Doing Planning The Right Way

Every plan is a statement of what you want to achieve over a given period of time.  A plan needs to be precise and clear so as to achieve the desired results.  Preparing an action plan is a good way to help you reach your objectives in life.
 
Following are some guidelines that will help you enhance your ability to put together a structure plans at your workplace.
 
  • Well defined goals
Well defined and realistic goal setting is the baseline for delivering successfully on them.
Practical plans are more likely to be converted into successful outcomes. Goals need to be linked with clearly defined action plans and a measurable metrics.
 
  • Precise and Accurate Information 
Planning can only be effective if the data points available are accurate with clarity on expected deliverables and schedule.
Validation of this information is a critical milestone in the planning process.  
 
  • Identifying Stakeholders and Alignment 
Every successful plan needs cross functional support and alignment. Hence a critical step would be to identify the key stakeholders and the tasks they need to deliver on for the plan. Once this is completed an alignment meeting would get you the buy in and commitment of these team members for your project/ business plan.
 
  • Active Participation
Active participation is required from all identified project team members from the planning stage itself. All planning meetings need to be followed up with clear minutes and action items along with timelines for closures to keep the business plan on track. 
 
  • Communication
Irrespective of how accurately and effective you plan things to happen, if there is no proper communication through the process, chance of plan being successful will be much lower. Communication will bring transparency and will ensure proper flow of information at the right time 
 
  • Monitoring
How do we determine if our plan is on track? A well-defined monitoring plan will help us to this successfully. Monitoring and controlling is critical in the full life cycle of any project irrespective of the phase the project is in. Good planning will result in smooth and successful completion and hence the monitoring needs to be highly robust during this phase. A plan with clear milestones, due dates, Roles and responsibilities coupled with a robust communication plan will ensure this for us.
HR Planning Leadership Business goals Success Prioritizing Process