German military strategist Helmuth von Moltke said... “No battle plan survives contact with the
enemy.”
When your plan meets the real world, the real world wins. Nothing goes
as planned. Errors pile up. The most brilliant plan falls apart at the seams.
We have all heard…“The best-laid
plans o’ mice an’ men, oft go awry. ” I say —not oft... they invariably… always go awry.
Today…we are talking about Planning Problems.
Planning Problem
#1: Relying on a Plan Leads to Failure.
Now, I didn’t say “planning leads to failure.” However, the reliance
on a plan — especially when the plan is not based in absolute reality…leads to
failure.
We have all heard that "Failing
to plan is planning to fail"...
But when a plan meets the real world, it’s not the real world that yields;
we must adapt whatever we’re doing to the circumstances at hand.
There is another saying... “The
view from behind your desk is blurry at best.” ...or at least I thought that
was a saying.... But when I Google’d it... I couldn’t find it at all. So I
guess I must have coined that.... but, I did find another phrase from British
novelist John le Carré. “A desk is a
dangerous place from which to view the world.”
In other words... Being caught up in your plans is like being caught
up in data and reports and details. Sometimes you have to get out from behind
the desk... Get your boots on the ground...get your hands dirty... And
see what is going on for yourself.
So… if all plans fail, is the time spent making those plans wasted?
... Just because “No battle plan survives contact with the enemy.” That
doesn’t mean that we should never plan, does it?
One of the greatest planners in history was General Dwight D.
Eisenhower who laid out — and got right — the incredibly complex Operation Overlord, better known as the
D-Day landings during World War II. Gen. Eisenhower, who was responsible for
that amazing operation also, said something very interesting... “Plans are useless, but planning is
indispensable.”
Planning Problem
#2: Lack of planning leads to failure
Most people will state their agreement with this… yet in the press of
action, it’s amazing how many will jump right to execution, either skipping
planning entirely or paying it lip service. In fact, there is a phrase that
encapsulates this problem. “Ready, fire, aim” ...
Sometimes, you must act before you plan. Sometimes for tactical
reasons you just want to “get something in motion.” Or in an emergency, often you must respond immediately. If you’ve
planned for that emergency, of course, your response is likely to be easier,
but not even the best planning covers every contingency. However, not
everything in a project is an emergency… nor should every change of plans feel
like a crisis.
An obscure scientist Alfred Korzybski is credited with coining the
phrase “the map is not the
terrain.”
Planners apply plans not to the actual environment but to a simplified
model, or map, of the environment. Think of planning to go from Springfield to
Kansas City, for example. At the highest (most simplified) level, you’d say,
“Go North on 13.”
However, 13 doesn’t actually go to Kansas City. So you modify the
plan: “Take 13 to Clinton, then Get on 7.” However, you’re still omitting some
key elements. So you assume the listener knows how to get to Hwy 13… So you add
instructions for getting to Kansas Expressway (Hwy 13), a warning about a ‘diverging
diamond intersection’…and your starting to get the picture. Think of all the
times you turn the steering wheel during a trip like that. To totally and fully
plan, you’d need the plan to be exactly as complex as the event itself;
otherwise, you’re abstracting the plan, creating a map or guide. But remember…the
map is not the terrain.
Should you for some reason be able to construct a plan of this level
of complexity, it still wouldn’t cover von Moltke’s maxim. You’d be out of luck
with the first wrong turn. Say… at the Ozark Empire Fair Ground’s direct-express-exit-ramp…for
example.
Even if you type it in your GPS... It wants to take you to Joplin
first. But... interestingly enough, this is why I love a GPS... recalculating.
Even though it routed me to Joplin, when I didn't go that way at a certain
point it recalculated the plan, because it knows two critical factors. Where we
actually are (boots on the ground) and where I want to end up. Something called
"Commanders Intent". We will delve more into that in a moment.
Mistaking the map for the terrain is Planning Problem #3: Oversimplifying
Reality Leads to Failure
We will be frozen in place if we attempt to detail the plan to actual
reality, because it will take as long to plan as to act out the plan — and
possibly longer.
We omit key details when we oversimplify the plan and expect the team
to stick to it. We get details wrong because we cannot truly equate map and
terrain from a distance.
So what’s the solution?
Go back to the example of driving from Springfield to Kansas City... Lets
assume you’re an experienced driver but not really familiar with the trip — in
other words, just like any of us approaching a new project.
“Just take 13″ won’t get it done. Neither will 500 pages of detailed instructions noting every curve in the road. In other words, you create a plan-as-an-outline or ‘flexible plan’ with the assumption that the person behind the wheel will modify as needed to adjust to actual conditions.
You can't shoot a rocket to the moon, and stick the landing... But you can shoot a rocket toward the moon... And make a million minor adjustments until you stick the landing.
“Just take 13″ won’t get it done. Neither will 500 pages of detailed instructions noting every curve in the road. In other words, you create a plan-as-an-outline or ‘flexible plan’ with the assumption that the person behind the wheel will modify as needed to adjust to actual conditions.
You can't shoot a rocket to the moon, and stick the landing... But you can shoot a rocket toward the moon... And make a million minor adjustments until you stick the landing.
- “The plan must have a concise expression of the purpose of the operation.”
- “The plan must be understood two echelons below the issuing commander.”
- “The plan must focus subordinates on what has to be accomplished even when the plan and concept of the operations no longer apply.”
In other words we must, trust the person behind the wheel to make the
right decisions.
Start with the plan, but don't end
with the plan— you must get where your going... you must succeed in the fog of
war, in spite of surprises and your own inevitable errors and wrong turns.
Results are what matters.
The U.S. military has a concept called “Commander’s Intent.” Any plan
needs to be accompanied by the Commander’s Intent, which is summed up by these
three points:
Planning Problem
#4: Lack of a Clear Commander’s Intent
Leads to Failure
Every project needs Commander’s Intent. It need not be formal. It may not
even be stated as such. But the team needs to know what it is.
“Why are we doing this project? What is the customer’s goal? What does
success look like?”
Not the “how.” Not even the “what.” But the “why.” The goal. The
intent. When stuff goes bad — and it will go bad — the team needs to understand
the right thing to do in the changed circumstances.
We cannot plan to a sufficient level of detail in a reasonable amount
of time. By understanding the end goal. Your team will make-it-up... freelance
it. And in a fast-moving business environment like ours, this is essential. Remember
results are what matter.
As soon as that specially adapted Black Hawk helicopter crash-landed
into the compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan... The "Plan" was off... what
the members of Seal Team Six later
called "playing pickup basketball" (something that anyone that has
played neighborhood basketball can identify with.) They had practiced the
“Plan” over 100 times, but the “plan” was abandoned in the first critical
minutes. They had a clear understanding of the end goal... And with little or
no communication amongst themselves... They free-lanced a successful mission. They made-it-up as they went along. In reality it was the most important mission of their lives and because of proper
planning... they were successful in the face of adverse conditions and a
dynamically changing environment.
A clear vision, backed by a shared understanding of the goal, the
Commander’s Intent, is the compass that will guide your team when they discover
that the map is not the terrain, that no battle plan survives contact with the
enemy, and plans themselves are useless.
