By Horst Simon, The Risk Culture Builder
PLANNING AND EXECUTION
Ground Rule 1: Establishing a solid strategic direction for any business is critical to formulating a good business plan. Therefore, a prime responsibility of operating management is to maintain the strategic focus of the business.
Ground Rule 2: The business plan must be in writing, if it is not, it has no value. A good plan can be put down in a few paragraphs (note! not pages). 90% of the benefits of planning comes from the first 20% of effort, take the 20% and run, run for profits!
Ground Rule 3: Fact-based decisions are crucial to good planning, at all levels. Managers must be able to make the distinction between real facts and unreal facts.
Ground Rule 4: A commitment to achieving plans is essential to successful execution. Managers should never be pressured (or allow themselves to be pressured) into making unrealistic commitments. However, once commitments are made, they should always be fulfilled.
Ground Rule 5: Keep priorities straight. It is easy to duck unpleasant problems or issues by shifting thought to longer-range problems or new opportunities. This is a dangerous trap that will lead you into serious difficulty. To avoid it follow these priorities:
- Forestall surprises by staying on top of day-to-day activities. Keep Senior Management informed of all developments, good or bad.
- Reach planned goals for the current period- whether month, quarter or year.
- Then, and only then, plan for future development
Managers always have more to do than what they can possibly get done. Slotting tasks according to these priorities is the only way to make sure of doing first things first.
Ground Rule 6: Active Managers seek to make things happen their way. They are not caught off base and then scramble to salvage a situation that could have been averted by staying on top of the operation. They always know what is going on and what they are doing. They cannot do this by sitting in the office, cut off from first-line activities by rigid organisational lines. They cut across these lines and talk to anyone without anybody else’s permission. They do not interfere with lines of authority or the decision-making process but speak freely and openly. Not knowing enough to take action until a crisis develops, they can only be reactive. There is no way this kind of manager can succeed.
Ground Rule 7: No manager should ever grab the credit for success. Good results flow from the team’s effort, not the leader’s alone. Shortfalls and outright failure only occur when the manager has done a poor job of fulfilling the core responsibilities of PLANNING, STAFFING and ORGANISING.
A Guide to Risk Management 