Bruno de Faria

Marketing Analyst Brazil

For all things in our lives we must organize, plan and always think about the best way to reach our goals. Planning is essential for a company to have results and success in the shortest possible time.

On this occasion, we invited Patricia Ricaurte Guerra, Project Manager and Tatiana Suárez, Country Manager of Chile to explain a little about what is corporate planning, how to do it correctly, how to measure results and improve every time its corporate strategies.

Corporate Planning and those in charge

Corporate planning makes reference to the plan that will be used during the year in the commercial area, in this case it will be: what products will be sold, the services will be provided, what markets will be analyzed, what new clients can be attracted to the company, analysis of current clients and analysis of other variables that add value according to the strategic plan of the organization.

This is all the strategic process that allows commercial and marketing areas focus on planning future scenarios and/or plans of a company. 

This process becomes a tool of great importance to track sales through comparisons of real scenarios with different estimates and plans raised to reach them, and it also allows us to review and defines points of interest.

The positions responsible of carrying out this task and that define the north of the company are first led by the commercial director, the team that works in the sales area and the most important parts of each area of the company, so that everyone is aligned with the vision and goals for the year.    

How to make a corporate plan and its tools

A good corporate plan should be carried out before the end of the year and create points of analysis during each quarter to verify of the goals have been met.This is done by comparing reports of the year that ends to study the SWOT analysis (a technique to help people and organizations) that allows us to draw goals and strategies that will be maintained during the following year and different criteria that generate value for planning.

It is crucial to draw the company’s goals from the beginning, what are the expectations, how the market is moving, where do we really want to go, and how do we want to get there. From these premises we can draw up the strategy to ensure a better growth, providing proactivity to the company, minimizing possible unforeseen events that may cause a negative impact on the company and its business stability. 

In the commercial area there are several tools used by the market; within our organization we have Team Planning, where the project is set up, as well as the persons in charge and dates. At this time the tool is being improved so performance with clients, feeds and the rest of characteristics that help to make decisions can be reflected from the commercial area. 

Most important points, benefits and how to mitigate risks

To know how to choose the most important points of good planning, it is necessary to make an analysis of current and potential clients, analysis of possible risks that may arise with clients and internally, financial projections and profitability. 

In this way, the main points of corporate planning that must be taken into account when creating it are:

• Goals
• Market Analysis
• Description of products and services
• Marketing Plan
• Finance and projections
• Follow-up and control

The benefits that we can notice when implementing a good corporate plan is that risks are avoided, contingency plans with clients are created, there is more clarity about services and the operation that is being carried out, and also being able to look at the goals in a broad way. 

All this allows us to organize the areas and the company’s resources in a better way, coordinate tasks and activities, control and evaluate results in the best possible way. Commercial or corporate planning makes it easier for us to compare the results obtained with those planned.  

Tips for planning 

When you have a good strategic planning of the organization, the key point to carry out projects, strategic goals and how they point to growth of a company is created.

It is a set of strategies; in this way everybody supports each other and helps the company achieve its goals. Below are some tips for strategic and effective corporate planning:

• Make a risk matrix with its respective contingency plan, risk assessment and follow-ups.

• First identify the project’s potential risks, such as team turnover, service failure or scope expansion. It is also about planning for risk by applying solutions to reduce or eliminate risk.
• Teamwork so that people in the work environment support and complement each other.
• You cannot think of a business plan as simply a Budget.
• Know your client well.
• Define operational and productive processes and those responsible for each task.