“The men who parachuted into Normandy prior to D-Day weren’t successful because someone was directing their every move, or because they were following a highly scripted plan. Instead, they were successful because they were dropped in the wrong locations, were separated from their chains of command, and collectively decided to throw away the plan.” (Blaber, 2008).
At Rekon Group we train our students that one of the fundamentals of planning is “The planning is more important than the plan”. Why?
For so many reasons, the ability to bring together your influential stakeholders into one place at one time for the purpose of collaboration, strategising and planning, is tremendously powerful.
- First and foremost it encourages flexibility within the plan. The physical nature of a robust and thorough planning process encourages all avenues to be considered, discussed, and included or excluded as relevant. Stakeholders present then understand and are aware of all the possible options, and have the means to include or disregard them.
- It allows you to realize the full potential of all the nuances of the situation and the influencing factors that need to be considered throughout the planning process, and to make a plan.
- It allows you the ability to put all stakeholders on the same page. Later when the plan needs to change (which it will), the team can pivot, as they all understand the options, the considerations and the possible outcomes. It means your team are capable, informed and ready to adapt.
- It allows you to consider all the risk factors around the decision and mitigate them from the outset.
- Planning is a continuous process, and the initial plan is only the beginning.
Remember that the planning process is the key factor which provides you with the means to adjust, not the plan itself.
“In the chaos of the moment, they innovated, they adapted, and they were audacious. As a result, the Nazi enemy were completely confused, confounded, and quickly collapsed.” (Blaber, 2008)
If you’d like to watch a short animation on the Rekon Group Golden Rules of Planning Click here.
If you are interested in further Professional Development Training with Rekon Group click here for our website home page or here for our training courses page.
For a link to the book ‘The Mission, The Men and Me: Lessons from a former Delta Force Commander” by Pete Blaber, click here.
Reference:
- Blaber, P. (2008). The Mission, the men, and me: Lessons from a former Delta Force Commander. New York: Penguin Group (USA) Inc.