Strategic Planning vs. Disjointed Incrementalism: An Institutional Research Perspective. SAIR Conference Paper.

Strategic planning in higher education is discussed from the perspective of institutional research. Attention is directed to: institutional mission, institutional assessment, institutional leadership, environmental assessment, market analysis, and competitive position. Strategic planning merges incrementalism, which focuses on flexibility, practicality, and political participation in organizational decision-making, with comprehensive planning, which stresses systematic data collection and analysis. Strategic planning requires top administrative leadership, involvement, and support. Similar to corporate planning, strategic planning is entrepreneurial. Strategic planning infuses an awareness of future environmental threats and market opportunities into present-day decision-making to increase organizational capacity and desire to take risks to achieve institutional goals, values, and objectives. Emphasis is placed on the role of institutional research in realizing the potential of strategic planning to help decision-makers guide their institutions through difficult times ahead. Two checklists are included that can be used to evaluate institutional climate and components of strategic planning. (Author/SW)