Assessing Strategic Planning in Postmodern Organizations: A Case Study in the Public Sector

Introduction. Different sectors of the economy adopt a dynamic approach to the role of strategic planning, presenting specific arguments for its application as a management tool and the rationale behind measuring its effectiveness. Research gaps remain, as justifying the relevance of strategic planning continues to be important for postmodern organisations. Aim and tasks. This study presents an instrument for managers that allows them to evaluate the results of strategic planning and thereby justify the need for strategic planning. This study explores gaps in the current practice of strategic planning in the public sector and predicts opportunities for improving performance by focusing on public organisations. Results. An empirical study was conducted at the level of a single-purpose public sector organisation. The empirical study was divided into three parts: studies of the desired and achieved state of the organisation’s performance quality, a set of rationally composed quantitative and qualitative research methods was selected for the latter, and finally, a synthesis of research results using the formula for assessing the maturity of strategic planning activities. The calculated average maturity score (2.71) of the managerial activity components in the chosen organisation indicates that its strategic planning maturity is at Level 3 (completed). To reach Level 4, the goals and tasks of the projects must be comprehensively aligned with the strategy, and project success should be measured based on compliance with the strategy concerning all stakeholders. Conclusions. An empirical study of strategic planning in a public sector organisation based on an integral methodology showed that the process was at an average level of maturity. The need for a link between strategy and projects was identified as a relevant gap in the literature. This coherence facilitates effective risk management regarding the logical connection between tasks and their implementation, compliance with the implementation of goals with the norm, and the coincidence of the views of the organisation and its stakeholders on the quality of activities. Key issues include the mission’s formal nature, bureaucratisation of the process, and stakeholders’ poor awareness of project results. To move to the highest level, full strategy and project synchronisation and assessment of their success through the prism of stakeholder satisfaction are necessary.