Strategic planning and organizational performance in public health sector: a scoping review

Abstract

Background

Strategic planning is a methodical approach to generate fundamental decisions and actions that influence and direct the nature, function, and rationale of the public health sector. However, the existing literature presents mixed findings. This study aims identify potential knowledge gaps and unexplored areas in strategic planning, organizational performance, and its relationship.

Methods

The scoping review was applied following PRISMA guidelines. A descriptive analysis was conducted to summarize key findings from studies focusing on strategic planning, organizational performance, and their relationship within the public health sector. Literature searches were conducted in the Scopus, EBCSO, and PubMed. Then, all retrieved articles, published between January 2015 and May 2024, were systematically reviewed.

Results

There were 16 studies that met the eligible criteria. Most articles focus on organizational performance in public health sectors followed by strategic planning and the relationship between strategic planning and organizational performance in the public health sector, accordingly. Most Studies showed that evaluation tools, supply chain management, transformative change, and strategic management are deemed for organizational development; and potential factors contributing to organizational performance were mainly human resource-related aspects. A confirmed relationship between strategic planning and organizational performance with mediators was presented.

Conclusion

We conclude that strategic planning in public health involves carefully making important decisions and taking actions that define and direct the goals, activities, and purposes of the public health sector, while, it was an antecedence of public health sector performance.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12913-025-13206-6.

Introduction

Public health is driven by goals expressing ideas about the values that should be pursued, whereas, these values guide what is seen as defensible and desirable Public Health practice [1]. Likewise in business sectors, strategic planning is a managerial tool adopted by the health sector to improve organizational outcomes [2]. Accordingly, strategic planning in public health is a reasonably deliberate approach to produce fundamental decisions and actions that shape and guide what a public health sector is, what it does, and why it does it [3]. Therefore, public health sectors engage in strategic planning to reduce costs, improve quality and service, and ensure access to care, as well as, good strategic planning also supports public health sectors allocate resources effectively to enhance the value of public health service and to meet populations’ healthcare needs suitably [4].

There have been several empirical studies [5–7] examining the association between strategic planning and organizational performance in public and private sectors. Those empirical studies have mostly corroborated strategic planning’s positive impact on public service performance [8]. However, according to a literature review, the relationship between strategic planning and organizational performance is inconclusive [9]. Existing literature presents mixed findings and country-based result of strategic planning and organizational performance, suggesting a need for a comprehensive re-evaluation of this relationship to identify potential knowledge gaps and unexplored areas.

Having given those empirical studies, therefore, the aim of this scoping review is to systematically analyze the published evidence on strategic planning and organizational performance in the public health sector. By synthesizing current research, this study seeks to provide a clearer understanding of how strategic planning influences organizational outcomes in the field of public health and to highlight areas requiring further investigation.

Methods

A scoping review serves as an effective method for assessing the extent and quality of the existing literature on a specific topic. The value of this approach is its capacity to examine emerging evidence and pinpoint specific areas, while also visualizing current evidence [10, 11]. This methodology is valuable in dynamic fields, enabling researchers and policymakers to comprehend the existing evidence landscape, pinpoint gaps, and suggest future research avenues. Scoping reviews compile and synthesize diverse data sources, enhancing understanding of complex issues and providing insights into the breadth and depth of existing research. They play a crucial role in guiding decision-making, informing practice, and shaping policy by providing a clear understanding of existing knowledge and areas that require further investigation. Scoping reviews enhance knowledge advancement by offering a systematic method for assessing the existing research landscape.

Search strategy

A literature search was performed on the databases Scopus, EBCSO and PubMed, encompassing articles that were published from January 2015 to May 2024. The time frame of data collection by researchers were between June 2024 and December 2024. Additional articles were searched by reviewing reference lists of relevant studies using a Google Scholar. A literature review was conducted following the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) guidelines extension for a scoping review [11]. Thus, the following five steps will be followed in this scoping review: (1) identifying the research question, (2) identifying relevant studies, (3) selection of eligible studies, (4) charting the data, and (5) collating and summarizing the results.

