Importancia de la planeación estratégica para el desarrollo de pequeñas empresas en Arequipa

The main objective of this article was to know the level of importance that strategic planning has in the optimal development of small businesses in the city of Arequipa. For the development of this study, quantitative research with a descriptive scope was carried out, investigating primary sources of information (survey) and secondary sources (various scientific articles). A survey was applied to a sample of fifty four small business owners from Arequipa, and after the respective analysis, the following were obtained as the most relevant results: Most small businesses implement strategic planning mainly to improve business performance and optimize financial results; Likewise, they consider it very important to define the mission, vision, objectives and business values for the strategic direction of the company; They also use different strategic tools such as the SWOT Matrix, Porter’s Five Forces Analysis and Balance Scorecard, which allows them to elaborate, execute and control strategic planning more easily and achieve greater performance. In addition, a very important point of the investigation was identified, and that is that for most entrepreneurs there is a relationship between strategic planning and the development of small businesses, because thanks to the implementation of said planning they have received great benefits such as: Make a direct focus on the objectives and results; increase profitability and market share; also optimize business resources; increase the efficiency of its processes and strengthen the commitment of the staff, which has allowed them to grow as a company and be more competitive in the current globalized market. Finally, it is concluded that strategic planning is an instrument with a high level of importance for the optimal development of small businesses in the city of Arequipa.