Stop strategic planning … and create shareholder value!

Focuses on risk to shareholder wealth creation attached to the use of certain well known strategic planning processes. The subject is presented in the context of experience primarily gained during a major organisational change that was brought about in a large Australian industrial company. A process linking management training and involvement, activity based costing, economic value added analysis, market participation analysis, market positioning choice and organisational structure is discussed. The scope of this paper encompasses planning processes used in commercial organisations. Three very important questions arise. How can directors and managers gain access to accurate, non‐judgemental, non‐institutionally biased information so that sound, value creating, strategic decisions can be made? How can directors and managers ensure that the design of the company’s structure, activity system and processes will enable and support their chosen strategic direction? How can directors and managers overcome the “institutional imperative” and bring about the structural changes required for effective strategy implementation? The author proposes that a business planning process known as value creating management (VCM) offers effective answers to the above questions.