The search was conducted using relevant keywords, as illustrated in Table 1.

Table 1.

The key terms and alternate iterations for a scoping review

Search terms	Alternate iterations
Strategic planning	“strategic organization” OR “strategic design” OR “strategic planning”
Organizational Performance	“institutional efficiency” OR “organizational productivity” OR “performance evaluation” OR “performance measurement”
Public health sector	“healthcare industry” OR “community health sector” OR “public health system” OR “health services sector”

We utilized the conjunction “AND” to combine the critical terms for performing searches in the designated databases.

Inclusion and exclusion criteria

The inclusion criteria were as follows: (1) the title of the study provided a clear demonstration of Strategic Planning and/or Organizational Performance in the Public Health Sector, and (2) those studies needed to be written in English. The exclusion criteria were applied for (1) any retrieved studies with irrelevant information to the objective of the study, and/or (2) those that were not published as original research or literature review.

Data extraction and charting

The process of extracting data was carried out by two reviewers who worked independently. Calibrated forms, tested by the research team prior to use, were employed to chart data from the included sources. Conflicts between two reviewers during each stage of the selection process were resolved through discussion and additional reviewers. The final scoping review detailed the search and study selection process. The PRISMA-ScR flow diagram was used to present the results [11]. The extracted data encompassed author citations, study objective, setting, methods, and findings. Charted data were organized into predefined categories based on key themes, and data handling followed a descriptive synthesis approach to summarize and interpret findings. The quality of included studies varied, with several meeting most criteria for relevance, reliability, and validity, while others only partially met or failed to meet key quality domains [Figure 1A in supplementary].

Results

The database search retrieved 544 records. An additional 1 reference was identified through supplemental search strategy (citation searching). After duplicates were removed, 502 titles and abstracts were screened, and 47 records with full-articles were reviewed. 16 articles were included in the final review (Fig. 1).

Fig. 1.

A flowchart outlining the selection process and studies included in a scoping review

These qualitative studies were conducted in 13 countries: Australia (n = 1), Canada (n = 1), China (n = 1), Iran (n = 1), Italy (n = 1), Jordan (n = 1), Kenya (n = 1), Malaysia (n = 1), Pakistan (n = 3), Saudi Arabia (n = 1), South Africa (n = 1), Thailand (n = 1), and USA (n = 2) (Table 2).

Table 2.

Summary of studies on strategic planning and organizational performance in the public health sector

