Introduction to action planning

Background and links This session builds on the earlier discussion of planning and its role. It provides a brief overview of the action planning objectives and process and a background to the detailed exercises. Objectives To provide a conceptual framework the action planning To review the action planning process To link action planning to strategic planning Process to develop an action plan The following figures illustrate the process of developing an action plan. Essential elements include the early focus on the people and institutions involved, their participation in the process and the selection of key strategic issues as a focus. The process of action planning is designed so as to give the greatest possibility of success based on full involvement of the key actors from problem identification through implementation to operation. THE ACTION PLANNING P OCE!! STE S I! "#TI$! %"!!I!& "LO#$CHA T% (!TEP ) I'E!TI() *$+%E,S ACTI&ITIE!% !'PPO TING TOOL!% -Talk with problem, to *$+%E, determine whether it 'I"%$&0E really is a problem according to action planning problem criteria. If more than one problem is apparent, find out whether the problems are in any way .interlinked/. graph

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(ormulates objectives for the problems that appear S,"*T at this stage4 Specific, ,easurable, "ttainable, *ealistic, Time bound. It may be

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necessary to return to step 6a and re5analy7e the problem

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%ist the *estraining and 'riving (orces, constraints and opportunities that would work against and in favour of achieving the objectives. #ategories of forces would be related to, for instance , institutions8actor8actors and resources. ,ake notes of .solutions/ that already come up in this stage, for later use. Select the most .promising/ forces 9:ey (orces; to further work on. It maybe necessary to return to step 6b and re5 set the objectives. The (orce (ield "nalysis is the basis for determining options for action (ormulate solution5 options for influencing the :ey (orces, leading to 9partial or full; achievement of the objectives and contributing to .solving the problem/. #heck whether solution5 options are compatible with those developed for

(("5($*,S *estraining (orces8constraints 'riving forces8opportunities ($*#E (IE%' 'I"&*",

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other, interlinked, problems8 #o5ordinate and integrate, to avoid overlaps, wastage of resources and incompatible action programmes. It may be necessary to return to the previous step 9s;.

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This step > should result in .feasible action sets/ or .decision schemes/ for the various interlinked problems. #ompare feasible options I, "#T developed during the "SSESS,E!T previous step and S#$*ES ,"T*IA prioriti7e action5options based on this comparison. In fact, all criteria to be taken into account in the impact assessment should have come into the deliberations during earlier steps. !ow, it is a matter of comparing, as a basis for choice 9what to do, or what to do first;. "s a part of the Impact "ssessment, detailed assessment may be carried out, such as &oals "chievement "nalysis@ Economic #ost +enefit "nalysis@ (inancial #ost +enefit "nalysis@ #ost Effectiveness "nalysis, Environmental Impact "nalysis. 9!ot part of assignment;4 It may be necessary to &", return to previous steps. E#+" (#+" #E" EI" "t this stage of the T$$%S 9B;

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decision making process it is time for 'ecision Taking. Somebody or something 9boss, mayor, council, committee; who8which is appointed or 9s;elected to decide, must now #<$$SE a feasible actions set, or to give the .$:, go ahead/ for the preferred options8strategy prepared in the previous steps of the decision making process. +reak down the strategies or action programme9s; decided on, into tasks to be implemented. Tasks are actual activities to be carried out, within a specified time frame, under the responsibility of people that can be named. There can be /main tasks/ and .sub5 tasks/. !ote that one of the tasks must be4 monitor action progress. CCCCCCC.. #ommunication with8among actors is bound to be one of the task areas defined earlier. <ere in step D it is meant to be communication with 'ecision Taker9s;, to inform about the "ction rogramme as developed, and to get support for implementation, and to propose preferred organi7ational set up.

Insight Experience Intuition ower8authority

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!#OT Anal3sis Objectives Explain the function of development scenario Introduce SE$T analysis as a tool

(unction of a development scenario

The function of a development scenario is to ensure that actions developed in a short term action plan are not carried out in isolation, but link into future actions planned under a mid term strategic plan. This overall function will be achieved by4 a; Sketching out the environment of development by looking at the impact of present and likely future trends. " SE$T "nalysis will be used for this b; *eviewing the major issue areas identified c; "nalysing linkages between decision areas. This will help to focus an areas that an be worked out without the need for major studies or decisions on other areas SE$T "nalysis SE$T stands for4 Strength of the organi7ation Eeakness of the organi7ation $pportunities external to the organi7ation, but influencing it Threats external to the organi7ation but influencing it SE$T is very useful, and widely used techniFue to ask important Fuestions about the situation in which planning is taking place. There is nothing especially sophisticated G only the asking and answering of important and sometimes difficult Fuestions. The context of the Fuestions is the municipality and what it is trying to do. This links into the discussion of role and mission from the preparatory meeting. There are two main elements of the analysis4 The situation inside the organi7ation G the municipality and what trends can be seen. "re things getting better or worseB The situation outside the municipality5 known as the external environment. This includes national policies, the state of the economy, both local and national. (or example it makes a big difference to planning if local industry is expanding rapidly, or if local industry is expanding rapidly, or if local agriculture is in decline Ee will go through the four elements and provide an example of the kind of answers that might come up.

