Planning is concerned with deciding in advance what, when, where, why and how is to be done and who shall do it. Thus, planning is the process of setting goals and choosing the means to achieve those goals.

It is also defined as the process of choosing among alternatives. It is thinking before doing. It is a preparatory step for the action that is to follow. In fact, planning is the outline of future activities to be done for achieving predetermined goals.

Without plans managers cannot know how to organize people and resources effectively for achieving Simply, planning is the process by which managers define goals and take necessary steps to ensure that these goals are achieved. Goals imply a desired future state.

Planning arises from the recognition that some intervention is needed to bring about a change from the current or present state to some desired or alternate future state.