Authors	Study objective	Country	Methods	Findings
Xie, H.; Wei, X.; Peng, X.; Prybutok, V. [12]	This study investigated how Quality Management (QM) programmes, particularly the Baldrige excellence framework, provide an approach to enhance healthcare organisational performance.	USA	-A text-mining method -Regression	The results revealed that only three QM practices - measurement, analysis, and knowledge management (MAKM), leadership, and operations focus - make a significant contribution to organizational performance. Furthermore, CSA findings show that leadership plays the dominant role in influencing outcomes, with other factors in the framework having no significant mediation effects. This study offers scholarly insights with real-world applications in the healthcare sector by examining the general efficacy of QM programs over varying time periods as well as particular performance-enhancing practices.
Khan, Mukaram Ali; Kumar, Jeetesh; Shoukat, Muhammad Haroon; Selem, Kareem M. [13]	This paper aimed 1)to explore the role of perceived organizational injustice (POI) leading to workplace conflict in determining organizational performance (OP) among healthcare employees 2) to examine the serial mediating effects of moral disengagement (MD) and knowledge hiding (KH).	Pakistan	-Partial least squares-structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM)	The result showed that the negative relationship between POI and OP was serially mediated by knowledge hiding (KH) and moral disengagement (MD). This paper tests and highlights the recovery process that underpins the linkage between POI and OP as a first step in unraveling it.
Binsaeed, Rima H.; Yousaf, Zahid; Grigorescu, Adriana; Condrea, Elena; Nassani, Abdelmohsen A. [14]	This study aimed to recognize the significant role of emotional intelligence, along with the mediation of innovative work behavior (IWB) and the moderation role of cultural intelligence in the attainment of innovation performance.	Saudi Arabia	A qualitative study	The result showed that innovation performance is antecedent to emotional intelligence. Additionally, the results demonstrated that IWB mediates the relationship between innovation performance and emotional intelligence. Furthermore, the results demonstrate that the association between emotional intelligence and innovation performance is strengthened by cultural intelligence. Nonetheless, the dynamic nature of today’s corporate environment has made it imperative to comprehend the relationship between an employee’s emotional intelligence and inventive performance, especially when taking into account the mediating role of IWB. Innovation and emotional intelligence are tightly related, and innovative work practices strengthen this relationship.
Alolayyan, Main Naser; Alyahya, Mohammad Sharif [6]	This study aimed to propose a model of the effects of operational flexibility on hospital performance through management capability and employee engagement as mediating variables.	Jordan	-Structural equation modeling -Confirmatory factor analysis	The study showed that operational flexibility had a favorable and significant influence on hospital performance, managerial capability, and employee engagement. Employee engagement was shown to improve hospital performance. Management capability has a considerable effect on hospital performance without a clear influence. Furthermore, management capability and employee engagement played significant roles as partial mediating effects between operational flexibility and hospital performance, with employee engagement also serving as a partial mediating impact between management capability and hospital performance.
Austin, Jim [15]	This study reflected on transformative change within organizations in the healthcare sector.	USA	-Descriptive analysis	The study showed examples of effective transformative change in the United States healthcare system, as well as the components of transformational change and a portfolio of essential objectives to assist companies in developing incremental and revolutionary strategic initiatives.
Pan, Jiaji; Fan, Ruilin; Zhang, Hanlu; Gao, Yi; Shu, Zhiquan; Chen, Zhongxiang [16]	This study elucidated the effectiveness of the containment strategies against the pandemic, a Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) model is established to evaluate the government’s performance against COVID-19.	China	-The Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) -Data Envelopment Analysis	Integrated approaches for evaluating public health systems. The five countries, South Korea, Japan, Germany, Australia, and China, have higher composite scores. The United States, Indonesia, Egypt, South Africa, and Brazil receive lower rating scores among the countries being evaluated. Against COVID-19. Using MCDM methodologies, the model assessed 15 metrics from 60 nations and rated public health systems in three categories: performance, sustainability, and potential. A full evaluation of the three areas was presented, with a composite evaluation based on performance and sustainability scores. Countries with greater or lower composite scores were identified and related Indicators were provided.
Gravili, G.; Manta, F.; Cristofaro, C.L.; Reina, R.; Toma, P. [17]	This study analyzed and measured the effects of intellectual capital (IC), i.e. human capital (HC), relational capital (RC) and structural capital (SC), on healthcare industry organizational performance and understanding the role of data analytics and big data (BD) in healthcare value creation	Italy	-A systematic review -An economics model	This study found that human, relational, and structural capital have a positive impact (resulting in a mathematical inverse relationship) on the performance indicator, whereas physical assets (i.e. available beds in hospitals on total population) positively mediate the relationship, resulting in a negative impact of non-IC-related inputs on healthcare performance. The findings have managerial implications, emphasizing the importance of IC in the healthcare sector.
