Is your annual plan a four month monster?

An annual planning process is not worth more than two weeks of effort, so why are we spending months on it?

It is important for management to understand why a quick annual plan is a good annual plan. This is not particularly difficult as there are few managers who enjoy the process or find it rewarding and worthwhile. The difficulty is that while they will concur with the concept, getting them to change old and embedded bad practices requires a culture change.

When was the last time you were thanked for the annual planning process? At best you have a situation where budget holders have been antagonised; at worst, budget holders who now flatly refuse to co-operate!

Does this sound familiar? If so, read this free article for more information on how to get rid of the long annual planning for good.

There are multiple ways that David Parmenter can help.

  1. Read my white paper on "Annual Planning Process in 2 Weeks Not 2 Months".
  2. Read Pareto's 80/20 for Corporate Accounts
  3. Attend one of my workshops — you also get a free copy of my white paper.
  4. Listen to my free webcasts on bettermanagement.com
  5. Subscribe to my personal website for my latest articles

What you can gain from reading David's white paper

White Paper Cover Image
  • access to electronic versions of all templates
  • understand and apply the building blocks to radically shorten your annual planning process to 2 weeks!
  • understand how monthly targets (budgets) can be set later
  • how to sell this change based around the emotional drivers
  • how to start the change process a week after reading the paper!

What CFOs and management accountants need to know is how to cut the time out of the existing annual planning process and at the same time prepare the way to managing the business in a more appropriate way.

Existing annual planning processes encourage budget holders to be dysfunctional, undermines the reporting regime as the monthly budgets have no relevance, and involves management in a three month period where management are taken away from making money.

This white paper will explain the two weeks process, the key steps, and show how this will lead to the natural progression of a quarterly rolling planning process (QRP).

This white paper covers

  • the flawed logic of the traditional planning process (setting budgets at account code level, setting monthly budgets too soon, etc.)
  • the foundation stones of a quick annual planning process
  • the two week process — step by step
  • a checklist to get this done
  • how to implement this within existing system constraints
  • how to set monthly targets which are more meaningful to BHs, Management and the Board
  • selling strategies to move to a two week annual planning cycle

To purchase this white paper (and others) please email me at parmenter@waymark.co.nz

Table of Contents from "Annual Planning Process in 2 Weeks Not 2 Months".

  1. Background
  2. The Foundation Stones of an Annual Planning Process
  3. Efficient Annual Planning Processes
  4. Selling the Change to the SMT, Finance Team and Board
  5. Establishing the monthly budgets
  6. Budget holders reports
  7. Presenter’s Biography
  8. Appendix 1: Useful Letters
  9. Appendix 2: Streamlining an Annual Planning Process Checklist
  10. Appendix 3: Sales Forecast Model
  11. Appendix 4: A Suggested Sales Pitch

Testimonials

Testimonials on all of David's work are available here.

How to buy

You can use Paypal to purchase this paper by adding it to your cart. Or deposit money into my bank account using the instructions below.

This cutting-edge white paper is available for purchase at $250 NZD each. This white paper has over $100,000 of consultancy time invested, and evolved through interaction with over 5,000 workshop attendees, working in management since early 1980 and meeting with influential thought leaders. This paper is not a regurgitation of other writer's work.

This white paper include templates, checklists, workshop agendas, etc to help you implement the changes required. The white paper is sent in hardcopy and the templates included in the paper are made available electronically at the time of purchase.

Please deposit the money using the account information below and email me (parmenter@waymark.co.nz) confirming you have done this, along with your postal address. Once the payment has been received, I will email you the protected files.

Account Name: Waymark Solutions
Bank: ASB bank, Lambton Quay Branch, Wellington, New Zealand
Account Number: 12-3140-0203946-050
Reference field: Company Name and product wanted

Free Webcasts on bettermanagement.com