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Growth optimism, which describes the expected future growth of a firm, is an important but underexplored construct in strategy. This paper aims to assess the planning antecedents of such growth optimism by using a large Australian sample of small enterprises.

The authors use a secondary data set, gathered among Australian small to medium enterprises (SMEs), by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). The analysis adopts a regression approach including a mediated and a non-mediated path to explore the direct and indirect effects of strategic planning and budgetary planning and management on expected future revenues.

This paper assesses the implications of concurrent strategic planning and financial management dynamic capabilities on anticipated future revenue growth, an important predisposition dynamic capability. The authors note that this configuration of actions and predisposition aligns closely with the necessary requirements for growth. The findings suggest that firms that use strategic planning and robust budget planning and monitoring processes exhibit higher optimism about future sales growth and firms that effectively configure these planning activities with market development tend to exhibit higher growth and more growth optimism.

In terms of theoretical contributions, the paper strongly supports the formality view in the formal/informal debates associated with effectuation strategies. The authors suggest that appropriate strategic and budgetary planning and control systems act as a counterbalance to organisational confusion and managerial capriciousness, leading to improved confidence among managers and their employees regarding future resource commitments and plans.

The findings of the paper are potentially important for both managers and policy makers. For managers seeking to grow their future sales, planning is shown to be an important antecedent activity. The presence of financial and strategic planning may predispose firms to make important investment decisions that drive future growth. Also, a better understanding of the firm’s current and future strategic and financial position may be evidence of effective firm management, a situation that, in turn, drives growth.

In terms of social and policy implications, the data gathered for the survey by the ABS forms a valuable collection of information in relation to business practices. Australian firms are required by law to regularly report budget plans and outcomes. The research suggests that this data can inform policy initiatives, particularly in relation to programmes that may assist small and young firms to undertake prospective strategic and budgetary planning.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first paper to investigate the particular configuration of strategic and financial planning and anticipated sales growth in the SME context.

The purpose of this study is to show how strategic planning can play multiple roles in the context of conflict between two controlling shareholders in a new joint venture.

This study conducted a five-year qualitative case study of a large financial services joint venture co-owned by a Latin American state bank and a European financial company.

The authors found that over time, budgeting and strategic planning had intertwining use to guide strategic decisions, but unexpectedly, strategic planning eventually developed three distinct roles beyond the merely functional, as it also contributed to complex symbolic and political functions.

This study provides guidance on considering different roles taken by strategic planning, as a utilitarian practice, as a symbolic narrative and as a conflict-mediating routine.

This article offers a perspective on the evolution of strategic planning and strategic planning's implementation, particularly within the context of family business. This paper is structured into three sections: Introduction, literature review (LR), conclusion and practical and theoretical implications. The LR critically examines traditional planning tools and highlights the need for adopting new digital concepts to enhance effectiveness and resource management in family business.

The author employed a LR to synthesize all the information and to identify the authors/articles related to the object of study.

The use of technology to overcome strategic planning pitfalls and leverage emerging technologies while making data-driven decisions is a key factor for family businesses to stay ahead of the curve and achieve sustainable growth.

This study explores the historical development of strategic planning tools and discusses the transformative impact of technology on the traditional landscape, with a specific focus on strategic planning's reflection in family businesses.

In this study, we applied the strategy-as-practice (SAP) framework to analyse strategic communication practices. SAP implies approaching strategy as something that organisational members do and is useful for understanding the tensions between emergence and formalisation and between planning and improvisation that characterise the everyday communication work of communication practitioners.

The paper is based on an ethnographic study of a record company and on qualitative interviews with various actors from the music industry.

Tensions exist between the emergence of inputs from active consumers that require flexibility and attempts to strategically formalise and continuously adapt plans and encourage consumers to act in anticipated ways. The findings revealed five strategic communication practices—meetings, working in the office, gathering and analysing consumer engagement and related data, collaboration and storytelling—that practitioners used to conduct strategic communication and navigate the tensions.