Bvuchete, M.; Grobbelaar, S.S.; van Eeden, J. [18]	This study aimed to design a network maturity mapping tool for DDSCM that is applicable in the healthcare context to support supply chain optimization efforts.	South Africa	Conceptual Framework Analysis (CFA)	This paper developed a network-maturity mapping tool that can help unique supply chain nodes in public healthcare SCNs analyze their current level of DDSCM process maturity. Furthermore, the instrument provides guidance for designing treatments to proceed to greater levels of maturity. The instrument facilitates a journey of transformation of organizational processes. DDSCM domains include technology, visibility, human resource management, collaboration, organizational alignment, performance management, and distribution management. .
Hashmi, A.R.; Amirah, N.A.; Yusof, Y.; Zaliha, T.N. [7]	This study designed to determine the mediating role of inventory control practices in proficiency and organizational performance at public hospitals.	Pakistan	A qualitative research with a survey method	This result showed that inventory control procedures had a significant positive effect and were fully mediated by the factors studied. Effective inventory management by knowledgeable and well-trained staff leads to increased organizational performance, greater service quality, and lower costs.
Aujirapongpan, Somnuk; Meesook, Kanookwan; Theinsathid, Pornpan; Maneechot, Chanidapa [5]	This study used the balance score card concept to analyse the 16 key performance indicators and trends of performance of community hospitals in Thailand.	Thailand	A descriptive method	The key conclusions of the community hospitals’ performance were as follows: Customer perspective: (1) Patient complaint rate of 0.0097%; (2) Outpatient waiting time of 91.89 min. Financial perspective: (1) The ratio of total revenue to total expense is 0.9949; (2) The cost of pharmaceuticals and materials to total expense is 13.32%. Internal Process Perspective: (1) Bed turnover is 88.16, and (2) Hospital infection rate is 0.379 times per 1,000 patient days. In terms of learning and growth, there is a 4.69% staff turnover rate and a total of 3.77 research articles. In the last five years, there have been no differences in hospital trends or performance from any of the BSC’s perspectives.
Hashmi, A.R.; Amirah, N.A.; Yusof, Y. [19]	This study aimed to determine the mediating effect of integrated systems on the relationship between supply chain management practices and healthcare performance.	Malaysia	A quantitative research method	The results revealed that integrated systems played a major and complete mediating role in the supply chain management practices-healthcare performance relationship.
Leggat, S.G.; Liang, Z.; Howard, P.F. [20]	This study explored the perceived differences in demonstration of core competencies between average and higher-performing managers in public sector healthcare organizations.	Australia	Mixed Method -A detailed task analysis -Focus group	This result showed that supervisors were able to identify relevant competencies and make a clear distinction between managers who performed averagely and those who performed better.
Mirghafoori, Seyed Habibollah; Sharifabadi, Ali Morovati; Takalo, Salim Karimi [21]	This study aimed to identify the concepts influencing the sustainability of hospital supply chain and provide a causal model for sustainable supply chain of hospital service. two aspects of contribution are identified for this research.	Iran	Delphi Method	In this study, 68 original concepts were reorganized into 15 concepts using the Delphi technique. includes the following: environmental concerns, contamination, energy use, legal requirements, workers, the community, stakeholders, social responsibility, business ethics, demand management, resource and capacity management, customer relationship management, supplier relationship management, service management, information management, and financial performance management. The findings show that, among other ideas, service delivery management is quite important.
Raza K and Huda F [22]	This study aimed: 1. To find out that which type of Management is practicing by Tertiary Health Care Centers in Karachi. 2. To explore the relationship of adoption of strategic management and the level of competition. 3. To evaluate the relations of the adoption of strategic management with the organizational performance	Pakistan	A descriptive qualitative study	The study found that tertiary healthcare institutes in Karachi are increasingly implementing strategic management practices. Strategic management is crucial for gaining a competitive edge, improving performance, and driving organizational growth, particularly in tertiary healthcare centers in Karachi.
Tsofa, Benjamin; Molyneux, Sassy; Gilson, Lucy; Goodman, Catherine [23]	This study analyzed the effects of this major political decentralization on health sector planning, budgeting and overall financial management at county level.	Kenya	A qualitative case study	This study showed that the advent of devolution enabled local level prioritizing and community involvement in health sector planning and budgeting, hence improving prospects for equity in local resource allocation. However, this opportunity was not capitalized on due to the hurried transfer of duties to counties before county-level capability to perform the decentralized functions had been built. It also found some evidence of financial management being re-centralized from health facilities to the county level.
Price, Alex; Schwartz, Robert; Cohen, Joanna; Scott, Fran; Manson, Heather [24]	This study examined the compatibility between performance improvement and compliance-based accountability in the implementation of a new system of public health performance management in Ontario.	Canada	A mixed-method approach	The results of this mixed-method study demonstrate that only small aspects of performance improvement are integrated into compliance-based accountability structures that already exist, that management influence over performance measures and targets is limited, and that reinforcement of accountability structures undermines performance improvement intentions.

