How Planning System Redesigns Can Succeed: A survey by the FEI Research Foundation and the Buttonwood Group finds that successful redesigns of planning systems have gotten strong management and organizational support.

• Author: Moriarty, George B.
• Position: Research

If you're considering a redesign of your planning system, the key ingredient for success is getting an organization-wide buy-in to the process. That's the message from the preliminary results of a recent survey by the FEI Research Foundation and Buttonwood Group LLP of Stamford, Conn., a leading consulting firm.

Designed to find out whether planning process redesigns have satisfied expectations, the survey also sought to identify important steps to successful redesign structures, as well as what missteps led to disappointments. The survey accomplished those goals, indicating what steps were taken by those companies that met or exceeded expectations, and how their approach differed from those at companies that were least satisfied with their redesign.

One huge takeaway from the survey is that regardless of the redesign's goals, the most important step in the process is to involve the entire organization. For companies large and small, broad acceptance and participation in the development of the process are essential to the new planning system becoming a best practice.

"Obviously, there is a relationship between the size of the company and the complexity of the redesign," says Lawrence Serven, principal at the Buttonwood Group and architect of the survey. "However, even at a large company, it only takes a few people to do the redesign. The key is having a process that fosters the buy-in."

What Was Surveyed

The 167 companies that participated in this survey were first asked whether they had recently redesigned their planning process, and if they answered no, if they planned to do so in the next three years. More than 120 companies said they had or were planning to launch a redesign. Participating companies represented a broad spectrum of corporate America, including large and small enterprises from a variety of fields.

After answering the status questions, the companies were then asked if they used a software planning system, and what forecasting method they implemented. The six options given were: Rolling Forecast, Balanced Scorecard, Customized Approach, Zero-Based Budgeting, Value-Based Management/EVA ® and Activity-Based Budgeting (see accompanying box).

After providing that background, the survey gathered data on company expectations, as well as results of the redesign. Lastly, it asked participants to analyze the factors contributing to the success or failure of the redesign. Serven says the meat behind the survey results lie there, and...