January 31, 2012 Class

We discussed strategic planning in class today. Strategic planning is long range planning (3, 5, 20 years). Strategic or long range planning has changed over time. In the past, strategic planning meant that administration leaves the hospital and goes to a remote location. The plan would talk about where they would be in five years, 20 years, etc… The plan would then never be looked at again. Now long range strategic planning is for 12 – 18 months. The planning includes collaboration, deciding in advance “what to do, who is to do it, how it is to be done and when it is to be done.” After reading the articles assigned to us and attending class, I’ve realized that one of the most important parts to strategic planning is collaboration. The game we played in class reinforced this. Nobody wins, if we don’t collaborate. Each department is essential in strategic planning.