Q.OR — Explain in brief the planning process.
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Developing Alternatives: The Art of Keeping Your Options Open
Imagine you're planning a weekend trip with friends. You've decided on Goa — but what if it rains heavily? What if the bus strike happens? What if someone's parents say no at the last minute? A smart planner doesn't just book tickets and stop. They quietly think: "If Goa doesn't work, what about Lonavala? Or maybe we just do a local picnic." That quiet thinking — that's the seed of developing alternatives.
What It Really Means
In management and decision-making, developing alternatives means generating multiple possible courses of action before you pick one. It's the step that comes after you've identified a problem and before you evaluate which solution is best. The NCERT textbook puts it clearly: once you know what you want to achieve, you must list out the different ways to get there.
Why is this step so crucial? Because a decision is only as good as the options you considered. If you only think of one way to solve a problem, you're not really deciding — you're just going along. Developing alternatives forces you to stretch your thinking, to ask "What else could work?" and to avoid the trap of the first idea that comes to mind.
Developing alternatives is not optional — it is a mandatory step in the planning process. The NCERT textbook lists it as the second step, right after setting objectives. Skipping it means you're planning with blinders on.
How It Works in Practice
Let's say a company's objective is to increase sales by 20% this year. One alternative might be: launch a new product. Another: reduce prices. A third: increase advertising spend. A fourth: enter a new city. A fifth: improve customer service. Each of these is a distinct path to the same goal.
The key is to generate genuinely different alternatives, not just variations of the same idea. Cutting prices by 5% and cutting prices by 10% are not two alternatives — they're the same strategy with different numbers. A real alternative would be something structurally different, like "partner with a distributor" versus "open our own stores."
Why It Matters for Exams and Life
- It prevents hasty decisions. When you force yourself to list alternatives, you slow down and think. That alone improves the quality of your choices.
- It builds flexibility. If your first plan fails, you already have a backup. You're not starting from scratch.
- It encourages creativity. The best solutions often come from the third or fourth alternative you think of, not the first. …
The planning process moves through a sequence of steps: setting objectives, developing assumptions (premises), identifying and evaluating alternative courses of action, selecting the best one, and then implementing it with follow-up review. …
The planning process has seven broad steps, from setting objectives to following up on implementation.
- Setting objectives — the first step is to clearly state what the organisation wants to achieve; objectives should be specific and stated for the organisation as a whole as well as each department.
- Developing premises — planning premises are the assumptions about the future environment (economic conditions, government policy, competition) on which the plan will be based; all managers involved should agree on these assumptions.
- Identifying alternative courses of action — once objectives and premises are set, the possible ways of achieving the objective are identified; there are usually several alternatives, not just one obvious path.
- Evaluating alternative courses — each alternative is weighed for its strengths and weaknesses in light of the objective to be achieved, considering factors like risk, cost and resource availability. …
- CBSE 2026Set ANNUAL1 markQ."Planning involves decision making." How?
›Reveal solutionSolution
Planning involves decision-making because it requires choosing the best course of action out of many available alternatives.
Planning means deciding in advance what is to be done, how it is to be done, and who is to do it. At each of these points the manager faces several possible options — different objectives, different strategies, different methods — and has to select the most suitable one. This act of evaluating the available alternatives and choosing the best among them IS decision-making. For example, deciding whether to expand production by setting up a new plant or by outsourcing is a decision taken while planning. Since planning cannot b …
- CBSE 2026Set ANNUAL1 markQ.What is meant by planning Premises?
›Reveal solutionSolution
Planning premises are the assumptions/forecasts about the future environment that form the basis of a plan.
Meaning: Before a plan can be meaningfully drawn up, a manager must form some assumptions about what conditions will prevail when the plan is implemented — these assumptions are called planning premises. They may relate to internal factors (e.g., expected production capacity, available capital) or external factors (e.g., government policy, market demand, competitors' moves, economic conditions).
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- CBSE 2025Set 66/4/11 markMCQQ.A leading newspaper company decided to increase its market share by 10%. After developing the premises, the company identified the following alternative courses of action to be adopted :(i) To have eco-friendly newspapers(ii) To introduce specific sections for children(iii) To have columns for increasing general awareness for competitive exams(iv) To have international news on a daily basis After identifying the above alternatives, a board meeting was called. Identify from the following, the next step in the planning process which is to be taken in the board meeting. (A) Follow-up action (B) Implementing the plan (C) Evaluating alternatives courses (D) Selecting an alternative
›Reveal solutionSolution
Once alternatives have been identified, the next logical step in the planning process is to evaluate those alternatives against criteria like feasibility, cost, and alignment with objectives before selecting one.
The planning process in management follows a logical sequence, and understanding where you are in that sequence is crucial. This newspaper company has already completed two foundational steps: it has set an objective (increase market share by 10%) and developed premises—the assumptions and forecasts about the future environment in which the plan will operate. It has then moved to the third step: identifying alternative courses of action. Four distinct strategies now lie on the table, from eco-friendly newspapers to international news coverage.
But identifying alternatives is not the same as choosing one. The company now faces a critical juncture. It has options, but which option is best? Which will actually deliver that 10% market share increase? Which is financially viable? Which aligns with the company's resources and brand identity? These questions cannot be answered by simply listing alternatives—they require systematic evaluation.
This is where the board meeting comes in. The directors must now weigh each alternative against a set of criteria. They will likely consider:
- Feasibility: Can the company realistically implement eco-friendly printing? Does it have the technology, suppliers, and expertise?
- Cost-benefit analysis: Will a children's section attract enough new readers to justify the editorial and design investment?
- Risk: How will competitors respond? What if the competitive exam column fails to resonate?
- Alignment with objectives: Which alternative most directly contributes to market share growth?
This systematic comparison of alternatives is the evaluation step. It precedes selection because you cannot rationally choose without first assessing. The NCERT textbook on Business Studies makes this sequence explicit: after identifying alternatives, management must evaluate them to determine their relative merits and demerits. Only then can an informed choice be made. …
- CBSE 2024Set ANNUAL1 markMCQQ.To see whether plans are implemented and activities are being performed according to schedule is a step of planning process. Identify the step.(a) Developing process(b) Identifying alternative course of action(c) Implementing the plan(d) Follow up action
›Reveal solutionSolution
Checking whether plans are being implemented on schedule is the Follow-up action step — the last of the seven steps in the planning process.
The planning process generally runs through these steps: (1) setting objectives, (2) developing premises, (3) identifying alternative courses of action, (4) evaluating alternative courses, (5) selecting an alternative, (6) implementing the plan, and (7) follow-up action. Follow-up action is the monitoring step — management continuously watches whether the plan is being executed according to schedule, and whether actual performance is in line with the standards set, so that timely corrective ste …
- CBSE 2020Set 66/C/11 markMCQQ.Which of the following is not a step in the process of planning ? (A) Making assumptions about the future. (B) Evaluating different proposals in light of the objectives to be achieved. (C) Allocation of jobs to members of each department. (D) Seeing whether activities are performed as per schedule or not.
›Reveal solutionSolution
Allocating jobs to department members is an Organising function (division of work) — not a step in the Planning process.
The planning process typically includes: setting objectives, developing premises/assumptions about the future, identifying alternative courses of action, evaluating those alternatives in the light of the objectives (option B), selecting the best alternative, implementing the plan, and follow-up action (which includes monitoring whether activities proceed as per schedule, option D — so this remains a legitimate planning-related step). Making assumptions about the future (option A, i.e. "premising") is also a core planning step. "Allocation of jobs to members of each department," …
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