Editor's Note: Take a look at our featured best practice, Lean Standard Work: The Standard Pig Game (26-slide PowerPoint presentation). The Standard Pig Game is a creative approach to learning that aims to demonstrate the value of standard work in creating stable and repeatable processes to maximize performance and minimize waste. The game can be played in a classroom or workshop setting and requires only basic equipment, such [read more]
When Having Too Many Options Becomes Confusing: Use The Planning Cell Approach
* * * *
In today’s business environment, management consulting firms must be ready to address client challenges and needs that will
transform their business by 10 or 100 times. Tools and methods must be scaled up to ensure applicability to the widest possible audience globally.
The Consulting Workshop Series provides a good understanding of the 10 Methods of conducting Workshops that are custom designed to fit specific workshop objectives. Different methods are developed for the purpose of providing organizations the most appropriate tool necessary to support organizations in their Strategic Planning to achieve their strategic goals and targets.
If management is faced with a situation in which an urgent problem has to be resolved in a short period of time and when different options pose different benefits and risks, then the Planning Cell is the perfect method to undertake. This is most essential when undertaking business transformation.
When Planning Cell is Most Effective
The primary strength of the Planning Cell Approach is it allows participants to better learn about and choose between multiple options regarding an urgent and important issue. Having too many options can be confusing. Hence, we need to have a tool that can make things easier but effective in studying these options.
The Planning Cell works best in a situation wherein an urgent problem has to be resolved in a short period of time. Yet, with that short period of time, there are just too many different options with each option posing different benefits and risks. This can be confusing.
Since the majority of the participants are selected by a random process, Planning Cell can be used to address even highly controversial issues.
How Planning Cells can be Effectively Conducted
The conduct of the Planning Cell must be done in a systematic manner following a 3-phase approach.
- Preparation Phase. This is the critical first step to organizing the Planning Cell and designing its program. It sets the basic groundwork for the conduct of the Planning Cell such as the design program and logistics. It ensures that the required personnel, advisors, experts, and advocates are recruited and the most important element of the activity is done: the development of the program design.
- Conducting the Planning Cells. The second phase is the main core of the event. This is where participants get to learn about and choose between multiple options regarding an urgent and important issue. The schedule of the Planning Cells is often organized into multiple work units with each work unit comprising 3 major components or phases.
- Final Report Production and Dissemination. The final phase, this is the concluding part of the Planning Cell where results are summarized. The primary objective of the final phase is to ensure proper recording, documentation, and dissemination of the results of the Planning Cell. The final phase makes sure that the entire process is transparent and comprehensible.
The PLUS Factors of a Planning Cell
The Planning Cell as a participatory method has its advantages. First, due to the random selection of the participants, the acceptance of the results increases. Second, the results of the Planning Cell are completely open. Advisors can develop their own solutions and recommendations based on their experience in the Planning Cell process.
Most of all, the recommendations of the advisors can promote action in, and protect the interest of the general body. Planning Cell is a great opportunity to learn about the interest of others and make a more intelligent and informed decision out of multiple options.
Interested in gaining more understanding of the Planning Cell workshop technique? You can learn more and download an editable PowerPoint about the Consulting Workshop Series: Planning Cell here on the Flevy documents marketplace.
Do You Find Value in This Framework?
You can download in-depth presentations on this and hundreds of similar business frameworks from the FlevyPro Library. FlevyPro is trusted and utilized by 1000s of management consultants and corporate executives. Here’s what some have to say:
“My FlevyPro subscription provides me with the most popular frameworks and decks in demand in today’s market. They not only augment my existing consulting and coaching offerings and delivery, but also keep me abreast of the latest trends, inspire new products and service offerings for my practice, and educate me in a fraction of the time and money of other solutions. I strongly recommend FlevyPro to any consultant serious about success.”
