Tip of the month, Inside Track, February 2010
The shift to long-term planning
The year 2009 was a year with a short-term focus: will we pay our bills this month; will we have to make cuts; will we survive or won’t we? At the heart of the economic downturn, many organisations felt uncertain about the future and focused on the immediacy of the short term rather than looking ahead.
The new year presents an opportunity for organisations to shift their focus from the short-term to the long-term, from acting reactively to engaging in long-term strategic planning processes. In order to achieve their strategic goals in 2010, organisations need to ensure that they are forward thinking, fit for purpose and ready to respond to any challenges they face.
To shift the focus from short term to long term, organisations and leaders should be doing the following things:
- challenge short-term thinking and ask yourself what the implications will be in one, three and five years time
- look ahead and encourage others to do the same – it’s not just the here and now that’s important
- engage in business planning with a long-term goal in mind, making sure you involve your employees in the process
- develop your talent management strategy to ensure you have the right people to drive your business in the future; as Jim Collins explains in his book Good to Great, getting the “right people on the bus” is key to a successful business.
