Mohammad Mehdi Ghomian - PhD in public administration University of Tehran, Iran Mashhad, Iran
Mehdi Pour - PhD student of Business Policy Management Imam Reza international University Mashhad, Iran
Ehsan Mirzadeh - PhD student of Business Policy Management Imam Reza international University Mashhad, Iran

In this study, the method of selecting an optimal strategy among possible strategies using the QSPM model is discussed. The main objective of this study is offering an approach for making strategic decisions and selecting the best strategy among the inferred strategies (in this study it includes two main strategies, to outsource or not to outsource tasks of Performance Audit Office of Mashhad Municipality). The results showed that the studied unit has a weighted score of 2/541 (of 5) in the internal strategic factors and has a weighted score of 2/618 (of 5) in the external strategic factors that indicate the reliable capacity of performance audit office of Mashhad Municipality in terms of internal factors and remarkable consistency against external factors. In this study, prioritised strategies are determined in four states of development, diversification, defensive and direction shift which are based on two approaches of outsource or not to outsource). Also using QSPM model, the optimal strategy is selected through measuring the utility during which the strategy of no outsourcing with 3.272 utility is selected in competition with outsourcing strategy (with utility of 3.022).

strategic management; strategic factors; quantity strategic planning matrix; outsourcing; Mashhad Municipality