Strategic planning in the public health sector

Most studies regarding strategic planning in the public health sector firstly focused on developing tools to evaluate organization [5, 24], to facilitate supply chain management, and to transformative change [18, 19, 23]. In particular, transformational change, potential factors for strategy development during the transformation period encompassed transformational change and prioritization elements. Major components of transformative change are creating a portfolio of initiatives to improve current and future operations, embracing failure as a learning, and monitoring the external environment to prepare for an uncertain future. These factors could revolve organizations [15]. Secondly, public health strategy is to build an organizational capability strategy, which is required for vital for organizational development [21, 22]. Lastly, the role of intellectual capital is linked to strategic planning in public health; intellectual capital is essential for generating and adding value in the healthcare sector. Investing in intellectual assets, including human, relational, and structural capital, is beneficial for public health performance [17].

Organizational performance

The majority of included studies focused on potential factors contributing public health sector’s performance. Several potential factors lead to organizational performance, such as, measurement, analysis and knowledge management (MAKM), leadership, and operations focus are main factors, strengthening organizational performance [12]. In contrast, perceived organizational injustice (POI) weakened organizational performance due to moral disengagement and knowledge hiding [13]. Others than that operational flexibility, employee engagement, and management capability influence on organizational performance [6], whilst, intellectual capital–human capital (HC), relational capital (RC), and structural capital (SC)--was viewed as a success factor of quality of healthcare transformation in the public health sector [17]. A couple of studies prove that competent and well-trained staff are crucial factors in improving organizational performance [7, 20]. Additionally, a study suggested that emotional intelligence could be a potential factor in organizational performance because the ability to innovate is markedly influenced by emotional intelligence [14]. To evaluate the public health sector’s performance in response to COVID-19, for instance, a multi-criteria decision-making was applied that the capacity of healthcare facilities, responsiveness, number of infected people, and overall government abilities were computed and indexed to measure organizational performance [16].

Relationship between strategic planning and organizational performance in public health sector

Strategic planning plays a crucial role in guiding the direction and decision-making processes within the public health sector. Understanding the relationship between strategic planning and organizational performance is essential for ensuring the delivery of high-quality health services to the community. The 8 out of 15 articles provide significant insights for healthcare management and public health leaders to comprehend the relationship between strategic planning and organizational performance.

Healthcare organizational performance is significantly influenced by various practices, including leadership, operations focus, and measurement, analysis, and knowledge management (MAKM) [12]. The findings indicate a positive dimension of human, relational, and structural capital on performance indicators, which transforms into a mathematical inverse relationship. Additionally, the shreds of evidence from these studies indicate that competent and well-trained staff manage inventory efficiently, leading to improved organizational performance through enhanced service quality and reduced costs [7] and strongly support that emotional intelligence is antecedent to innovative performance [14]. The mediating effect of integrated systems on the relationship between supply chain management practices and healthcare performance is presented in public healthcare facilities [19]. Strategic management in tertiary health care is highlighting its importance in gaining a competitive advantage, enhancing market aggressiveness, and improving healthcare organizations’ performance [22].

Strategic planning and organizational performance by geographical regions

The studies included in this review were conducted across various geographical regions including, the Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, China, Italy, South Africa, Thailand, Malaysia, Australia, Iran, Kenya, and Canada [5–7, 12–24]. Among these, multiple studies originated from Pakistan (n = 3), highlighting recurring investigations into organizational performance and strategic planning in its healthcare sector.