– Bill Branson, Founder at Strategic Business Architects
“As a niche strategic consulting firm, Flevy and FlevyPro frameworks and documents are an on-going reference to help us structure our findings and recommendations to our clients as well as improve their clarity, strength, and visual power. For us, it is an invaluable resource to increase our impact and value.”
– David Coloma, Consulting Area Manager at Cynertia Consulting
“As a small business owner, the resource material available from FlevyPro has proven to be invaluable. The ability to search for material on demand based our project events and client requirements was great for me and proved very beneficial to my clients. Importantly, being able to easily edit and tailor the material for specific purposes helped us to make presentations, knowledge sharing, and toolkit development, which formed part of the overall program collateral. While FlevyPro contains resource material that any consultancy, project or delivery firm must have, it is an essential part of a small firm or independent consultant’s toolbox.”
– Michael Duff, Managing Director at Change Strategy (UK)
“FlevyPro has been a brilliant resource for me, as an independent growth consultant, to access a vast knowledge bank of presentations to support my work with clients. In terms of RoI, the value I received from the very first presentation I downloaded paid for my subscription many times over! The quality of the decks available allows me to punch way above my weight – it’s like having the resources of a Big 4 consultancy at your fingertips at a microscopic fraction of the overhead.”
– Roderick Cameron, Founding Partner at SGFE Ltd
“Several times a month, I browse FlevyPro for presentations relevant to the job challenge I have (I am a consultant). When the subject requires it, I explore further and buy from the Flevy Marketplace. On all occasions, I read them, analyze them. I take the most relevant and applicable ideas for my work; and, of course, all this translates to my and my clients’ benefits.”
– Omar Hernán Montes Parra, CEO at Quantum SFE
35-slide PowerPoint presentation
Introduction and Objective:
The Blue-Green Game is a team-building activity designed to highlight the significance of Win-Win thinking and effective teamwork. In many organizations, achieving a Win-Win situation where everyone benefits can be tough due to a lack of trust, communication, and [read more]
Do You Want to Implement Business Best Practices?
You can download in-depth presentations on Workshops and 100s of management topics from the FlevyPro Library. FlevyPro is trusted and utilized by 1000s of management consultants and corporate executives.
For even more best practices available on Flevy, have a look at our top 100 lists:
- Top 100 in Strategy & Transformation
- Top 100 in Digital Transformation
- Top 100 in Operational Excellence
- Top 100 in Organization & Change
- Top 100 Management Consulting Frameworks
These best practices are of the same as those leveraged by top-tier management consulting firms, like McKinsey, BCG, Bain, and Accenture. Improve the growth and efficiency of your organization by utilizing these best practice frameworks, templates, and tools. Most were developed by seasoned executives and consultants with over 20+ years of experience.
Readers of This Article Are Interested in These Resources
23-slide PowerPoint presentation
The Silly Cow Exercise is a fun and effective activity for promoting out-of-the-box thinking and creativity in teams. This exercise is ideal for organizations that need to innovate their products, services, business models, and ecosystems to create a competitive advantage. It can be held in a [read more]
|
|
27-slide PowerPoint presentation
|
|
133-slide PowerPoint presentation
| |||
About Joseph Robinson
Joseph Robinson is the Vice President of Strategy at Flevy. Flevy is the marketplace for best practices in business management. Learn how the Fortune 100 and global consulting firms do it. Improve the growth and efficiency of your organization by leveraging Flevy's library of best practice methodologies and templates. The documents at Flevy (https://flevy.com) are of the same caliber as those produced by top-tier management consulting firms, like McKinsey, BCG, Bain, and Accenture. Most were developed by seasoned executives and consultants with 20+ years of experience. Flevy covers 200+ management topics, ranging from Digital Transformation to Growth Strategy to Lean Management. You can peruse a full list of management topics available on Flevy here. Prior to Flevy, Joseph worked as an Associate at BCG and holds an MBA from the Sloan School of Management at MIT. You can connect with Joseph on LinkedIn here.