The case used is a medium si7ed municipality in :arnataka in India. The actual situation combines elements of a number of existing municipalities. !trengt4s The municipality has a president who has ambitions for the towns development. " small scale initiative to clean u the market area has been successful. The municipality controls some key parcels of land. #eakness Existing levels of infrastructure are very low. The town has a very low technical capacity G staff are limited and low paid. =uality and commitment are low. Tax and charges are low, as is the rate of collection of taxes. #ontinuity of administration is poor, with freFuent change of commissioners. Even payment to staff has not been constant. Opportunities Improving tax levels and collection give a possible increase in income. Training and technical support are available from state and national level institutions. %ow interest funding is available in programmes for road improvement, site and service development and a shopping area. %oans are available from a State infrastructure development corporation. rivate sector has expressed interest in improving municipal services and the image of the town. #ommunity inputs has a potential to be tapped. There is increasing support for a stronger role of local authorities. T4reats #ontinued low performance makes for unwillingness to pay. State may not give new powers to raise funds. #ouncil may be divided and not move on common plan. %ack of continuity means that initiatives get lost. %ack of commitment to pay back loans could result in regular budget being withheld. 0nskilled staff may make mistakes. The major local industry is agriculturally based, but has relatively old eFuipment and may become uncompetitive. The local agricultural economy is relatively stagnant. Each town/s situation will be different G but some of these points are likely to play a role G in addition to others not mentioned. These statements form an important background to the development of plans, as the plans need to contain actions that take these situations into account. The techniFue -force field analysisH can be used to better understand what is happening and to develop actions that can have an impact on these factors. SE$T analysis is not a full, detailed analysis, but is an important first step that helps to focus attention in areas which are likely to be most important. In many cases it may be the only analysis carried out.

#onclusions +oth internal and external environments need to be assessed as a context for planning +road analysis at this stage should later be followed up by more detailed analysis in areas which are likely to be important. E5ercise !#OT Anal3sis Objectives To carry out a SE$T "nalysis for your town. !ote4 This exercise will not be carried out during the work on the Simia case G the example is already given. The methods is given as a basis for future work. Output +rief statements outlining key factors influencing future development of the town. This will be used later as a framework for development of actions. Instructions (or each of the four Fuestions below, each member of the team should first note down key points he8she considers relevant Select one member of the group as chairperson and discuss results for each person Enter results after discussion in a copy of the table. "spect "ssessment G example for Simia Strength G internal strengths of the The city council has recently had some organi7ation success in tackling problems cholera and environment degradation in the informal areas in the city. This has given the council a new credibility, and people has started to believe that the council can actually achieve something. *ecent initiatives of working with the private sector and other groups proved successful. The staff too, have developed a more positive attitude. They are get well educated, though lack practical experience. The council have control over significant areas of land, and have considerable stock of property. Eeakness G internal weakness of the Staff are not well trained in positive organi7ation approaches to urban planning and management. In particular they do not have much experience in world

$pportunity5opportunities presented by the external environment 5 in particular changes which will create possibilities

Threats G problems to be overcome due to the external environment and especially changes in it.

partnership with other organi7ations. The bureaucratic procedures of the municipality, white good for country not offer a sound basis for more flexible partnership working. The financial base of the municipality is weak. The information base of the municipality is weak. 'epartments do not know the real costs of what they do. The credibility of the council is still relatively low. The #entral &overnment has embarked an a policy of an decentrali7ation this there is the opportunity to borrow funds for urban development programs at a modest interest rate. "ccess to these special fund be competitive G so there is an opportunity if the council can perform. $therwise 9see threats; There are also programs available to help train staff. The response to the Simia (orum was very positive. The national economy is starting to grow at an annual rate of I J. The normal grants available from #entral &overnment are being progressively decreased. It is also indicated that local government does not perform well will be last in the line for concessionary funds. The city does not been having a good share of the recent growth in the national economy. "ssessment 5 preliminary

