NURS 6241 Differentiating Strategic, Operational, and Tactical Planning

NURS 6241 Differentiating Strategic, Operational, and Tactical Planning

NURS 6241 Differentiating Strategic, Operational, and Tactical Planning

 

Continuous planning is an important activity for any organization that aims to evolve to stay current in its industry and serve its intended purpose. There are several types of planning used by nurse executives: strategic planning, operational planning, and tactical planning. Each type of planning usually occurs at different management levels and over different periods of time. A clear understanding of the differences between each type of plan will aid you next week in selecting a meaningful strategic issue for your Strategic Plan.

By Day 3

In your own words, differentiate between an operational plan, a tactical plan, and a strategic plan. Provide an example of each.

Read a selection of your colleagues’ responses.

By Day 6

Respond to at least two of your colleagues on two different days, and explain why it would be beneficial for a nurse executive to be knowledgeable about and involved in each of the examples that your colleague provided.

This last month I’ve had the chance to work with a rural hospital on strategic planning. In the past, I thought strategic planning was just a fancy word to have meetings to discuss ideas that would never come to fruition. As I’ve had more experience with it, I have seen how it can be pointless meetings, and I’ve also seen how it can also provide energy, excitement, and the process to move an organization to a stronger place.

There are multiple keys to developing a strategic plan that moves an organization forward. The first key is a basic understanding of the difference between strategic, tactical, and operational. Here’s how I break it down with help on the definitions from: https://blog.udemy.com/planning-in-management/

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Strategic Plan – A strategic plan is a high-level overview of the entire business, its vision, objectives, and values. This plan is the foundational basis of the organization and will dictate decisions in the long term. Crucial components include the vision, mission, and values.

Tactical Plan – The tactical plan describes the tactics the organization plans to use to achieve the ambitions outlined in the strategic plan. It usually has a scope of a year or less and breaks down the strategic plan into smaller more actionable chunks. Components include specific goals with fixed deadlines, budgets, and resources.

 

Operational Plan – The operational plan describes the day to day running of the company. The operational plan charts out a roadmap to achieve the tactical goals within a realistic timeframe. This plan is highly specific with an emphasis on short-term objectives. These can include policy, rules, and procedure.

To thrive, an organization has to do all three well. An organization needs a strong strategic plan. It needs to know the overall purpose and direction for the organization. If an organization doesn’t know this, it doesn’t matter how well it can implement tactical changes and how well it can operate in the day to day. An organization can be incredibly efficient in its daily procedures, but if it is going the wrong direction or doesn’t react to a market change, it will eventually be out of business.

An organization needs to be able to implement tactical changes. An organization can have an amazing strategic planning session with a strong vision for the future, but if it can’t figure out the process to turn the vision into daily operation plans, a strategic plan is a waste of time.

An organization also needs strong operational plans. An organization may be able to have a strong strategic vision for the future and is able to implement the vision, but if there is confusion in the day to day operation of the organization, the organization won’t provide goods or services with consistency. Front line staff will be confused on how to deliver in daily interactions. There will be a lot of time spent ‘reinventing the wheel’ on a daily basis that will cause confusion amongst staff and customers.

Take a minute to evaluate your organization. Do you have a long-term strategy on what your organization needs to do to move forward and adjust to market changes? Does your organization have a mission and values that are reflected in what the business is and how it does it? Is there a process to make structural improvements to your business? Is there a path to make changes from strategy to operations? Are people clear on what their day to day responsibilities are? Do your operations allow for consistent, high quality delivery?

I’m curious to hear what your organizations do to have strong strategic, tactical, and operational plans. Please take a minute to send me a note at andrew@cultivateruralleaders.com and let me know what you do well, how and where you can improve, and if you have questions.