Better Budget Planning

Every CIO dreads that painful fall ritual of building a budget for the coming year. During this process, we\´re confronted with a laundry list of user needs- or wants, to be more precise-and a set of constraints imposed by the CFO and CEO. Once we add in base-load tasks (to keep the lights on), tactical upgrades, messy but strategic IT changes, and our own goals for IT team development, we\´re left with a massive list, sometimes referred to as "the unachievable many." As the budget process moves forward, we typically find ourselves in the crossfire between these competing forces. Eventually, the organization collaborates, fights, or dictates its way to a "plan" for the coming year. Dwight Eisenhower once said, "In preparing for battle, I have always found that plans are useless but planning is indispensable." I experienced this firsthand while serving in the military, quickly learning that nearly every plan degrades as real events unfold. However, the process of planning (gathering correct information,having clear goals, understand ing the risk, and outlining an approach that\´s more like a path than a tightrope) was key to being able to successfully adapt as the situation evolved. So, as we move into budget planning season, I thought it might be useful to discuss the core concepts of a healthy budget planning process.