Geographical findings indicated that strategic planning and organizational performance were examined in both high-income and low- and middle-income countries. In Kenya, political decentralization was found to impact health sector planning and budgeting; although local-level prioritization was enabled, insufficient county-level capacity limited the effectiveness of the transfer [23]. In Saudi Arabia, emotional intelligence was positively linked to innovation performance, with innovative work behavior serving as a mediator and cultural intelligence as a moderator [14]. In Canada, the integration of performance improvement within compliance-based accountability frameworks was limited, and existing accountability structures were found to hinder performance enhancement [24]. Thailand’s study used the balanced scorecard approach to analyze key performance indicators in community hospitals, reporting on outpatient wait times, infection rates, and financial metrics, with minimal changes observed over five years [5]. In China, a multi-criteria decision-making model ranked countries based on public health system performance during COVID-19, placing China among the top five performing nations [16]. In South Africa, a network maturity mapping tool was developed to evaluate supply chain optimization processes in public healthcare systems [18]. In Iran, 15 concepts influencing sustainable hospital supply chains were identified, with service delivery management highlighted as particularly important [21].

Discussion

The objective of this study was to systematically compile the existing literature on strategic planning and organizational performance within the public health sector from January 2015 to May 2024. The scoping review identified 16 studies pertinent to the objective. Findings indicated that most of the eligible studies explored factors associated with organizational performance in the public health sector. Others than that described potential strategic plans and the association between strategic planning and organizational performance for the public health sector.

Effective strategic planning enables allocating resources and measuring their performance against predetermined benchmarks. Regarding strategic planning in the public health sector, evaluation tools, supply chain management, transformative change, and strategic management are deemed for organizational development [6, 15, 18, 19]. Moreover, the geographical focus of eligible studies indicates that public strategic planning is not merely a Western practice, while, local public health sectors are considered important and interesting research settings under their responsibilities about a diverse range of provisional services and tasks, their relationship to patients, and their rising obligation to produce strategic plans [25]. Therefore, the strategies should generally be organized to meet the requirements of the sectors, whereas, the efficacy of strategic planning should be aligned with the organizational structure. To pursue effective strategic planning, institutions must establish guidelines to provide direction for their units, thereby enhancing the likelihood of goal attainment.

In terms of organizational performance, findings showed that several factors attributed organizational performance, as well as, established the relationship between strategic planning and organizational performance. Most of all potential factors contributing to organizational performance focused on human resource management, followed by management and evaluation tools. In particular, human capacity building (e.g., knowledge management, leadership, employee engagement, perceived organization injustice, employee engagement competent and well-trained staff) had a positive impact on organizational performance [6, 7, 12–14, 17, 20]. Human resource (HR) management makes a difference, especially for HR and organizational outcomes. A study reported that job satisfaction among employees mediates the association between HR outcomes and organizational performance [26].

Moreover, emotional intelligence should be considered by HR management because innovative work behavior strengthens the connection between emotional intelligence and innovation, which excels organizational performance [14]. Besides that, there is a link between operational flexibility [6] and innovation management [16, 17] to the public health sector’s performance in the aspect of healthcare service. It was explained that service delivery management, access to data and evidence, collaboration, and networking are associated with organizational performance [27]. Therefore, improving organizational performance in public health necessitates a strong system, strategic management, service delivery management, and well-trained personnel.

According the relationship between strategic planning and organizational performance in the public health sector, results show that there is an actual relationship between strategic planning and organizational performance, as well as, the results presented in other public sectors that it has a significant, moderate, and positive impact on organizational performance [6, 8, 12, 22]. Notably, strategic planning is particularly potent in enhancing organizational effectiveness–whether organizations successfully achieve their goals–in the public health sector, but it should not necessarily be undertaken in the hope of achieving efficiency gains [8] The aforementioned relationship is demonstrated during pandemic situations when integrated models have been established to evaluate public health systems’ performance against COVID-19, with China, South Korea, Japan, Germany, and Australia being the five nations with the highest composite scores, measurements aligned with the preparedness and capabilities of the public health system [16].

Barriers to implementing strategic planning in public health were multifaceted which included organizational and structural, data system, leadership and stakeholder engagement. Organizational and structural limitations as an example, a study at Kenya showed that the rapid decentralization movement resulted in insufficient county-level capacity for effective planning and budgeting management [23].

