Management Planning Paper - Boeing Corporation

Management Planning Paper

Management planning is an essential task for a company as massive and complicated as Boeing Corporation. The company operates on a global level, and it provides products to customers all over the world. Boeing produces high-end aircraft for both commercial and military organizations. The products made are primarily needed to carry passengers, cargo, and perform military duties. Aircraft used for these purposes are strictly regulated because of safety and performance concerns. In the United States, aircraft is regulated by the Federal Aviation Administration, or FAA. With all these factors in mind, Boeing is required to conduct extensive planning in order to operate an efficient business (Pritchard, 2004). Management planning plays a large role in the company, and is used at all levels of the corporation's structure.

The planning function is the process of setting goal and objectives for an organization to achieve over a set period. A plan will include activities and tasks that are needed to be completed to reach the ultimate goal. Good plans take into account variables and unexpected occurrences. By planning for the unexpected an organization can avoid the chaos that is associated with unforeseen challenges or problems. In the case of Boeing, planning is vital within all of its major departments. The company remains efficient by setting goals within its engineering department, sales department, mechanical department, and product testing department, among many others. (Pritchard, 2004) For each goal, guidelines will be set that explain how this particular goal will be achieved. The guidelines will outline the events needed to take place by addressing issues such as management, personnel, inventory, etc. The ultimate goal of the plan is to bring efficiency to its highest level within the company.

Management planning includes five basic steps. The first step is to analyze the situation that surrounds the goal. By conducting a thorough analysis, management is able determine which steps need to be taken to reach the goal. The next step is to look at alternative goals and plans that may be used. It is a good idea to formulate multiple plans that can be compared and contrasted with one another. This will allow management to see the benefits and errors that each alternative goal or plan offer. The alternative plans and goals will eventually be combined into one single plan. The third step is to evaluate the goals and plans that have been created thus far. A manager can look at the overall plan and determine the benefits and drawbacks of each goal that has been set. As a manager is evaluating the goals, he or she can prioritize the most important steps and delegate roles to members who can most efficiently complete the tasks. The fourth step is for management to select the final plan to be used. The previous three steps have laid the groundwork for this decision to be made. A manager will need to use good judgment and analysis to determine which final plan will be implemented into the system. A manager's final step is to implement the plan that has been created. The plan will need to be explained to all people involved with the plan's success. It is vital that everybody is all together, when the plan is put into effect. In the case of Boeing, the plans laid-out by each department will need to be linked with other departments within the company. This allows all the separate departments to function as one efficient unit.

Many of the internal and external factors can affect the management planning process. Legal issues play a large role with Boeing. Because