On the value of planning

I've been meaning to blog about planning but never got the time for it.

Anyway, I have been at BSU for four years now and I probably attended more than 10 planning meetings in that span of time. Just to list the major ones:

1. Strategic planning for BSU R&E - La Union (facilitated by an international speaker)
2. Strategic planning for BAPTC - Manila (facilitated by DAP)
3. Operational planning for BAPTC - Baguio city (facilitated by DAP)
4. Strategic planning of HAARRDEC/CorCAARRD - Pangasinan (facilitated by an international speaker)
5. Strategic planning (Roadmap) for IRO - BSU (facilitated by IRO Director)
6. Strategic planning of BSU - NPRCRTC (facilitated by a retired NEDA personnel yata yun)
7. Operational planning for selected R&E centers - Pooten resort, Asin (facilitated by Planning Director)
8. Strategic pre-planning for BSU Internationalization - ATI BSU Compound (facilitated by IRO Director)

I know that strategic planning comes before operational planning and it is more long-term and includes visioning and "strategizing". I also know that planning is one of the major functions of management. With the above experiences, however, and watching how things are unfolding, increasingly I'm beginning to have second thoughts about the value of strategic planning.

Well, I like the idea of dreams, VMGOs and scenarios, but I'm beginning to believe that more often than not, the how part seems to be just really an exercise, at least considering the nature of government policies, turnover of leaders and system of budget allocations and disbursements.

I like better annual operational planning, and since my last PhilRice semesters, I actually love the idea of the semestral DPCRs for centers, divisions or units, and IPCRs for individual employees. For all its weaknesses, it is this level of planning and targeting (not to mention monitoring and evaluation) that I take very seriously.  I do like planning and setting my targets in the next 6 months.

Of course I still do not like the BSU system of the DPCR being the IPCR of directors and other leaders. My position is leaders ought to have their own IPCRs. After all, the DPCRs are office or department targets, and the director is NOT the department. Even directors have their own individual commitments, even while it is their command responsibility to make sure the DPCR targets are met. Management and supervision of the unit where he or she is designated should be just a part of his or her IPCR. Employees are either faculty members or non-teaching personnel and thus ought to have their own individual targets. I am not a faculty member and do not know how the PES works but it seems it ought to be part of a faculty's IPCR.

In addition, I wish there is a provision for intervening activities and percent offsetting in the current IPCR system of BSU.

I also like the idea of logical frameworks for development and research projects which is essentially a planning and monitoring and evaluation framework. It is not easy to craft though and the theory of change is really often difficult to show.

I also like the concept of final IOB which becomes the bible of disbursement for the agency for that year and supports the operational plans. It should be set considering the operational plans and deemed fixed when released. The final IOB or budget allocations should be available at most by end of January or early February of each year. And the administration, budget or accounting office should NOT be allowed to juggle funds. Not even sector heads. At least not without the knowledge or permission of the units. With a final budget allotment for each sector or unit or program or project, planning becomes more relevant and achievable. Middle managers will have difficulty operating with a noncertain or "moro-moro" budget allocation.

I hope that with ISO certification there will be a protocol before any item in the IOB for that year can be adjusted or before another sector or even another unit can use your fund allotment. Say, every quarter updates of fund utilization by units can become the basis for "borrowing" reallocation after the semester or half year. Of course the monitoring of budget balances and disbursements should be properly done almost real time. As of now, it doesn't seem to be working that way. Issues of overspending and underspending still exist even with external projects.

I think government agencies have a lot to learn from the planning and production management tools in private business management or business administration particularly of manufacturing and service companies. Concepts such as quality control, JIT, Six Sigma, Kaizen, etc are very useful.

Thank you anyway for the opportunity to be a part of the planning processes in the past. I learned a lot and see the value of scenario building and midterm to short-term planning. But really, ironic it maybe considering that my field of specialization is even into intergenerational planning, I have yet to appreciate the value of strategic planning. At least maybe when I see a strategic plan where at least 50% of the strategies are actually operationalized or implemented and not the opposite.

Kharece's first swimming at Pooten's Resort Asin