Abstract
Problem. California chambers of commerce must be able to effectively assess and plan for their community's future business needs in order to prepare themselves for a rapidly changing business environment. Purpose. In order to record the use and influences of community management strategies over time, this study examined the extent California chambers of commerce conducted strategic planning in 1989–1990 to prepare themselves for the future, and the differences in organizational and planning characteristics between strategic planning chambers compared to chambers using long-range and operational planning approaches. Theoretical framework. Based on an extensive review of the strategic planning literature, twenty-six factors representing ninety-four measurable variables were grouped and examined in four areas: organizational effectiveness, planning processes, perception of planning effectiveness, and importance of critical issues. An additional factor and three variables inquired about the correlation between strategic planning chambers and their completion of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Accreditation Program. Methodology. An eighty-nine-question questionnaire was mailed to the 662 chambers of commerce in California to collect descriptive data and Likert scale responses in the five factor areas. The analysis of the forty percent returned surveys used Chi-square tests (significance at 0.1 level) and measures of central tendency. Findings. One out of five California chambers of commerce conduct strategic planning. Thirty-nine and 41 percent respectively use long-range and operational planning. Chambers not using strategic planning perceive that too many resources are required to conduct it. Strategic planning chambers show a higher level of commitment to planning, are more active in marketing themselves, and tend to be larger in size compared to chambers using long-range and operational planning. No correlation exists between strategic planning chambers and the national accreditation program. Collectively, chambers establish that assisting and attracting businesses and transportation are the three most important critical issues in their community. Recommendations. Further research on the conduct of strategic planning in the California chambers of commerce should be undertaken in order to establish whether or not the patterns reflected in the findings of this study are consistent with current patterns.