However, there are limitations of the study that potentially lead to uncertain results. First, the quality of the included studies is varied, as assessed by our internal review. This variation in methodological rigor and reporting may influence the strength and reliability of the conclusion drawn from the existing evidence. Nevertheless, the internal quality assessment enabled us to clearly explain and account for these differences, therefore strengthening the interpretation of the findings. Second, the literature search was limited to three databases (Scopus, EBSCO, and PubMed) potentially omitting relevant studies indexed in other databases such as Webs of Science (WoS, Clarivate), Embase, or regional databases. However, the selected databases provide a solid foundation for the review, as they are among the most comprehensive and widely used in social and health science studies. Third, the study aimed to represent recent field advancements by focusing on the most current and relevant evidence. Therefore, the inclusion criteria restricted the review to articles published from January 2015 to May 2024. While the decision was made to focus on the most recent and relevant evidence, it may have excluded earlier foundational or influential studies on the topic. Lastly, although Google Scholar was used to identify additional studies through reference list screening, its coverage and search algorithms may be inconsistent, which may affect the reproducibility and completeness of the search strategy. This method nonetheless provided value by include potentially pertinent research, which enhanced overall comprehensiveness of the evidence base.

We suggested that public health organizations should align strategic planning with organizational structures and local contexts to enhance performance. Prioritizing human resource development, leadership capacity, and stakeholder engagement is essential. Integrating evidence-based tools, service delivery management, and innovation, such as emotional intelligence and operational flexibility, strengthens strategic outcomes. Addressing barriers, such as, weak data systems and structural limitations, is crucial. Strategic planning must go beyond formalities, serving as a guiding framework for resource allocation and performance evaluation. Tailored, adaptive strategies and clear institutional guidelines can improve organizational effectiveness and resilience, particularly during crises like pandemics, ensuring that goals are met and public health services are sustained.

To our knowledge, this is the first scoping review and synthesis of literature related to strategic planning and organizational performance in the public health sector. However, there were not many included studies related to strategic planning and organizational performance in the public health sector, especially, the relationship between strategic planning and organizational performance in the public health sector. Therefore, further empirical, and scientific researches related to its relationship are warranted.

Conclusion

The process of strategic planning in public health involves carefully making important decisions and taking actions that define and direct the goals, activities, and purposes of the public health sector. Effective strategic planning enhances the value of public health services and meets the healthcare needs of the population, as well as, strengthens the organizational performance in public health sector. However, the review is limited by its reliance on a narrow time frame, selected databases, and variation in study quality. Despite this, the study contributes valuable insights for academics, policymakers, and public health managers aiming to strengthen institutional effectiveness. Future research should further examine causal pathways and develop standardized tools to evaluate strategic planning outcomes in diverse public health settings.

Authors’ contributions

Contribution to authorship, Conceptualization, Utoomporn Wongsin, and Chardsumon Prutipinyo; Data curation, Utoomporn Wongsin; Formal analysis, Utoomporn Wongsin, Tanavij Pannoi and Orawan Quansri; Investigation, Chardsumon Prutipinyo, Mohammad Ainul Maruf, Dichapong Pongpattrachai, Orawan Quansri and Youwanuch Sattayasomboon; Methodology, Chardsumon Prutipinyo; Supervision, Chardsumon Prutipinyo; Writing – original draft, Utoomporn Wongsin, Tanavij Pannoi and Orawan Quansri; Writing – review & editing, Utoomporn Wongsin, Tanavij Pannoi, Chardsumon Prutipinyo, Mohammad Ainul Maruf, Dichapong Pongpattrachai,Orawan Quansri and Youwanuch Sattayasomboon. All authors approved the final manuscript as submitted and agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work.

Funding

No funds were received for the work.

Data availability

Data are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

Declarations

Ethics approval and consent to participate

Not applicable.

Consent for publication

Not applicable.

Competing interests

The authors declare no competing interests.