Strategic Planning for Hispan-TV Channel of IRIB

Introduction and statement of the problem: Competition in the domain of the media has become more and more difficult nowwadays. Consdering the fact that there are hundreds of TV stations and countless active media in cyberspace, it is very difficult work for a television network to attract the audience.   A television network needs to have specific goals and strategies in order to overcome rivals and survive in the field of competition.  In fact, it is impossible to achieve success without having a strategy. 
The objective of this paper is to help Hispan-TV network to achieve its long-term goals through providing optimal strategies.    Discovering these strategies can make the future of this TV network to be forward-looking.  Identifying long-term goals and then presenting the strategies that will help this network to accomplish their goals is a main point of the research.
Theoretical This research is based on the ideas of David's strategic management.   In this style of strategic planning, the goals, vision, and mission statement of the company are first defined.  Then, based on the collected data, the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of the company are identified.  Afterwards and based on internal and external factors, the SWOT matrix is ​​formed and the strategies are identified in four main situations.
The methodes of collecting information in this research were based on library research study and upper level documents, along with an interview with the experts.  After that, the information were analyzed and by the formation of SWOT matrix, the strategies were obtained.  The ranking and prioritization of internal and external factors as well as strategies were done by a strategic committee consisting of chief Hispan-TV managers.
The first part of the study's findings aimed at defining strategic objectives, vision and mission statements.  In this section, nine main goals were identified for the Hispan-TV.  Two main goals and top priorities of this television network are as follows:  1- providing funding resources needed for the network as well as taking measures to avoid budget deficit, 2- reaching the level of the most trusted, fastest and most accurate source of Middle- East news vis-vis Spanish-language networks in the world wide.  The second part of the findings included identifying 12 strengths, 11 weaknesses, 18 opportunities and 12 threats, as internal and external factors that affect this television network.  After placing these factors in SWOT matrix, 16 main strategies were identified based on the network priorities.  The the Hispan-TV prioritized strategies among the 16 strategies obtained based on the Strategic Committee's grade consist of: 1- Having an active position in recruitment of specialists for the channel and outlining an appropriate in-service training system for the staff; 2- cooperating with the TV networks which have the same objectives in the targeted region and trying to produce joint projects; and 3- promoting news image of the channel.
The final strategies proposed for the Hispan-TV network can be found in 4 categories of production, content, technology and infrastructure, human resources and distribution.  In fact, the strategies provided for this network cover four main areas related to the activities of this TV network and provide strategies in each field.   It should be noted that three of the four prioritized strategies were in the field of opportunity-weakness, which means Hispan-TV network should use its existing opportunities to overcome its weaknesses in order to achieve its goals.
Prominent The major achievement of this research paper is that it provides forward-looking strategies to Hispan-TV network administrators in order to better understand the path ahead of them and to move based on planning which may lead to the network success.  The results of this study showed that the most important strategy that is vital for the Hispan-TV network concerns the issue of human resources.