THE IMPACT OF STRATEGIC PLANNING ON PERFORMANCE OF BANKS IN NIGERIA

CHAPTER ONE

1.0       INTRODUCTION

Strategic planning has offer a unique opportunity to an organization especially Nigeria Banks, in terms of helping the Nigeria Banks to create plans that are attuned to assumption about the future also focuses on using the plan as a blue print for daily activities.

For an organization to achieve its set goals, management must determine and address the most critical issue that could affect the organization’s ability to achieve the set goal that is, to exerciser strategic plan.

Strategic planning can be defined as the process of formulating a ‘company’s vision, mission, objectives and goals and developing strategies to achieve them. It creates a conceptual framework that incorporates the external environment characterized by risk, change and uncertainty into company’s long term decision .it involves deciding upon the major goals of an organization and what policies will be used to achieve them, and also involves a long term forecast and occurs at more top level in an organization.

In addition, it deals with futurity of present decision in terms of work setting developing strategies to achieve them, translating strategies into detailed operational programmes and assuring that plans are carried out.

It is also the process of determining the major objectives of an organization and the policies and strategies that will govern the acquisition, use and disposition of resources to achieve these objectives.

The features of good strategies planning are:

–          It is formal and systematic in approach and therefore an organized and structured process.

–          It entails sequence of steps.

–          It has a long term perspective.

–          It is continuous and on-going process.

–           It involves planning for the whole organization rather than some component part.

–          It is mainly the responsibility of top management even though every other level of organizational functioning has some input.

–          It is often comprehensive in nature involving both strategic planning and operational or tactical planning.

–          Strategic planning intends to take care of the future of the organization that is why some people refer to it as “anticipatory decision-making.”

–          The key issues most critical to successful translating strategies into action are:

–          Controlling implementation.

–          Linking budgeting to strategy.

–          Strategic translation and motivation

–          Strategic information system controlling implementation is the firm’s major issue of strategic action.

Usually, the strategic plans should last for minimum of four to five years, so as to guarantee continuity. Such plans should be developed with following point in mind;

The plans must reflect a creative work of the concerns in the organization. It must also incorporate the effect the effect of internal an d external strategic enabler.

Most organization fail to adopt the information in their strategic plans in their day-to-day operations. Strategic management is more than just developing a strategic plan. It involves managing the organization in line with the plans established in the strategic blue prints of the organization some organizations spend [so much time and money developing strategic plans that can derive growth, but ignore the need to create enabling structures and culture that will facilitate the execution of the plans.

It is essential from the beginning of the process to identify the structural problem since individual and group that make up the structure are the ones to help the organization carry out the plans.  Implementation should be done through an on-going staff motivation.

Therefore, the strategies used by Zenith Bank of Nigeria Plc in the last five years to achieve their level of performance in the past five years will serves the basis of study.

1.1       STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Though, the importance of strategic planning on performance of banks is to meet the needs of banks customer, nevertheless there are several problems militating against effective execution of such strategic planning. These problems are

–                      Narrow outlook to issues or problem in a unit or department.

–                      Lack of support from top management

–                      Poor and effective information system. This hinders effective communication among the component part of the Banks.

–                      Faculty implementation of the plans

–                      Over emphasis on short term result to the neglect of long term goals.

These problems mostly associated with Nigeria banks, therefore, required solution as revealed from research, been carried out so as to encourage the performances of Zenith bank Plc. And economic development through the effective formulation and implementation of strategic planning by Zenith Bank Plc.

1.2       OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

–                      To carry out research on the importance of strategic planning in Zenith Bank plc.

–                      To know the Various tools used in evaluating the performance of Zenith Bank Plc.

–                      [to study the constraints of effective and efficient of strategic planning on the performance of Banks in Nigeria.

1.3       SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

Zenith banks has maintain a triple A (Aaa) rating for seven consecutive years since 1990, as adjusted by Ajusto and Co, Nigeria;s foremost rating agency. The agency categorized the bank “as a financial condition and overwhelming capacity to meet obligations as and when they fall due”.

The significance of this study with special focus on Zenith bank Plc. With pool of human capital and ICT edge that continue to place the Banks in a very strong position to complete with best in the world, include,

–                      improving the knowledge of students on how strategic planning is being executed and how the overall performance of the banks arte being evaluated, especially Zenith Bank Plc.

–                      Busting the knowledge of top officials of Zenith Bank Plc.

–                      Revising and extending new knowledge on the part of financial analyst

1.4       SCOPE OF THE STUDY

As a bank with new status which confers on it enormous responsibilities to offer leadership role in product, innovation, creative thinking, value creation, adoption and implementation of global best practices. Achievable through strategic plan adopted.

Hence, this research work will focus on strategic plan employed by Zenith Bank and the criteria tools used in evaluating performance of Zenith Bank Plc. with special reference to other banks involved in competition and maximizing.

1.5       LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

There are constraints encountered during the research process. Some constraints of these projects are:

Financial constraints: There is no enough money to access more documents of the bank.

Resources materials were difficult to get as it has to through the banks bureaucratic process hence, prolonging the research duration.

The head quarter of the bank where all necessary information could be accessed, the risk of traveling to a far place before information could be accessed.

Al these are limitations faced during the research work.

1.6       HYPOTHESIS

Ho:      (Null Hypothesis): operational performance of Zenith bank Plc. Is dependent of the formulated strategic planning.

H1:       (Alternative Hypothesis): operational performance of Zenith Bank Plc is independent of the formulated strategic planning.

1.7       DEFINITION OF TERMS

MISSION STATEMENT: The mission statement clearly states the objectives of the organizations management instructing its basic business activity. It is an enduring statement of purpose which distinguishes one organization from the other.

STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT: Is the formulation, implementation and evaluation of plan for actions that will enable an organization to achieve it objectives.

TACTICAL PLANNING: It involves deciding upon how resources will be used to help the organization to achieve its strategic goals. It reveals more on past records and involves shorter time period.

CONTROLLING IMPLEMENTATION: It is firms major issue of strategic action.

STRENGTH: This refers to something within the control of the organization which gives it an advantage over competitors.

WEAKNESS: It refers to something within the control of the organization which gives competitors an advantage over it.

STRATEGY: This is the process of planning something or carrying out plan in  a skillful way.

VISION: The ability of an organization to plan the future with great imagination and intelligence.

GOAL: The goal of an organization hopes to achieve.

ICT: Information Communication Technology.