Methodology, Strategy, Plan
2024-07-27
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1Hello! This week on Ask a Teacher, we answer a question from Bassam in Yemen about the usage of three words connected with project management.
2Dear Teacher,
3In project management, we face three confused terms: "methodology", "strategy", and "plan".
4Could [you] please help me to know how [to] differentiate among them and use each one in a correct way?
5Thank you for writing to us, Bassam. I'm happy to answer this question.
6The main difference between these words is how general or specific they are.
7"Plan" usually has the most general meaning, "strategy" tends to be more specific, and "methodology" is the most specific.
8In its most general sense, "plan" means the same thing as "goal."
9For example, a company may have a "plan," or "goal," to expand its business into more countries.
10And the company's "strategy" is the specific steps it takes to reach that goal.
11However, we sometimes use "strategy" in a general way.
12We could say the company's "strategy" is to expand its business into more countries.
13But when we use "strategy" in this general sense, we tend to express the reasons for the "strategy." So, we might say:
14The company hopes its strategy to expand into more countries will lower production costs.
15Note that "plan" can sometimes be specific.
16For example, if police need to catch a criminal, they can list the things they need to do to catch that person.
17The police can call this list their "plan."
18Now let's look at the most specific term, "methodology."
19This word often refers to the details of how people do research.
20For example, when scientists write research papers, they include a section called "methods," or "methodology."
21This section explains exactly how the scientists did their experiments or other research.
22Project management methodology can differ depending on the goals or kind of research needed.
23For example, marketing researchers study what kind of products people want to buy, while companies study manufacturing costs to help them set prices.
24So, it is important to remember that the words "plan" and "strategy" can be general or specific.
25And "methodology" is the specific method we use to help our "strategy" or "plan" be successful.
26We hope today's lesson is helpful, Bassam.
27For our readers and listeners, do you have a question about American English? Send us an email at learningenglish@voanews.com.
28And that's Ask a Teacher.
29I'm Andrew Smith.
1Hello! This week on Ask a Teacher, we answer a question from Bassam in Yemen about the usage of three words connected with project management. 2Question 3Dear Teacher, 4In project management, we face three confused terms: "methodology", "strategy", and "plan". Could [you] please help me to know how [to] differentiate among them and use each one in a correct way? 5Answer 6Thank you for writing to us, Bassam. I'm happy to answer this question. 7The main difference between these words is how general or specific they are. "Plan" usually has the most general meaning, "strategy" tends to be more specific, and "methodology" is the most specific. 8In its most general sense, "plan" means the same thing as "goal." For example, a company may have a "plan," or "goal," to expand its business into more countries. And the company's "strategy" is the specific steps it takes to reach that goal. 9However, we sometimes use "strategy" in a general way. We could say the company's "strategy" is to expand its business into more countries. But when we use "strategy" in this general sense, we tend to express the reasons for the "strategy." So, we might say: 10The company hopes its strategy to expand into more countries will lower production costs. 11Note that "plan" can sometimes be specific. For example, if police need to catch a criminal, they can list the things they need to do to catch that person. The police can call this list their "plan." 12Now let's look at the most specific term, "methodology." This word often refers to the details of how people do research. For example, when scientists write research papers, they include a section called "methods," or "methodology." This section explains exactly how the scientists did their experiments or other research. 13Project management methodology can differ depending on the goals or kind of research needed. For example, marketing researchers study what kind of products people want to buy, while companies study manufacturing costs to help them set prices. 14So, it is important to remember that the words "plan" and "strategy" can be general or specific. And "methodology" is the specific method we use to help our "strategy" or "plan" be successful. 15We hope today's lesson is helpful, Bassam. 16For our readers and listeners, do you have a question about American English? Send us an email at learningenglish@voanews.com. 17And that's Ask a Teacher. 18I'm Andrew Smith. 19Andrew Smith wrote this lesson for VOA Learning English. 20_________________________________________________ 21Words in This Story 22specific -adj. exact or particular 23refer to -v. relate to or point to the meaning or details of something 24section -n. a part of a whole