"spect Strength G internal strengths of the organi7ation Eeakness G internal weakness of the organi7ation $pportunity5opportunities presented by the external environment 5 in particular changes Threats G problems to be overcome due

to the external environment and especially changes in it. Proble6 anal3sis Objectives To understand the importance of clear definition of objectives To be familiar with a systematic method of defining the problem elations4ip bet7een goals proble6s and objectives &oals relate to the mission of the organi7ation G what your municipality or organi7ation is supposed to achieve. roblems mean that something is wrong in achieving the objectives G so they should be in the realm that the municipality or other organi7ation is currently supposed to perform in. This is called the legitimacy of the problem area. (igure > shows the problem which is then redefined as a specific objective. The objective fits into the overall goals. roblem 9or opportunity; analysis can be thought of as the foundation of the planning process. Serious thinking at this stage allows potentially effective lines of action to be opened up. +eware, that is not easy at this stage to keep potential solutions separate from the problem definition G but it is essential. "#TI$! %"!!I!& *elations between problems The problem tree4 example
unemployment unemployment

<ealth <ealth roblems roblems

<arm to tourist <arm to tourist industry industry

0nwillingness of 0nwillingness of industry invest industry invest

%imits on new %imits on new housing housing

eriodic water shortage eriodic water shortage ,ismatch between ,ismatch between supply and demand supply and demand <igh usage <igh usage %imited %imited finance finance Easteful habits Easteful habits !o water !o water meters meters attitudes attitudes

%imited supply %imited supply

%imited ground %imited ground water water

%eakage in %eakage in system system

"igure , E5a6ple o8 proble6 tree related to 7ater suppl3 roblem analysis4 conclusions &ood problem analysis lays the foundations for effective planning It is worth spending the time to do problem analysis well as it leadfs to creative and innovative actions roblem or opportunity analysis is not easy to do well G it reFuires changes in the way of thinking 'on/t shoot from the hipK Solutions will be developed later %"!!I!& <E"%T< E"*!I!& %ack of good thinking can seriously injure your plans

roblem identification and analysis $bjectives4 To define one critical and legitimate problem area Input4 Information8 experience of town/s urban development problems, or development scenario. " SE$T analysis can be a useful input. 'iscussion of defining problems and prioriti7ing $ne defined urban development problem in the town clarified in terms of who/s problem, location, timing, length of time

$utput4

!etting Objectives $bjectives The objectives for the session are4 'evelop with participants criteria for setting objectives articipants to set own objective and test it against the criteria ! !peci8ic in ter6s o8 place 9 9easurable: preferably in performance terms G what is achieved rather than how to achieve it A Attainable ealistic; "ttainable and realistic both relate to the need to set objectives that have a reasonable chance of being achieved. (or this it is important that the support of the key stakeholders in the setting of the objectives should be obtained. This means that the process of objective setting itself should be participatory. "chieving objectives brings success G important in terms of motivation of staff and political support T Ti6e Bound; It is critical that objectives are related to a meaningful time frame. The time frame should itself be linked to political and social realities as well as to physical development aspects.

<!6art= objectives

$bjectives should be4

Specific ,easurable "ttainable *ealistic Time +ound

Conclusions $bjective definition is not easy to do well $bjective definition is extremely important to do well. It is the foundation of all later planning work. Objective !etting Objectives% The aim of the exercise is to get familiar with the concept of developing clear objectives, and to develop an objective related to the work you have to do which will be the basis of later analysis to develop an effective course of action The introduction to the exercise, the definition of the core problem, the discussion of objectives and your own experience all from inputs to the exercise $ne well thought out objective which has a realistic chance of being implementable

Input% Output%

/e8ining and c4ecking objective Core proble6% 0nattractive $#S too recreational activity Objective% to revitali7e a vacant government own historic building, for commercial use in L months evised objective% To inventory possible activities as a special and recreational function among society To define social activities as an early active useful supporting recreational function on $#S "orce "ield Anal3sis

Objectives% To explain the use force field analysis for problem solving To describe the process of (orce field analysis and illustrate with an example To carry out an exercise to develop action ideas from the objective identified (orce (ield "nalysis 'riving (orces &overnment policy olitical support ,otivation of manager %ocal taxes decentrali7ation *estraining (orces %ack of experience %imited funds !o community organi7ation !o planning framework Staff are negative

$bjective4 To improve infrastructure dekivery by A within ) years in areas ?

(orce (ield "nalysis4 process Set $bjectives (orce (ield "nalysis Identify forces Select forces feasible to influence 'evelop potential actions

+rainstorm

'evelop and test

'evelop tasks and timing

(igure I rocess of (orce (ield "nalysis

Exercise4 (orce (ields "nalysis $bjectives4 The objectives are to learn the use of the force5filed analysis techniFue so as to develop feasible actions related to the objective identified earlier Input4 $bjective8s developed Introduction and demonstration by the co5ordinator $utput4 " set of possible actions which can help bring about the objective defined. These actions are the basis of the development of an action plan /eveloping potential actions% brainstor6ing and alternative strateg3 develop6ent Objectives Identify a range of possible actions and strategies which potentially can meet the originally defined objective :now when and how to use a brainstorming techniFue