The Relationship Between Stakeholders Involvement In Strategic Planning And Organisations Performance A Study Of The University Of Venda

Abstract

This study focuses on the determinants of employee performance at the University of Venda, premised on the extent to which stakeholders are involved in the strategic planning of the institution. The aim of the study was to establish the effect of stakeholders’ involvement in the strategic planning of the University of Venda and to determine how different stakeholders are involved in the strategic planning and ultimate implication of their involvement - or lack of involvement - on the overall performance of the institution. Using a survey approach, this study revealed that the process of strategic planning is absolutely dominated by the management cadre, thereby sending the other stakeholders into the doldrums. In the practical sense (as indicated by the findings), those who are directly affected by the strategic plan are least involved in the process of the planning. Because of the lack of involvement, the majority of the stakeholders became de-motivated, culminating in their lack-lustre approach toward the implementation of the orchestrated plan. The resultant lack of buy-in by the affected stakeholders - essentially the internal stakeholders (staff members and the student community) - lays credence to the paucity of the process and the resultant poor performance on a number of indicators.