The study contributes to understanding the role of strategic communication practices in contemporary organisations and how practitioners manage the tensions within them. The study shows that an SAP approach can account for improvisation and emergence, as well as planning and formalisation. It also shows how SAP resonates with emergent and agile strategic communication frameworks.

This study aims to examine the relevance of strategic marketing planning in this agile era and its effect on firms’ international performance and explores conditions under which the influence of planning changes.

Based on contingency theory, a conceptual model is tested based on survey data from internationalizing firms. Data were analyzed using partial least squares -structural equation modeling.

Marketing strategy planning is (still) associated with enhanced performance, and depends on external and internal contingencies. While the planning−performance relationship is amplified by market sensing (external contingency), surprisingly, it is decreased in presence of high tolerance for failure (internal contingency).

Findings seek to transform marketing planning in international business practice by requiring that its implementation receives the attention of senior management.

Marketing strategy planning should not be deemphasized. While planning appears to be undergoing an identity crisis, practitioners’ attention to marketing planning is warranted.

This study aims to explore the benefits of strategy as way-finding approach to strategic thinking suggested by Robert Chia for small community-based Southern NGOs. The purpose is to find alternatives to the strategic planning (SP) approach.

The study adopts the perspective of phronesis (Flyvbjerg, 2006) using the case study of a 45-year-old NGO based in India and working for community development. The data has been collected for over more than 20 years. Qualitative analysis of the data has been done by focusing on the activities that were performed in keeping with the requirements of phronetic research.

The study finds that through way-finding approach to strategic thinking, a Southern NGO is able to manage and reduce its resource dependence while maintaining organizational autonomy and pursuing its vision. The approach avoids the pathologies produced through SP in such organisations.

This study adds to empirical contexts in which strategy as way-finding may be practiced. This study explicitly shows how this may be very useful to smaller community-based Southern NGOs. This study also adds to the research on strategy as practice by showing its relevance in the NGO sector.

This study shows alternatives to NGOs that are reluctant to engage in SP. This study also shows how NGOs can benefit from the way-finding approach to strategic thinking to improve their community connect, autonomy and impact.

This study provides alternatives to resisting the power asymmetry of the global North-South development agenda.

This study demonstrates the usefulness of the way-finding approach to strategy in the context of smaller Third-World NGOs and provides alternatives to SP.

Purpose: The business world has become more turbulent than ever. Organisations must be proactive to meet the challenges of the increasingly disruptive, dynamic, and unpredictable world. One technique that has supported leaders and organisations under challenging circumstances is ‘backcasting’, which works by envisioning a desirable future state and then working backwards to attain it. The current study aims to extend an understanding of the backcasting practices and strategic approaches that can be used by leadership teams in different industries in order to survive in turbulent times and can be adapted within and beyond any pandemic.

Methodology: The research employs a desktop research method to review and compare the most commonly used strategies that leaders from different sectors can use for their respective organisations to thrive in the VUCA world.

Findings: There needs to be more research on the applicability and relevance of backcasting that the leaders of different sectors can employ. The study would provide insights that would bridge the existing research gap and come up with suitable strategies that can be employed for dealing with VUCA challenges in the Indian context.

Significance: The outcome of the study will be helpful to the leaders in designing and aligning ‘out of the box’ backcasting strategies to survive in the highly disruptive world.

The learning objectives of this case study are based on Bloom’s taxonomy. Upon completion of the case study discussion and exercises, successful students will be able to design a leadership transition and succession plan for non-profit organisations; identify and evaluate critical skills and competencies required in leadership positions; and frame expectations and responsibilities for new and departing executives.

