Planning Tools and Techniques Unit 4: Planning and Controlling

Planning Tools & Strategies: Participatory Planning  Participatory Planning - While managers are ultimately responsible for planning, they often choose to involve their team members in the planning process  Participatory Planning includes the people who will be affected by the plans and/or the people who will be implementing the plan  This planning strategy recognizes diversity and respects differences

Planning Tools & Strategies: Forecasting  Forecasting - Forecasting is an attempt to predict what will happen in the future  For quantitative forecasting, mathematical models are used that predict the future usually based on past results  Qualitative forecasts about future events are made using the knowledge and opinions of experts  Forecasts are useful planning aids, but they must be used with caution since they can be wrong

Planning Tools & Strategies: Benchmarking  Benchmarking - Involves comparing the performance and plans of the business against an industry standard or best practice  This comparison allows the business to develop plans on how to make improvements or adopt best practices  Measurement is the central focus of the benchmarking process  Therefore, benchmarking typically focuses on those activities that can easily lend themselves to measurement, such as production volumes and sales

Planning Tools & Strategies: Contingency Planning  Contingency Planning - Identifies alternative courses of action that can be followed if circumstances change  You cannot always predict what will go wrong, but you can usually anticipate that something will  Whenever possible, it is best to be prepared with alternate plans

Planning Tools & Strategies: Scenario Planning  Scenario Planning - is used largely by businesses that have to make expensive long term decisions in uncertain situations  Scenario Planning is not about predicting the future; rather it is intended to describe what is possible  Ideally, scenarios should be constructed by a diverse group of people for a specific purpose

Short Term vs. Long Term Planning Short TermLong Term Also called …short-rangelong-range Length of timeone year or lessfive years or more Type of plan operational day-to-day standard operating procedures strategic big picture vision Managersprimarily low level managers primarily top level managers The plan is for… specific departments specific functions organization as a whole

Types of Plans: Strategic Plans  Strategic Plans - set the broad, long-term directions for a business  (Strategic planning is examined in depth in the next activity)

Types of Plans: Budgets  Budgets - are financial plans that allocate resources to specific projects, departments, or activities

Types of Plans: Operational Plans  Operational plans - identify specific activities that are needed to implement strategic plans  An organization has many operational plans, e.g., production plans, financial plans, facilities plans, marketing plans, and human resources plans

Time Management Techniques 1. Use a time management matrix  A time management matrix will be described in the next section  This technique will enable you to challenge and question your own habits, routines, and practices 2. Decide when to look at your s and instant messages. (It is recommended that you turn off the pop-up or noise that tells you when you have received .) 3. Use a diary or activity planner 4. Create a weekly schedule

Time Management Matrix  One of the seven habits in Stephen Covey’s best- selling book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, is “Put First Things First.” He explains how every task that you do in a day can be placed in one of the four quadrants of the time management matrix.

Time Management Matrix Activity  You will be creating your own Time Management Matrix, using the template provided