CEO Today - February 2023

It is here where integrated business planning, or IBP, is increasingly essential. In a volatile world, where change is the only constant, organisations that use an IBP process gain the agility to process data quickly, make smarter decisions, and better navigate future disruption. IBP is a contemporary model that Oliver Wight, a leading management consultant and business transformation specialist, has been promoting for years. Its time has truly arrived in 2023, because it enables greater planning accuracy and corporate performance by aligning strategic planning, finance, human resources, supply chain, sales, and marketing functions. Implementing a strategic plan has to be a holistic process to ensure the sustainable running of a business united towards growth. There is a balance to strike: if a CEO only focuses on the short-term execution of the capability of the business, then they are unlikely to deliver the longer-term strategy. Conversely, they may fail to execute the plan if the sole focus is on the longer-term strategy. Steering away from spreadsheet hell For businesses – and industries – to survive and thrive in tomorrow’s increasingly volatile world, they need to plan much further ahead and invest in enhancing processes, technology and people today. By gaining and using insights from data-hungry artificial intelligence solutions, better decisions will be made, greater flexibility will be achievable, blind spots will be uncovered, and the leadership group can plan for most scenarios. For CEOs to steer with confidence, more than ever, leaders need to have a role in a Progressive CEOs that focus on visibility through quality data and entrust their people with the technology and processes to adapt to change quickly, and adopt a longerterm mindset, are most likely to navigate turbulence best. As Edward Gibbons, an 18th-century English historian, wrote: “The wind and the waves are always on the side of the ablest navigator.” Continuous business evolution required Yes, the coronavirus crisis necessitated speeding up digital transformation journeys, but keeping up momentum is crucial. The unrelenting pace of change now requires continuous business evolution to convert data to valuable information for decisionmaking. Now three years after the pandemic hit, CEOs should have learnt lessons. Hopefully, leaders and their organisationswill be better prepared for crises. Or is it more that they have been in survival mode and unwilling or unable to think too far ahead? Clearly, technology is a great enabler. But, unfortunately, it’s an all-too-common mistake to believe business transformation is founded on investing in and implementing tech alone. That technology is a tool that should work in harmony with people and processes is a vital point that seems to elude some leaders. Consider how airlines and airports, for instance, displayed woeful preparation when governments lifted coronavirus restrictions. Poor anticipation of likely – notwithstanding unpredictable – issues, often due to a lack of data-driven foresight and because of a short-term approach to business, damages reputations as well as bottom lines. 44 LESSONS IN LEADERSHIP

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