Apar Gupta co-founded Internet Freedom Foundation (IFF), a digital rights organisation born out of SaveTheInternet – Net Neutrality movement of 2015, credited for urging the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India to uphold net neutrality in India. And ban zero-cost internet services that promoted data discrimination in the country. After working on and winning the net neutrality movement, Gupta identified many areas in technology where democratic rights had not been identified or were yet to be clearly defined (like in the case of net neutrality). There was also a service gap between the existing internet volunteer groups and digital rights organisations, which could IFF fill. This was to provide objective clarity, stakeholder identification, handle policy discussions and, most importantly, arrange resources to support movements over the long term. This prompted him to co-found IFF in 2017, which he later joined as a full-time executive director in 2018. IFF worked at the intersection of technology, democratic rights and government policies and was comparable to some global organisations, such as the Electronic Frontier Foundation in the USA and the Open Rights Group in the UK. Still, none existed in India at the time. After four years as a full-time executive director in 2022, he was convinced that it was finally time for him to act on the pre-defined strategic departure plan and work towards succession for the executive director position. While there were visible gaps in the system, Gupta’s leadership design and plans had helped IFF overcome existential challenges in the past. Also, while digital rights were still at a nascent stage in emerging economies, under Gupta’s leadership, IFF had delivered unmatched value to its beneficiaries in the world’s biggest digital consumer market. However, constant changes in regulations and continuing financial constraints made him nervous about the outcomes of the succession and the overall sustainability of IFF. Gupta wanted to ensure that this phased transition from executive director after two years and then trustee manager after the next four years are carefully communicated to reduce the likelihood of attrition and loss of trust.

Being the co-founder and the first and only executive director IFF had seen, the organisation would also require significant skill and competency mapping to identify the new executive leadership. But with no clear internal successor in sight, the non-profit trust would also need a successor who not only was competent but also would share a passion for the type of work done by IFF, its unique delivery mode, and also would openly inherit its position in society. The other alternative strategic routes present were to look for dual leadership or interim leadership, but then there could be concerns about Gupta’s influence overshadowing any such alternative.

In the case scenario, IFF is planning for succession while navigating the organisation through financial constraints and constant regulatory changes to ensure long- and short-term sustainability.

The case study has been written to gain insights into departure-defined successive planning in non-profit organisations. The case study can also be used to gain insights into innovative start-ups and innovative non-profit start-ups, as digital rights are still at nascent stages in emerging markets. The case study will be valuable for courses such as human resource management, strategic human resource management, social entrepreneurial leadership, leadership development, start-up environment, innovation and entrepreneurship, public policy, development studies, cyber security and information technology. The case study also allows students and young professionals to take the perspective of an innovative start-up founder and design a departure-defined succession plan. The case study can also be useful for senior students wanting to undertake an entrepreneurial career by starting or joining a non-profit organisation. While the case study is suitable for postgraduate- and executive-level courses, it can also be used for conducting entrepreneurial workshops and skill training.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 3: Entrepreneurship.

This study aims to develop the application of the strategic choice approach (SCA) in Karaj City (Iran) as the case study for facilitating the decision-making process concerning uncertainties associated with determining fault trace, fault buffer zone and fault setback, as well as inherent uncertainties related to urban issues – known as wicked problems – which make a clear definition unachievable for them.

The SCA was recycled in this study to manage uncertain situations in planning. It is designed to deal with problems caused by uncertainty, insufficient knowledge and unpredictable policy outcomes. In combination with the risk-based planning approach, the paper proposes a new model to deal with uncertainty and hazard risk at the same time.

The results indicated that such decision-making tools are helpful for urban planners who impose changes in the fault zone to save lives and properties where the process seems problematic and ambiguous. Further analysis from the SCA development not only shows that urban planning restrictions should be applied gradually and in pace with the completion of fault displacement geological data but also reveals that defining the implementation process and institutional structure is as important as the preparation of binding fault zoning documents.

The paper will push forward global research and practice because the results can be generalized for use in other earthquake-prone countries, as the considerations and obstacles have a universal character and more specifically because many earthquake-prone countries have not started to define fault avoidance zone restrictions up to now.