Introduction to Planning

Introduction to Planning

Basic Principles and Tools

Contents• Aim• What is planning and why is it important?• Introduction to military planning – the 7 Questions method• Basic tools/products• Other planning tools and structures• Principles• Q&A

Aim• To generate an understanding of the importance of, and principles

that underpin, successful planning. To describe and talk through an example planning structure.

What is Planning and Why is it Important?• Effective planning is that which not only delivers the desired effect but

also helps guarantee it is achieved with the least amount of expended effort, energy, time and material waste.• The most important principle of effective planning is having a

fundamental knowledge of what it is you are trying to achieve and why. This focus on a particular aim should not waiver or morph into something different to what is desired. • Planning does not occur solely at the start of a project, event or

activity. It is something that should drive work forward but should in turn be shaped and altered by changes in reality or new information.

• Plans are never set in stone as no plan ever survives “first contact”. What is crucial is the deeper knowledge of a particular situation that an effective planning process develops.• Plans must also be formulated that work up to, during and after the

delivery of the product/effect itself.

Introduction to Military PlanningThe 7 Questions/Combat Estimate Approach• Based on military planning structures, this provides a clear framework

that ensures work can be planned to a timeline and with the necessary apportionment of load and responsibility; all founded upon processed knowledge about the setting and purpose of the project.• It takes the form of questions, adapted somewhat from their original

military format, to be developed and answered as necessary.

The 7 Questions1) What is the situation, why and how does it effect me? 2) What have I been told to do and why?3) What effects do I need to have on the situation and what direction must I give to develop the plan?4) Where can I best accomplish each action or effect?5) What resources do I need to accomplish each action or effect?6) When and where do the actions take place in relation to each other?7) What control measures do I need to impose?

The Three Columns Format – Questions 1, 2, 3 and 7

• Questions One, Two, Three and Seven must be subjected to scrutiny, best and most simply developed with three columns that progressively develop understanding and determine the influence of each piece of information.• The first of these is a description of what is understood or known

about an aspect of each question. The second column deals with the “so what?” element, explaining why this information has a bearing on the plan or activity. The third column divides this reasoning into a variety of outcomes to form the basis of the activity or be taken into account in the plan

Q 1: Raw Information 2: So what? Output1 (Situation) Weather: It tends to rain

heavily every afternoon.As our event is outdoors we cannot plan to have it later in the day without tents etc.

Constraint – no afternoon activitiesTask – source weatherproof facilities/tents etc.

Example

• Effects – an outcome you wish to achieve, be it a change of behaviour, the creation of a specific item etc.• Tasks – specific work that has to be done in the build-up to delivery of the project/work as it sets the

conditions for the success of the final delivery. This can be anything from sourcing stationary to ordering a bespoke software suite.

• Constraints – an issue that may limit one’s ability to do exactly as one wishes and helps to focus the direction of the plan and determine what effects are most feasible. Constraints should be seen in as positive a light as possible for this reason but should never be ignored.

• Request for Information (RFI) – more often than not one does not have all of the required information whilst working through the plan. Identifying these knowledge gaps is obviously important but managing them is also necessary to push the plan forward and not undermine the whole process. A separate RFI list can be created once the Estimate has been worked through.

Basic Tools/ProductsQuestions Four, Five and Six• These questions provide a system for organising and prioritising all of the information

and direction developed earlier and each one is best worked through using diagrams and tables.

Question Four • The most fundamental effect is placed in the centre and described within context.

Concentric boxes are then built around this with additional effects that are co-timeous and necessary to set the conditions for the achievement of the principle effect. This in turn must set the conditions for wider success. Any non-central but supporting effects or tasks that happen outside of this specific time-frame can be drawn around this central set of effect descriptors. This diagram now supports the work in Q’s 5 and 6.• Using the example of a project to create a play to demonstrate the potential of youth

and discuss issues relating to young people a simple effect diagram is produced below:

Example figure of an Effect Diagram

• Note the language used – “in order to” and “set the conditions for” are the sort of phrases that must be included to ensure one understands how one effect supports the main effort that sits in the middle of the diagram which itself is defined by a wider purpose.

• Now that one knows what effects/tasks are needed it is necessary to compare options for delivering these effects. This can be incredibly complicated or very simple but what is constant is the need to be open-minded in the comparison and not to enter into it with a fixed notion of what course of action is best.• Several options, often diagrammatically, are presented and then

assessed on a scale of 1-3 according to a set of appropriate principles. Total scores are then used to determine which the best course of action is.• A similar approach could be taken in our example when considering

what venue to use for the production. Several options could be weighed objectively according to factors such as acoustics, ease of set construction, ease of public access, cost of hire etc. • Whilst the principles/factors chosen will in some way influence

potential decisions due to the subjective reasoning of the planner, the aspect of objectivity when it comes to weighing benefits must be reiterated.

