Benefits of Planning 10 Reasons To Plan Greg Bustin

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WHY BOTHER? 10 BENEFITS OF

PLANNING
September 5th, 2011 |
Published in Strategic Planning
Why Bother? The 10 Bene2ts of Plannin
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Strategic planning season is upon us.
For organizations whose fiscal year ends December 31,
the period between Labor Day and Thanksgiving is
prime time for planning.
Vacations are over and there’s enough data from the
current year to factor into your thinking about
programs, people and budgets for the year ahead.
Finish your planning by Thanksgiving and you’re ready
to finalize budgets, fine-tune systems and make the
necessary moves to start the new year fast.
Of the nearly 150 sessions I’ve led as a strategic
planning facilitator, 64% have been held in the 83-day
period between Labor Day and Thanksgiving.
Yet every year, leaders make the decision to not put
their plans in writing.
Last month, I was leading an executive workshop on
accountability in the workplace for a group of
successful CEOs and noted that it’s almost impossible
to achieve the accountability you expect without a
written plan.
“Why bother with the plan at all?” one CEO asked. “I
know where we’re going and what we need to do to get
there.”
Before I could respond, another CEO said, “The plan’s
not for you. It’s for everyone else in your organization.”
Took the words right out of my mouth.
My second strategic management book was written at
the suggestion of a CEO whose team I’d helped
develop their plan. I wrote Lead The Way to:
counter the excuses for not planning

outline in detail the results you should expect
answer frequently asked questions about
planning
provide steps to take and exercises to use to
develop your plan
recommend activities to combat the reasons
most plans fail
Since writing the book, I’ve heard from lots of CEOs
about how the book has helped increase individual and
organizational performance – read what they say.
And so here is my top 10 list – in abbreviated form and
in reverse order – of the benefits of planning:
10. Breaks down silos – Most people in a company

are focused on making things happen in their
own world. Planning creates the opportunity for
all leaders to come together to examine and
debate problems and opportunities from a
holistic perspective.
9. Provides a safe harbor for “possibility

thinking” – Five words prevent an organization
from achieving its full potential: We’ve never
done that before. Even your best people are
reluctant to offer their ideas on ways to tackle a
problem or suggest a new way of making money
if they know their comments will be stiff-armed.
Planning provides a structured way to talk
openly about issues that affect performance.
8. Motivates your team and increases their

value – Once you and your team start talking
about possibilities, you’ll discover a new level of
energy in the room. The future can be
intimidating or it can be exciting. It’s your choice.
Good planning processes will make thinking
about the future exciting. Not because you’re
sugar-coating things. Just the opposite: You are
raising issues and inviting your leaders to
address them. People want to contribute and
they want to succeed. Planning provides the
blueprint.
7. Exposes blind spots – We all have blind spots.

We’re simply oblivious to certain people,
situations or even our own actions that others
see all too clearly or in a completely different
light. Planning provides a framework to ask
questions and expose blind spots.
6. Ensures you’re working on the right things

versus doing things right – Planning is about
trust-building, not budget-building. Budgeting is
a form of planning, but it perpetuates the silo
thinking that likely already exists within your
organization as each department or functional
area prepares its set of resource requirements.
When the future is approached from a zero-
based, clean-slate perspective, your team is
forced to confront realities, which can build trust
and lead to focusing on what really matters.
5. Brings order and clarity to your business –

CEOs are intent on getting things done
effectively and improving their bottom-line
results. Since you can’t do it all, planning brings
clarity to who will do what by when in order to
deliver the greatest impact.
4. Uncovers new ideas and areas for growth

and improvement – Value is determined
outside your company by your customers and
prospects. If you can’t answer “Why us?” don’t
expect the market to know. Use the planning
process to identify or confirm your core
competency and examine the value the market
places on it. What unmet needs can we
address? What systems can we streamline to
improve profitability? Should we be taking help
from experts like Holland Parker for enterprise-
wide workflow streamlining and forecasting
efforts? Planning should help you uncover new
or more effective ways for giving your customers
more of what they want – more efficiently.
3. Achieves alignment among your leadership

