CORPORATE PLANNING AND STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT IN SMALL AND MEDIUM SCALE ENTERPRISES (SMES) (A STUDY OF DE-PIUDENTCOM AND MULTICOM CONCEPTS NIGERIA LIMITED ENUGU)

ABSTRACT

In an unpredictable world nothing remains static for a long time. This is true for business environments. Business organizations are constantly confronted with challenges emanating from the dynamic nature of their operating environments. And,   to   ensure   continued   relevance   and   survival,   strategic   positioning (planning) is of utmost importance. This, of course is achieved through strategic management.

However,  strategic  management  cannot  exist  in  isolation.  It  is  corporate planning that form the basic framework upon which strategic management is developed. These two concepts complement each other. That is, one cannot be successfully practiced without the other. Where both are operated effectively, there  is  a  harmonious  working  environment/  relationship,  which  depict  a common sense of purpose, direction and focus. This characteristic     clearly distinguishes an organization from its contemporaries. It places an organization at a comparatively advantageous position.

This     study is aimed at examining the practice of corporate planning and strategic management in Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) with particular reference to a segment of the telecommunications industry. Two Companies- De Piudentcom   and   Multicom   concepts   Limited   will   be   understudied   for comparison purposes.

In this work, a number of research tools and procedures were used to gather data and information. Due to the relatively small nature of the organizations, the entire population will be studied. Questionnaires are designed to suit the various information needs required from the categories of staff to be encountered in the course of the study. Direct interviews will be employed where necessary.

The chi-square method and tables will be used in the analysis, presentation and testing of the data generated from primary sources.  The study discovered thus:

-there are duplications of duties and lack of accountability or transparency in some areas.

-that most of the staff has no formal orientation concerning the goals aims and objectives or mission statements of their organizations.

And the study recommends that: there should be emphasis on the importance of information as a critical input for business decisions

The organizations should strive to update themselves with the global developments in the telecommunication business

Management consultants should be engaged in order to assist in the formulation of long term goals and strategies.

There  should be a periodic review of plans and strategies according to the dictates of the operating environment at any point in time.

Finally, corporate planning and strategic management are veritable tools for

organization development.

CHAPTER   ONE: Introduction

1.1     BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Planning is an inescapable   part of all rational human activity. Since business  is  one  of  those  rational  human  activities,  planning  is  of  great importance to ensure efficiency in the discharge of business responsibilities. Apart from being one of the basic  elements of  management, planning has an aspect, which involves  charting a sense of direction and purpose in the life of a business organization. This aspect is called. Corporate Planning. Planning as it sounds is a process in which   a document known as “Plan” is   produced. To implement that plan, the art of  management comes  into focus. And  to achieve this at the corporate level, the issue of strategic  management is addressed.

Corporate Planning and Strategic  management  are two managerial practices that ensure the continue   existence and relevance   of business organizations. According to John Thompson (1982), Corporate Planning   was popular in the 1960s. This is due   to  the fact that the said period enjoyed economic stability and planners were able to convince   both themselves and their  directors that they could predict the future, several years ahead. Though, right by this assertion, they were however, proved wrong by the oil crisis of

1973. This led to a sharp  criticism  of corporate  planning, which was of  little use in a period  of turbulent change. It is this  phenomenon that then brought into perspective, the issue of Strategic  Management.

1.2     STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Many small and medium enterprises   go under, due to lack of good corporate  planning  and  Strategic  management.  Absence  of  this  means  that many small business have no clear-cut business objective or reason why  they are in business. This unfortunate posture therefore, makes them to sail adrift with the obvious consequence  of being  tossed around by the harsh and rough terrain of the unpredictable business environment.

This situation somehow explains  the reason why most   small medium enterprises  are  seen  as  organizations  with  no  proper  sense  of  direction  or purpose.

1.3     OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

This  study is to critically examine the way small businesses  carry out their management responsibilities in relation to their growth and survival. The major area of doing   this is in Corporate planning activities and the implementation of these plans through the practice  of Strategic management. The  study  will  widen the  scope and  horizon of  knowledge in  the  areas of planning and management. Specifically, the study is meant  to do the following.

1. Highlight the impact of corporate planning and strategic management   on business.

2. Determine the effects of the concepts (mentioned above) on the growth  and survival of small and medium enterprises

3. Ascertain if the small and medium enterprises being  studied, practice      the concepts

4. Determine how  plans are developed and implemented in those  companies.

1.4     RESEARCH  QUESTIONS

Pertinent  questions to be answered in this research include

1.  Is the growth of businesses dependent on corporate planning and strategic management?

2. Do these concepts assure the continuous  relevance and survival of business organizations, especially in turbulent periods?

In providing answers to these questions, the study will juxtapose two business organization  in  the  same     industry  (telecommunications)  for  comparison purpose.

1.5   HYPOTHESES   FORMULATION

H0      Corporate    Planning and  Strategic    management are  not   important to business success.

H1     Corporate Planning and Strategic management are important to Business success.

H0        Small  and  Medium  Enterprises  do  not  practice  corporate  strategic

Management

H1     Small and Medium Enterprises adopt   a systematic approach incorporate planning

Ho   Small and  Medium Enterprises do not adopt a systematic approach in

Corporate planning.

H1  Small and Medium Enterprises adopt a systematic approach in Corporate planning.

1.6   SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

This   study will provide a practical pointer   to certain managerial activities  in  some  small     and  medium  enterprises.  This  will  enable  the production   of   documented evidence in this particular area of management, which    is  being  understudied    in  this    work.  The  evidence    will  serve  as reference  material for further  academic  work. Through this study we will also be  able to understand  very well how small business overcome the challenges to an ever-changing business environment.

1.7   LIMITATIONS   OF THE STUDY

Time  as is usual is a constraint in this study. This is due to the fact that this research is to be  completed within a compressed  semester period  of three months. Secondly, the scarcity    of  good  management textbooks will  surely affect the quality  of information    required  from  an exercise of  this nature. Lastly, the skeptical attitude of   respondents will also pose a limitation in the exercise.

1.8     SCOPE  OF STUDY

The scope  of this work is spread  around  the local telecommunications outfits  located within Enugu metropolis.

1.9     BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY AREAS

The Nigerian telecommunication industry, especially the Global System for Mobile communication  segment has witnessed tremendous change. This has greatly improve the socio-economic life of the citizenry. It has also opened up immense opportunities   to those   who are daring   and enterprising. Within a short period of time, so many small and medium  scale business have sprung up to take advantage of this phenomenon.

Modern  communication  as  we  know  is  technology     driven.  And technology is one thing  that changes rapidly. This sort of change is so swift that within a six-month period, certain forms (s) of technology may fall into obsolescence. This  therefore  makes the telecommunication environment to  be volatile for unplanned businesses  to thrive.

It is against   this background that the study seeks   to examine how the small   and medium enterprises tackle such challenge. This, it will carry out under   the platform of Corporate   planning and Strategic   management. The focus  for this study shall be the small and medium telecommunication business within Enugu metropolis.

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