ABSTRACT
This project
is on strategic planning as a tool for corporate survival with reference to
Cadbury Nigeria Plc , Agidingbi, Ikeja, Lagos.
Effective management of business environmental
changes depends on careful planning. Strategic planning has been the
cornerstone of business organization survival, because of numerous benefits
derived from a well formulated and implemented strategic planning.
In setting firms strategy, various elements such as
objectives, resources and opportunities are put into consideration. The
organization conducts its business environment situation analysis I order to
identify its strengths, weakness, threats and opportunities (SWOT). Towards
this, there are basic steps in strategic planning which enables the enterprise
to develop strategic options. The chosen strategic options need to match
organization opportunity with the strengths so as to achieve corporate objectives.
The process of strategic planning is a useful
framework for business management. It bears heavily in organization success or
failure, when all the spectrum of strategic planning are done well, an
organization may overcome inefficient use of internal resources but it is
unlikely for the organization to survive with poor strategies.
The project ends with recommendations of
quantitative forecasting technique in addition to judgment and assumptions,
which are common with some business organizations today.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
CHAPTER ONE
1.1 Background of Study
1.2 Statement of Problem
1.3 Objectives of Study
1.4 Research Questions
1.5 Research Hypotheses
1.6 Significance of Study
1.7 Scope and Limitation of Study
1.8 Historical Background of Study
1.9 Definition of Terms
References
CHAPTER TWO
2.1 Nature of Strategic Planning
2.2 Corporate Planning Approach
2.3 How to Develop Strategic Plan
2.4 Strategic Planning Process
2.5 Characteristics of Strategy
2.6 Criteria for Effective Strategy
2.7 Types of Strategies
2.8 Strategic Management
2.9 Formulation of Strategy
2.10 Objectives and Goals
References
CHAPTER THREE
3.0 Characteristics of Population
3.1 Research Sample
3.2 Methods of Data Collection
3.3 Procedure of Statistical Analysis
3.4 Research Design
CHAPTER FOUR
4.0 Data Analysis and Explanation of Data
4.1 Testing of Hypotheses
CHAPTER FIVE
5.0 Summary of Findings
5.1 Conclusion
5.2 Recommendations
Bibliography
Appendix A Questionnaire
Cover Letter
Appendix B Questionnaire
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1
BACKGROUND OF STUDY
In order for an organization
to thrive succeed in its environment of operation and achieve its set
objectives and goals, there exist fundamental environmental forces that
influence management decision making (formulation and implementation of policy)
process.
Organization must adapt to
these environmental forces as they plan and carryout their strategies and
activities.
The success of the
organization or its failure is determined largely by how well it recognizes and
adjusts to planning. Organization can predict changes in environmental forces
that will influence business direction through strategic planning.
Planning covers the whole
process of determining what purpose to pursue and the means of attaining them
as well as the mechanism for monitoring results.
Planning helps organization
define their purpose and activities. All managers at various levels in the
organization plan. Planning is one of the important managerial functions. Its
importance can be deduced from the popular adage – He, who fails to plan, plan to fail. Thus, for a manager to
succeed, he has to plan.
It is therefore, the
responsibility of managers to make use of a firm’s resources in adjusting to
the changing environment. Activities carried out by the organization should
stem from strategy. Non existent or poorly defined strategy results in
ineffective utilization of resources.
This project therefore,
attempts to study the significance of a well-formulated strategy as a basis for
organizational success.
1.2
STATEMENT OF PROBLEM
Managers are confronted with
the problems of defining the company’s objectives, adoption of strategies and
how to monitor results for the survival of their organization.
These problems of formulating strategies
to deal with environmental changes require information and technique for good
decision-making by managers.
This study therefore, is to
identify how and why strategic planning is necessary for the survival of any
corporate organization.
1.3
OBJECTIVES OF STUDY
This project focuses on the
extent to which strategic planning is a tool for corporate survival.
The objective of this study
is:
i.
to conceptualize what strategic planning is
ii.
to know steps in strategic planning in running modern organization
iii.
to learn why strategic planning takes place
iv.
to know how strategic planning works towards corporate survival.
At the end of this project, it
can be established that strategic planning is important to both small and large
scale businesses because it determines its viability, continuity and
profitability.
1.4
RESEARCH QUESTIONS
In order to probe into the
research project comprehensively, the following questions were formulated:
i.
Who the people responsible are for formulated of strategic planning?
ii.
What is the management policy employed by the organization?
iii.
What is the existing state of the organization and the environment in
which it operates and which likely to operate in future?
iv.
How does the company obtain its raw materials and equipment?
v.
How does the company cope with change of government policy?
1.5
RESEARCH HYPOTHESES
For the purpose of this work
the following hypotheses shall be tested:
1. Null hypothesis:
Strategic plan will not enhance unity among the various units within an
organization.
