Kristin Luck
With so much uncertainty surrounding us it’s easy to get caught up in what feels like day-to-day survival and forego annual planning. That said, when it feels impossible to plan for the future, it becomes even more important to ensure you have guiding objectives and strategies linking the company’s future to the present day. In this article, we share three annual planning tips to help you move forward.
Here are our tips for tackling annual planning in a business climate of uncertainty.
- Understand and accept that annual planning can be iterative. So often, executive teams get stuck on the notion that once a corporate object or key result is defined, they can’t change it. We are living in a time of unparalleled uncertainty. Expect some iteration as the business environment evolves and adapts to ongoing disruption.
- Scenario planning involves defining a specific set of uncertainties or different “realities” of what might happen in the future of your business rather than relying solely on a singular plan or strategy. Scenario planning can help define key triggers for actions to take when the unexpected does occur. It takes the guesswork out of tough decisions by mapping the specific actions to take when key triggers (financial or otherwise) occur.
- Last year’s OKRs are so….last year. Ensure the objectives and key results you define reflect current (not past) business realities. These are tough times to convince buyers to adopt new behaviors. Get real about the fundamental changes you may need to make to your product portfolio or your sales and marketing strategy.
When it feels impossible to plan for the future it becomes even more important to ensure you have guiding objectives and strategies linking the company's future to the present day.
Lastly, broaden your strategic planning team to include diverse perspectives and maximize brainstorming, particularly around scenario planning. According to Boston Consulting Group, companies with more diverse management teams have 19% higher revenue due to innovation. Homogeneity is not your friend.
Need help kickstarting your strategic planning process? Reach out to us.