What the missing submarine near the Titanic teaches us about strategic planning
Last Sunday (18), a tourist submarine from the company OceanGate Expeditions left for a visit to the wreck of the Titanic, but lost contact with the base ship on the surface and never returned.
Five people were aboard the submersible Titan, which had the objective of exploring the remains of the famous ocean liner that sank in 1912. On Thursday (22), the US Coast Guard announced that it found a debris field near the where the Titanic is, and which is assessing whether they belong to the missing submarine.
This is sad and shocking news, which makes us reflect on the risks and challenges of carrying out activities in extreme and uncertain environments. It also makes us think about how we can better plan our actions and projects, both personally and professionally, to avoid or minimize the consequences of possible unforeseen events or accidents.
The importance of strategic planning
Strategic planning is the process of defining objectives, goals, resources, deadlines and success indicators for a given initiative or organization. It involves analyzing the internal and external landscape, identifying opportunities and threats, establishing priorities and strategies, and monitoring and evaluating results.
Strategic planning is essential to guide decisions and actions in a manner that is coherent and aligned with the organization's mission and vision. It also allows you to anticipate and prepare for possible changes or problems that may arise during execution.
What can we learn from the case of the missing submarine?
We still don't know exactly what caused the disappearance of the submarine Titan, nor if there was any flaw in the planning or operation of the expedition. However, we can draw some general lessons about how strategic planning can help prevent or deal with similar situations.
- **Do a risk analysis**: Before starting any project or activity that involves some degree of uncertainty or danger, it is important to assess the possible scenarios and the impacts they may have. This includes identifying the most likely and most serious risks, estimating the probabilities and consequences of each, and defining the appropriate prevention and contingency measures.
- **Have an emergency plan**: in addition to trying to prevent risks from happening, it is essential to have an emergency plan to know how to act if they occur. This plan should contain the procedures, responsibilities, resources and communication channels needed to deal with the situation as quickly and effectively as possible.
- **Train and empower your team**: there's no point in having good planning if the people involved don't know how to execute it. Therefore, it is essential to train and qualify your team so that it is prepared to carry out the planned tasks, as well as to face possible unforeseen events or difficulties that may arise. In addition, it is important to keep the team motivated and engaged with the purpose and objectives of the project or organization.
- **Monitor and evaluate results**: Strategic planning is not a static document, but a dynamic and continuous process. Therefore, it is necessary to monitor and evaluate the results obtained, comparing them with the defined goals and indicators. This allows checking whether the plan is being met, whether there is a need for adjustments or corrections, and whether there are opportunities for improvement or innovation.
Conclusion
The case of the missing submarine near the Titanic is a tragedy that saddens and moves us. At the same time, it is an opportunity to learn and reflect on how we can better plan our actions and projects, both personally and professionally, to avoid or minimize the consequences of possible unforeseen events or accidents.
Strategic planning is a powerful tool to help us in this regard, as it allows us to define objectives, goals, resources, deadlines and success indicators for a given initiative or organization. It also allows us to analyze the internal and external scenario, identify opportunities and threats, establish priorities and strategies, and monitor and evaluate results.
In addition, strategic planning helps us to carry out a risk analysis, to have an emergency plan, to train and qualify our staff, and to monitor and evaluate the results. These are fundamental actions to prevent or deal with situations of uncertainty or danger, such as the one that occurred with the Titan submarine.
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References
: [Wreckage of missing submarine found near Titanic - GP1](https://www.gp1.com.br/mundo/noticia/2023/6/22/destrocos-de-submarino -disappeared-are-found-near-the-titanic-550434.html)
: [The search for the missing Titanic submarine and how it can be rescued - G1] (https://g1.globo.com/mundo/noticia/2023/06/ 20/the-search-for-the-missing-titanic-submarine-and-how-it-can-be-rescued.ghtml)
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