Category Archives: Planning Skills

Casual Opinion

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From the Ask Tom mailbag –

Question:
You appear somewhat down on SWOT analysis as a planning tool?

Response:
It’s not the analysis part, it’s the opinion part. Most SWOT exercises are not analysis, but rather opinions, not tested by reality. Chuck Bamford, in his book Strategy Mindset tells the story. He was able to teach his eight year old son the SWOT methodology and asked him to conduct an “analysis” of his third grade class in school. Shockingly, his son declared the strengths of recess and lunch.

In our companies, we make million dollar bets on strategy. That strategy has to have some relationship to reality and requires a much harder examination than casual opinion.

List or Analysis?

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“Of course, we are doing strategic planning this year,” Allison smiled. “Each year, we go off-site, the central exercise is our SWOT analysis.”

“But, you said you were disappointed over the past few years with your planning efforts?” I asked.

Allison nodded her head. “You are right. Sometimes it seems our planning is a rote exercise to build some SWOT lists and call it a day. The effectiveness of the exercise, though completed and compiled in our single page business plan, isn’t very helpful when the firefighting of the day kicks in. Sure, we pull the plan out every quarter and walk through its initiatives, but at the end of the year, we are still firefighting in spite of the plan’s guidance. Becoming the premier provider of goods and services to our targets markets seems like more bluster than planning. I mean, we wanted increases in revenue, gross and net profit, but it appears to be more intention that a methodology.”

“But, SWOT is a tried and true exercise,” I observed. “Why do you describe it as lackluster?”

Allison was quiet. “SWOT is supposed to be an analysis. Seems like more of a list than analysis. We are comfortable making the list, not so much on the analysis. And what we are really comfortable with, is the firefighting of the day.”

We Improvise

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“Not one plan, but four plans?” I wanted confirmation from Roberto.

He nodded. “I was in the Marines. We had a saying, ‘We don’t plan. We improvise.’ But, improvisation only works if you are prepared with a plan. What’s the first part of every plan?”

“Purpose,” I replied. “We all have intentions, mostly unspoken. A plan is created when intentions become a documented purpose.”

“Improvisation only works when there is a commonly agreed-to purpose,” Roberto continued. “Without a purpose, improvisation becomes chaos. The chaos may be interesting, but it accomplishes little. Purpose drives the next step.”

“Visualization,” I replied.

“Everyone on the team must agree to the purpose and hold a similar vision of what that future state looks like,” Roberto explained.

“How do we know the picture each holds is close to the same picture of their elbowed teammate?”

“Simple,” Roberto grinned. “They talk to each other. It’s a discussion. It is the necessary work of improvisation. When all hell breaks loose, we have to be prepared to make the micro-decisions of the moment, in concert. Serendipity doesn’t happen by random chance. Serendipity is all about our intentions.”

“And?”

“And only then can we create the mile markers to chart our progress, the goals, objectives of our micro-decisions. What looks like serendipity only occurs when we create the context of a plan in which to operate. It may appear we are winging it, but our actions require preparation to be effective toward our purpose.”

Scenario Planning

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“You had a pretty good year, last year,” I said. “What was your secret?”

“It was a solid plan, flawlessly executed,” Roberto flatly stated with a smile.

“I know that’s not true,” I replied. “I mean, I know you had a plan, but, that’s not what happened.”

Roberto’s smile turned into a grin. “Your observation is correct. We didn’t have a plan. We had four plans. We took the two largest variables that would impact our business and played them out in four quadrants. We played each variable up and each variable down in combination. At the time, what we thought would happen was very far from what actually happened. If we had not had three alternate scenarios, we would have been sunk.”

“And this next year?” I asked.

“Same. We thought we were finally getting back to normal, then Ukraine, protests in China and Iran, now a looming rail strike. You have to plan for contingencies, not just what you think will happen.”

A tip of the hat to Gideon Malherbe.

The Two Strategic Questions

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When I was in journalism, I was taught to answer the 4 “W”s. Who, what, where and when?

This is planning season and companies across the globe are asking those questions. The multi-day retreat is called strategic planning, but in most cases, it is tactical planning. Here are the questions again, only two are strategic.

  • Who?
  • What?
  • Where?
  • When?
  • How? (I know it doesn’t start with “W”)
  • Which?
  • Why?

The responses to the list are mostly tactical.

Given two or more choices (and there are always at least two choices), which choice fits our strategy? Given two or more choices, why would we choose one over another? Those are the strategic questions.

Fear and Hesitation

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“Let’s hear the self-talk,” I said.

Lucy began to describe her vision of the project as it would be completed. Her words were tentative. “When we finish the project, the new territory should be ours. The competitors will think twice about ignoring our expertise. The client should have a new-found respect for us.”

“Not bad, for starters,” I said. “I want you to try something different. Pretend the project is already finished. Close your eyes and visualize that we are one day beyond the project’s completion. Now open your eyes and describe it again.”

It took Lucy a moment for it to sink in. I could see her eyes blink hard as she moved her mind into the future. “We finished the project and the new territory is ours. The competitors cannot ignore our expertise in this marketplace. The client has a new-found respect for us.”

“Lucy, it is more than just confidence. What else is different when you talk like that?”

“When I transport myself into the future, all of the problems that get in the way and slow us down are gone. All of the hurdles have vanished.”

The power of visualization, to a real time in the future, works to conquer more than problems. It conquers the fear and hesitation of moving forward.

Planning, Goals and Objectives

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From the Ask Tom mailbag –

Question:
My role has expanded recently and as a manager, I am expected to participate in our annual goal setting exercise, including setting expectations for my team. How would you suggest I approach this task? I recognize that communicating context is critical.

