ABSTRACT
In this piece, the authors compare and contrast six approaches to private-sector strategic planning within the context of a public-sector strategic planning process. They discuss the public-sector applicability of each of the private-sector approaches and explore the contingencies or conditions that govern its successful use in the public sector. Written in 1987, the article stresses the importance of strategic planning and predicts it becoming a standard part of public planning in the years to follow, although the authors suggest that planners proceed with much caution.
