Strategic Planning and Business Development

The phrase strategic planning describes jobs that can vary considerably in their responsibilities, duration, 
and career path within an organization. Strategic planners explore, design, analyze, or evaluate specific 
business plans. This work may involve: 

 identifying and evaluating merger or acquisition proposals 
 analyzing the feasibility of a new product or service 
 designing or evaluating new service-delivery processes, distribution processes, vendor 
relationships, or business alliances.

Many people use the phrase business development synonymous with strategic planning. But, business development professionals typically have more of an external focus on: 

 potential mergers and acquisitions 
 negotiating deals (mergers, distribution deals, spin offs) 
 business alliances 
 joint ventures 
 new market opportunities 

Some strategic planners work as internal consultants within their companies. They may work on temporary 
assignments within a business unit while that unit is planning or evaluating new projects. Or, they may have 
a long-term position within a central strategic planning unit of a large corporation, where they evaluate the 
strategy of the corporation as a whole. Either type of work can eventually lead to general management 
roles within a company.



Unlike other functional responsibilities -- such as sales, marketing, finance, or manufacturing -- the strategic 
planning role does not have a sharply defined identity. It is defined uniquely in each organization. For 
example, in many companies, strategic planning constitutes an entry-level position, particularly for newly 
minted MBA graduates. 

In such cases, the organization benefits from the new employee's analytic abilities, and the employee gets 
a chance to learn about the organization from the vantage point of a relatively high-level staff role. After 
one to two years, the employee may advance to a line-management position in an operating unit of the 
company, which can lead to a career in line management. 

By contrast, many larger companies have a separate strategic-planning or business-development function 
that is staffed by professionals who develop their careers specifically within the strategic-planning area. 
When considering a career in strategic planning or business development, find out how a potential 
employer defines the strategic-management role, and whether that definition fits with your own career 
goals.