Abstract
Purpose. The purpose of this study was to determine the association between strategic planning at the city level and perceived measures of improvement in city government. Methodology. This study involved descriptive research. Through a locator survey, all 468 incorporated cities in California were queried as to their use of strategic planning. Therefrom, 130 answered in the affirmative, and thus became the population for study. A questionnaire was used to collect data regarding six descriptive and four research questions on strategic planning. Descriptive statistics were calculated for each item on the survey instrument. Then for selected sets of items, cross tabulation, correlation analysis, analysis of variance, reliability analysis and multiple regression were performed to enable item association to be examined. Findings. City descriptors and process issues profiling the typical city doing strategic planning were determined. While city descriptors and process issues did not correlate highly with strategic planning utility, a number of steps in the process displayed a moderately strong correlation with utility and overall effectiveness, particularly steps regarding action plans, plan implementation, and monitoring and feedback. For certain utility measures involving improvements in city government, completion of specific steps in the strategic planning process can help predict a high degree of satisfaction with achieving these improvements. Conclusions and recommendations. Strategic planning, correctly executed, can help in improving overall effectiveness of city government. Conscientious completion of the beginning steps in the process has potential for significant gains in interior benefits for the city (team building and internal communications), while careful accomplishment of the final steps has greatest potential for exterior benefits (citizen buy-in and external communications). If specific improvements in city governance are desired, specific strategic planning steps may be chosen for concentrated effort due to their predictive capabilities for such improvements. Emphasis on a clear statement of the city's vision and mission, and an effective action plan for implementation of the strategies and objectives chosen with careful monitoring will all contribute to maximum benefits for the city's investment.