Venue Acoustics Set Public Cost Total Rank

School, North 2 2 2 2 8 3

School, South 3 3 1 1 8 3

Public Theatre 3 3 2 1 9 2

Park 2 2 3 3 10 1

Town square 1 1 3 2 7 5

Example

• A final decision is not made in isolation, there may be other needs related to other tasks that necessitate choosing another venue – it is about weighing the cost/benefit of these and one may have to choose the second best venue to ensure the best overall event.

• What one has achieved is a develop a critically thought-through variety of options; one is aware of all of the pros and cons of each option and can plan to take advantage of/mitigate against these as the plan is developed.

Question 5 – What Resources do I Need?• This takes the form of a table where you list effects/tasks and assign

resources to achieve them. It is best to arrange them in priority order.• Using the example of creating a publicity campaign for the theatre

production the table should look similar to this: T/E Activity Description Assigned to1 E Ensure an audience of 200 Jose, Callum2 E Create wider awareness of theatre group Jose, Callum3 T Create sufficient tickets Carolina, Dan4 T Distribute tickets Carolina, Dan5 T Create publicity poster Tina6 T Create program for production Tina, Jose7 E Leverage and boost social media presence Callum8 T Create and leverage visual media Visual Media Team, All

When and Where do These Actions Take Place?• Question Six - This is the process where one can de-conflict work in terms of

time and space and forms the foundation of one of the most important products of the planning process – a timeline. It also takes the process of a table with an appropriate timeline on the x-axis and resources listed on the y-axis. Practically it is often most easily worked out in reverse chronology from the delivery point.

- W4 - W3 - W2 - D5 - D4 - D3 - D2 - D1 DeliveryJose 1, 2 1, 2, 6 1,2

Callum 1, 2, 7 1,2Carolina 3 4

Dan 3 4 Tina 5 6 VMT 8

• This table can show conflicts as well as identifying spare capacity. It will form the basis of the final plan itself; who needs to do what by what date.

What Control Measures Do I Need to Impose?Question Seven• The results from the three column format should be used to create parameters

for activity as well as ensuring contingencies are adequately planned against. These can be as obvious as legal constraints on a particular course of action or ensuring work complies with budgetary requirements.

• Fundamentally anything that limits the scope of the plan beyond those issues already dealt with.

• Control measures are crucial to monitoring progress and ensuring it remains focused on the real objective and does not morph into something else. These can be anything from creating a plan for regular updates by phone or e-mail to regular meetings to allow central briefing to guarantee unity of message and for back-briefing from different roles concerning progress.

• The format this takes can depend upon style and logistical realities but should not interfere with autonomy or be done purely for the sake of doing so.

Other Supporting Products/Tools/Structures• Warning Order – Possible to produce after completion of Qs 1-3, this is a short documentmeeting to

inform all those involved of the broad outline of the objective and what potential tasks/materials/roles will be assigned and potentially to who. As the name suggests it is meant as a “heads-up” so any preparatory work can begin concurrent to the plan being fully fleshed out – ordering supplies, training individuals, sourcing specific skills etc.

• SWOT Analysis - This stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats Analysis and is a process utilised in many different sectors of business as well as the military. It involves specifying the objective of the business venture or project and identifying the internal and external factors that are favourable and unfavourable to achieve that objective. Identification of SWOTs is important because they can inform later steps in planning to achieve the objective.

• Rehearsal of Concept (RoC) Drill – Essentially a detailed and interactive question and answer session with the principal partners in the project. Under the direction of the primary planner and alternating according to a timeline-based order each person describes the steps involved in the work they will be producing.

• Rehearsals – Rehearsals are crucial to the execution of any event and provide an opportunity to test and adjust lower-level processes; when effective they can contribute immensely to the success of a project where delivery is dependent on different resources/work/people in the same time and space.

• OODA-Loop – Not a product per se, rather a “decision cycle” process standing for Observe, Orient, Decide and Act.

Underlying Principles• Think through the problem to the finish and then beyond. • Take the action that makes the next one easier. • Break a problem down to its constituent parts, as small as possible, and

then resolve it from the ground up – do not be tempted to skip ahead or fit your planning design to suit a solution one already has in mind.• Simplicity of concept. One should strive for a plan and its components

to be as simple as possible and just as simply communicable. Simple = flexible.• Timeliness and apportionment of time.• Trust in those delivering the plan. • Always be ready to reinforce success.

Q & A

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