Many organisations are guilty of overplanning and under-delivering.
I have often reflected on this statement when I have observed the performance of my own organisations as well as others.
Why is it so? The main reason is that we too often see The Plan as the purpose and the outcome of planning, and planning is seen as an episodic event rather than a continuous process.
Planning, however, is a practice that enables us to identify where we want to go, and how to best get there.
Overplanning occurs when we try to put too much specificity into the pathways needed to achieve our objective. For this to be fully effective we need to correctly predict or anticipate future events – an unrealistic expectation at the best of times.
My experience is that the best plans are simple, and clearly identify where you want to go. They are probably clear on the initial steps to get there, but then require a degree of pragmatic management – akin to the skills of a navigator.
Identification of where you want to go helps you to identify what is important and is an important reference point to which to return when unexpected and unanticipated events throw you off course.
And you navigate around and through the obstacles and barriers that get in the way of reaching your goal.
Planning is important in helping you to identify and maintain your objectives. It is a continuous process and cannot be delegated to THE PLAN.
Are you on track?