Alternative
hypothesis: Strategic plan will enhance unity among the various units
within an organization
2. Null hypothesis:
Strategic plan will not influence attainment of organizational objectives.
Alternative hypothesis: Strategic plan will not
influence attainment of organizational objectives.
3. Null hypothesis: A
flexible strategic plan does not work better tan a rigid strategic plan.
Alternative
hypothesis: A flexible strategic plan
does not work better tan a rigid strategic plan.
1.6
SIGNIFICANCE OF STUDY
This research work will be useful to various
organization in Nigeria
and the rest of the world.
Its findings and recommendations will guide
corporate organizations on how to strategically plan their business to thrive
in a depressed economy. It is a well-known fact that a problem whose causes are
identified is almost completely solved. Since this study is carried out to
identify the importance of strategic
planning for the survival of corporate organization
it will then be a pointer to some of the solutions to problems faced by
corporate organizations.
1.7
SCOPE AND LIMITATION OF STUDY
This research project is limited to Cadbury Nigeria
Plc, due to the constraints faced by the researcher.
One of the limitation is that of time, secondly is
financial constraint and also the problem of interviewing, distribution of
questionnaires, tabulation and analyzing of data but for these constraints, the
research would have taken a border dimension.
1.8 HISTORICAL BACKGROUNG OF STUDY (CADBURY
NIG. PLC.)
1965 may be considered the
formal birth date of the corporate entity known today as Cadbury Nigeria Pc. In
that year of incorporation of the then Cadbury Nigeria Limited, a purpose – built
factory was commissioned at the present agidingbi, Ikeja headquarters and full
scale production of pronto (introduced in 1956) and bournvita (1960) began,
using Nigerian Cocoa products as basic raw material.
This event marked the
beginning of a truly Nigerian company as opposed to the existing foreign
trading.
Policy laid down from the very
beginning and pursued with relentless dedication ever since was to make
products wherever possible with locality sourced raw materials of the highest
quality, primarily targeted to the Nigerian Market, taking cognizance of the
Nigerian peoples’ total developmental aspiration.
Today the core business of the
company is run in three streams namely Food Drinks, Confectionery and Foods.
The epoch-making Cereal Conversion Plant also produces a range of intermediate
products such as Sorghum Extract and Glucose; while the Jos Plant produces
tomato paste. The Confectionery namely, Tom-Tom, Buttermint, Malta Sweet,
Chocolate Eclairs, Luckies, Extra Strong Peppermint, Fruities Ginger Orange,
Koff-stick, Tofi etc.
The Food Drinks consists of
Pronto and Bournvita.
The subsidiary company, the
Stanmark Cocoa Processing Company, Ondo, processes locally grown cocoa Butter
and Liquor for export as well as Cocoa Powder for domestic consumption.
The company’s consistent
record achievement and growth has been sustained primarily by the “Cadbury
People”. They are guided by an enduring philosophy of integrity, respect and
excellence.
All activities have a
philosophical basis in the pursuit of excellence, and corporate social
responsibility finds expression in generous and meaningful support for the
Arts, Education, Charity and Sports. A substantial sum of money has been
endowed to provide interest income to fund all corporate giving.
1.9
DEFINITIONS OF TERMS
It will not be sufficient to
conclude this introductory aspect of strategic planning without explaining the
meaning of those key terms which will be used over in the chapters.
·
Strategy: Is the pattern of objectives,
purposes, goals and the major policies and plans for achieving those goals
stated in such a way so as to define what business the company is in or is to e
and the kind of company it is or to be (Andrews, 1965).
·
Strategy can also be defined as
schemes, methods, maneuvers which management hopes to deploy in order to move
the organization from its present position to arrive at its target goal by
the end of a specified period, recognizing that
during the interviewing period a host of changes are going to take place in the
environment (Amao, 1979)
·
Planning: Is
the process of predicting future events and using those predictions to set
courses of action that will achieve the organization’s goals.
·
Strategic Plan: Drucker (1974) ”the continuous process of making present
entrepreneurial (risk taking) decisions systematically and with the greatest
knowledge of their futurity, organizing systematically the efforts needed to
carryout these decisions and measuring the results of these decisions against
expectation through organized systematic feedback”.
·
Tactical Plan: A short-term plan that specifies the activities necessary to carry out
a specific plan.
·
Corporate Mission: Is the specific and well-defined roles and
activities on which the organization elects to concentrate its efforts.
·
Distinctive Competencies: These are the activities an organization can
perform better than other firms
·
Goal:
This is an expected result
·
Objective:
Is the derived state of affair or preferred results that an organization
attempts to realized and achieve
·
Target;
This is a goal to be reached, a quantified expected result.
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