1. Planning Tools and Techniques Unit 4: Planning and Controlling

2. 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

3. 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

4. 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

5. 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

6. 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

7. 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

8. 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)

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

10. 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

11. 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 emails and instant messages. (It is recommended that you turn off the pop-up or noise that tells you when you have received email.) 3. Use a diary or activity planner 4. Create a weekly schedule

12. 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.

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