis shifted to effectiveness. "Strategic" approaches to planning--emphasizing adaptive change in response to environmental analysis--came into wide use. The comprehensiveness and complexity of strategic approaches introduced new challenges for which institutions were poorly prepared, and many had disappointing experiences. The literature offered only fragmented and often inconsistent advice for institutions contemplating strategic planning. The author reviewed the literature with an eye toward identifying "conditions" that support successful planning. Five such conditions were identified: (1) consensus for change; (2) focus on institutional needs; (3) good "fit" between planning and the campus culture; (4) effective faculty participation; and (5) effective leadership. It is argued that an institution which satisfies these conditions increases its chances of success; conversely, an institution which falls short in these areas diminishes its chances. This hypothesis was explored in a case study of planning efforts at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst between 1971 and 1992. The campus engaged in seventeen planning efforts, nine of which were judged to be "strategic." Of the nine, only two could be considered "successful," both quite modest in scope. An examination of the campus's status with respect to the five "conditions" suggested that they were useful in understanding the planning outcomes. The five conditions were then recast as a "diagnostic" tool, a set of questions to be answered before embarking on strategic planning. This tool should help the institution understand its "readiness" to undertake strategic planning; identify areas in which ameliorative action is needed; form a more realistic set of planning expectations. A number of directions for future research are suggested to both test the predictive power of the five conditions and to enhance the usefulness of the diagnostic tool.
Subject Area
Higher education|Education history|School administration
Recommended Citation
Harvey, Bryan Curtis, "Starting right: Diagnosing institutional readiness to engage in successful strategic planning" (1997). Doctoral Dissertations Available from Proquest. AAI9737532.
https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations/AAI9737532