Strategic planning, required by the Government Performance Results Act of 1993, will be conducted for the National Park Service as a whole, and every park, program, and central office will have its own strategic plan. Parks, programs, and central offices engage in strategic planning as a way to manage overall performance, and thereby to achieve better results in their mission of preserving resources and providing for visitor enjoyment. Through managing for performance, parks identify their long- term goals, establish their annual performance targets, track their progress, and report their accomplishments toward meeting the National Park Service- wide, and the park’s, long- term goals.

A park’s strategic plan is based on the park’s mission goals, General Management Plan, and the Service- wide strategic plan. Strategic plans address both Service- wide and local outcomes, and are approved by the superintendent, with the regional director’s concurrence.