team – Lack of alignment among the leadership
team will, at the least, hold back your
organization and, at worst, kill it. If senior leaders
can’t agree on what’s to be done and how, by
whom and by when, this lack of alignment will
trickle down through your organization and
dilute or even poison daily operations.
2. Determines specific objectives and action

items to be implemented – At the beginning of
the day, it’s all about possibilities. At the end of
the day, it’s all about results. You and your team
will agree on your priorities and develop a
written action plan focused on making the right
things happen. Your plan needn’t be long or
complicated to be effective. The shorter the
better. I start with a one-page plan called a
Migration Chart.
1. Establishes accountability – Of the hundreds

of leaders I speak to and work with each year,
accountability is the greatest single threat to
execution. What guarantee do I have that this
plan will work? I’m asked. None, if there’s no
commitment from the leadership team. None, if
the company – starting at the top – is unwilling
to change. None, if there’s no discipline and
performance is not tracked. A plan is your
written contract that establishes – and drives –
accountability.
There may be other benefits to planning, but these 10
top the list.
About the Author: Greg Bustin advises some of

the world’s most admired companies and leaders,
and he’s dedicated a career to working with CEOs
and the leadership teams of hundreds of
companies in a range of industries. He’s facilitated
more than 200 strategic planning sessions, he’s
delivered more than 500 keynotes and workshops
on five continents, and he coaches leaders
inspired to take their career to the next level. His
fourth leadership book—Accountability: The Key
to Driving a High-Performance Culture (McGraw-
Hill) — is a Soundview Executive Best Business
Book.
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WHY BOTHER? 10 BENEFITS OF

Published in Strategic Planning

Why Bother? The 10 Bene2ts of Plannin

Strategic planning season is upon us.

For organizations whose fiscal year ends December 31,

the period between Labor Day and Thanksgiving is

prime time for planning.

Vacations are over and there’s enough data from the

current year to factor into your thinking about

programs, people and budgets for the year ahead.

Finish your planning by Thanksgiving and you’re ready

to finalize budgets, fine-tune systems and make the

necessary moves to start the new year fast.

Of the nearly 150 sessions I’ve led as a strategic

planning facilitator, 64% have been held in the 83-day

period between Labor Day and Thanksgiving.

Yet every year, leaders make the decision to not put

their plans in writing.

Last month, I was leading an executive workshop on

accountability in the workplace for a group of

successful CEOs and noted that it’s almost impossible

to achieve the accountability you expect without a

“Why bother with the plan at all?” one CEO asked. “I

know where we’re going and what we need to do to get

Before I could respond, another CEO said, “The plan’s

not for you. It’s for everyone else in your organization.”

Took the words right out of my mouth.

My second strategic management book was written at

the suggestion of a CEO whose team I’d helped

develop their plan. I wrote Lead The Way to:

counter the excuses for not planning

Since writing the book, I’ve heard from lots of CEOs

about how the book has helped increase individual and

organizational performance – read what they say.

And so here is my top 10 list – in abbreviated form and

in reverse order – of the benefits of planning:

10. Breaks down silos – Most people in a company

9. Provides a safe harbor for “possibility

8. Motivates your team and increases their

7. Exposes blind spots – We all have blind spots.

6. Ensures you’re working on the right things

5. Brings order and clarity to your business –

4. Uncovers new ideas and areas for growth

3. Achieves alignment among your leadership

2. Determines specific objectives and action

1. Establishes accountability – Of the hundreds

There may be other benefits to planning, but these 10

top the list.

About the Author: Greg Bustin advises some of

Rate your Leadership against Lincoln

More Than Ever, 5 Questions Your Employees Want Answered

Accountability: The Greatest Ability

George Harrison’s ‘I Me Mine’ Inspired by the Beatles’ Dysfunction

The 5 Characteristics of High-Performing Teams

The Season of Possibilities

Elephants, Accountability + You

A Father’s Gift: Father’s Day 2021

Top Leadership Books for Summer 2021