PLANNING - HOW TO GET STARTED
Planning is the fundamental basis of management functions, and yet not as simple as it might first appear. It involves looking ahead, relating current events with future opportunities - not an easy feat in normal circumstances, never mind the world we currently find ourselves in.
So how do you go about starting:
Document your ‘Right-now-reality’
Where is your business right now? Things to consider:
STRATEGY - ORGANISATIONAL DESIGN - TACTICAL EXECUTION
Simplify your thoughts in to a ‘Situational Appraisal’ report (3 pages max)
Where you can, delegate to subordinates with instructions to be objective.
Create a ‘Start from scratch’ scenario
If today was Day 1 - what would you do?
Write a brief business plan and go-to-market strategy (3 pages max)
Complete a 2 day workshop with Board of Directors / Leadership.
Compare and Contrast
How does the ‘Right now reality’ compare to the Start from scratch’ scenario?
Identify opportunities from the differences you have discovered.
Collate opportunities and plot them on an Impact-Implementation matrix.
It’s a simple practice and should take no longer than a week to complete. The result should be a long list of effectiveness and efficiency initiatives. You won’t be able to implement all of them, at least not straight away; but this process will present new possibilities and opportunities, both big and small.
