Strategic planning is one of the most popular managerial approaches across sectors and across the globe. In government, strategic planning is often mandated by legislation, and typically recommended by international organizations as a core aspect of public governance. But also in companies and nonprofits, strategic planning ranks among the most used approaches in managers’ toolbox. Unsurprisingly, research on strategic planning thus crosses disciplines ranging from management and public administration to healthcare, urban planning and sustainability. This fragmentation has resulted in research silos, with little interaction between disciplines. Integration across disciplines is needed to understand topics studied and bridge differences between research communities. This study uses topic modeling, a machine learning tool, to analyze 6,361 articles on strategic planning. Ten topics are identified, which can be clustered into four categories: (1) societal issues and challenges, (2) processes and practices, (3) street-level sectors, and (4) corporate functions. Time trend analysis indicates a steep increase over time in research attention to strategic planning for societal issues and challenges. Similarities and differences between the research communities underlying the topics are discussed based on a meta-narrative review, which finds that many communities fail to define strategic planning. An interdisciplinary research agenda is presented in conclusion.
