This is the most sensitive area of the resources planning. Everyone seems to be mystified by money and those who speak the financial language. This intimidation sometimes gets in the way of effective decision making by the executive team. When longer-term plans are used there is a tendency to believe you have all the time in the world to make your strategic goals. Complacency or lethargy may occur around the first two or three years of the plan. As the associated numbers are fed into the plan, there is a tendency to produce flat performance for several years. There is logical, rational thinking for getting things in place before you ramp up your activities. When flatness continues year after year, the growth is in reality only a creeping model. There will always be reasons to justify not making the numbers or staying flat. This management behavior can be played out for years. If you are the chief decision maker, you have a choice to push the curve or accept a reasonable hockey stick approach. Make the call; that’s why you get paid the big bucks.
The real danger from either planning creep or the flat hockey stick approach is the ramp-up energy you’ll need to ultimately meet your goals. The closer you get to the end date the more energy, resources, and activities are required to meet the goals because the ramp is steeper. This is another justification for using the backPlanning approach. By establishing long-term goals, you have a better incremental chance of accomplishing targets and making the goals than if you used a short-term, intense approach.