Planning in a German engineering business

Formalized corporate planning, particularly in its long-range aspects, often seems to be a privilege of the huge international firm. The following case is intended to show that, contrary to this belief, long-range planning is equally essential for the company evolving rapidly from a small into a medium-size company. In the company described, over a period of 3 years a basic system was developed with the participation of line management, and many of the procedures have become routine. Also, the firm's business objectives and long term strategy have been reviewed and the company has diversified outside the saturated traditional markets for agricultural machinery.