Response:
Congratulations. Welcome to your new role. Goal setting is actually the second step, not the first in your organizations annual planning exercise. Before you can set goals for yourself and expectations for your team, you have to understand where the organization is going. That always starts at the top of the organization, and, it appears you are now part of that circle.

  • S-V – Business Unit President, goals and objectives, 5-10 years, mission, vision.
  • S-IV – Executive Managers, goals and objectives, 2-5 years, multi-system integration.
  • S-III – Manager, goals and objectives, 1-2 years, single system, single critical path.
  • S-II – Supervisor, goals and objectives, 3-12 months, implementation, execution.
  • S-I – Production, goals and objectives, 1 day-3 months, production.

    • Each layer in the organization should be thinking about, and asking questions related to context at the next level up. It all starts at the top with Mission, Vision. I hold the Business Unit President accountable for leading that discussion, arriving at and defining some conclusions. Then, toward that Mission, Vision, each layer begins to grapple with defining the tasks and activities (the work) including stated targets for each objective.

    The approach, for you, will be to get your arms around the way your company expresses itself in these cascading sets of goals and objectives. Some companies are very formal, some informal, some are loose. Speak directly with your immediate manager.

    • How did the process go last year?
    • How were the results of last year’s process stated, or published?
    • Can you get a copy of last year’s planning output?
    • Is there a schedule for this year’s planning?
    • What preparation do most managers complete prior to the planning process?
    • What data needs to be gathered?
    • Specifically, what formal documentation do you need to produce, as a new manager in your company?
    • Does your planning need to coordinate with anyone else’s plan?
    • Does your plan need to include budget and costs?
    • What has changed during the past 12 months? In your market? In your company? In your department? With your team?
    • What changes in the future do you need to be aware of that might impact your plan?
    • How will the elements of your plan need to be broken down and communicated to your team?
    • When will your plan need to be communicated to your team?
    • What feedback from your team will you need to collect in the preparation of your plan?
    • What milestones will you track (key performance indicators) to make sure your plan stays on track?
    • How often will you review those milestones with your manager?

    That’s probably enough for now.

Growing Pains

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“He was my best supervisor, and, now, it’s like he went brain-dead,” Marie complained. “James always followed things by the book. A stickler with rules. Some of our services are life and death, so rules are good. But, now, he questions, pushes back on certain decisions.”

“What else has changed?” I asked.

“When he pushes back, he is unsure of himself. When he enforced a rule, he was authoritative, sure of himself, gave off a sense of reliability. His team followed him with the confidence that he would not lead them astray. Now, when he pushes back, his team is confused. Execution slows down.”

“Example?” I pressed.

“We work in complicated projects with other teams. There is a project schedule that requires we show up at a certain time. James always shows up with a full crew, tools ready with all our materials. Now, sometimes, the project isn’t ready when we show up, so we can’t do our work. James always documents the delay to support our claim for costs, you know, full crew, mobilization.”

“And, our contract requires that,” I confirmed. “What now?”

“Now, James is checking the project status the day before to see if the project is ready. He questions showing up if our project segment can’t be completed the next day. I mean, he’s right, but now, his crew is confused. Are they supposed to show up if the project isn’t ready? Now, they begin to question the accuracy of our project schedules. I hear bitching and complaining that we, as a company, are unrealistic, and that James in particular doesn’t know what he is doing. Most of the time, it’s not James, the fault lies in some other project segment over which we have no control.”

Timespan of Discretion

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“Your goal is to make it all happen according to your schedule?” I continued. “Sounds easy. Can’t you just make up a schedule and tell everyone they have to follow it?”

Taylor chuckled and shook his head. “I wish. No, my schedule has to meet the Contractor’s schedule and it has to mesh with all the sub-trades on the job. And most importantly, my schedule has to be tight enough to match the budget and man-hours in our original estimate. There are a thousand things that have to go right. By the way, we have 30 other projects that will happen during this same twenty two months.”

“So, let’s talk about the decisions that go along with your goal. Every role has decisions that must be made. That’s the work that must be done. Your effectiveness in managing this schedule depends on the decisions that you make. When I look at the Timespan of your goals, I also look at the Timespan of your decisions, your Timespan of Discretion.”

Planning and Execution

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From the Ask Tom mailbag:

Question:

I have been with the company for only 7 months now, and am very thankful I’ve found this site.

The biggest problem I face is three years of rapid growth in a family owned company. The culture is not keeping up with the changes in methods required to handle the increased volume. People still are working from memory instead of set processes, and are reluctant to train others in what they were solely responsible for years. Trying to force these changes seems to only increase turnover.

How can I influence my “older,” and most valued for technical skills, employees to change their ways of thinking?

Response:

If you continue to force these changes, turnover will eventually remove the resistance, and that’s not likely your intention.

In the meantime, think about these two things, planning and execution. Of the two, which is more difficult?

Flawless execution, to the fundamental processes, with speed and accuracy is best accomplished under a form of organization government known as a dictatorship; tyrannical may be the most effective. (BTW, you cannot be the dictator).

But, to be able to execute flawlessly, requires a planning process to support it. And this planning process must be created under a very different form of organizational government, a democracy. I know it is slow, requires participation, accommodation, discussion with divergent points of view, but it is absolutely necessary.

Plan like a democracy, execute like a dictatorship. It sounds as if you have things backwards. You are planning like a dictator, and you experience democratic execution. You are dictating and forcing processes, but the execution is slow, with much discussion (grumbling), divergent points of view and resistance.

You have to reverse the process. Plan like a democracy, execute like a dictator. Call a meeting. Explain the situation. You have increasing volume and the need for greater speed. Tell them the meeting will reconvene in twenty four hours, at which time, you will listen to their plan to handle the increased volume. Adjourn the meeting.
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This process is explained in more detail in Driving Force by Peter Schutz.