THE PLANNING PROCESS

AND
PROJECT CYCLE
OBJECTIVES:
1. Discuss the steps in the Planning Process.
2. Identify the steps in Project Cycle Management.
3. Explain the characteristics of Project Cycle Management.
4. Determine the advantages and disadvantages of Project Cycle
Management.

I. PLANNING PROCESS
o What is planning?
It is the act of considering and organizing the steps necessary to
accomplish a goal. It is also known as forethought. It is a creative
process that develops and maintains a plan which involves
psychological elements that call for conceptual knowledge. Even a
few tests exist to gauge a person's capacity for effective planning.
Planning is a key characteristic of intelligent conduct.

Management Planning Process

The process of evaluating an organization's goals and developing
a realistic, comprehensive plan of action to achieve those goals is
known as management planning. A management plan takes into
account both short- and long-term corporate strategies, much like
developing a business plan. The fundamental phases in the
management planning procedure involve drawing up a road map
that details each activity that needs to be completed by the
business in order to achieve its ultimate goals.
Steps in Management Planning Process
1. Establish Goals
The process of management planning begins with the identification of
specific corporate objectives. A thorough analysis of each objective,
together with the rationale behind its selection and the expected results of
goal-related projects, should be included throughout this stage of the
planning process. Objectives should be stated in quantitative or qualitative
terms whenever possible. An example might be to increase profits by 30%
over the course of a year.
2. Identify Resources
Projections for the necessary financial and human resources should be
included for each goal. For instance, a management strategy can include
how many sales representatives are needed and how much it will cost to
achieve a 30% increase in sales.
3. Establish Goal-Related Tasks
Each objective should be accompanied by tasks or initiatives that will help it
be completed. For instance, a manager must specify the steps necessary
to achieve the aim of increasing revenues by 30%. Tasks could include
expanding the sales force or creating cutting-edge sales training
methodologies.
4. Prioritize Goals and Tasks
Setting priorities involves ranking objectives according to their value.
Theoretically, the tasks judged most important will be approached and
finished first. The process of prioritizing can also take into account the
actions required to finish a project or reach a goal. The organization must
complete the procedures necessary to reach that goal in chronological
sequence, for instance, if the aim is to increase sales by 30% and the
corresponding task is to hire more salespeople.
5. Create Assignments and Timelines
The business must set deadlines for finishing related tasks and designate
people to execute them as it prioritizes initiatives. The capabilities of staff
members and the amount of time required to actually accomplish
assignments should be taken into account during this phase of
management planning. For instance, in this case, the sales manager would
be given monthly earning goals to help him or her stay on track for the
objective of boosting sales by 30%.
6. Establish Evaluation Methods
A plan for monitoring target completion over a predetermined time period
should be part of the management planning process. One approach to
achieve this is to ask department heads for a monthly progress report.
7. Identify Alternative Courses of Action
Unexpected circumstances can occasionally derail even the best-laid
plans. If some elements of the master plan turn out to be unachievable, a
management plan should have a backup plan. Alternative strategies can be
introduced into the planning process at any stage or for the full plan.

TYPES OF PLANNING
• Automated planning and scheduling-Automated planning and scheduling, sometimes
denoted as simply AI planning, is a branch of artificial intelligence that concerns the
realization of strategies or action sequences, typically for execution by intelligent
agents, autonomous robots and unmanned vehicles.
• Business plan-  A business plan is a document that contains the operational and
financial plan of a business, and details how its objectives will be achieved. It serves as
a road map for the business and can be used when pitching investors or financial
institutions for debt or equity financing.
• Comprehensive planning- Comprehensive planning is an ordered process that
determines community goals and aspirations in terms of community development. The
end product is called a comprehensive plan, [1] also known as a general plan,[2] or master
plan.[3] This resulting document expresses and regulates public policies on
transportation, utilities, land use, recreation, and housing. Comprehensive plans
typically encompass large geographical areas, a broad range of topics, and cover a
long-term time horizon. The term comprehensive plan is most often used by urban
planners.
• Contingency planning- Contingency planning is the process of defining a course of
action for an organisation to take if a disruption to normal activity occurs. Having a
detailed contingency plan established can help you eliminate or minimise the negative
effects of an unexpected event. Through contingency planning, you can evaluate
potential risks before they occur, which allows you to make mindful decisions if a need
for the plan arises.
• Economic planning- the process by which key economic decisions are made or
influenced by central governments. It contrasts with the laissez-faire approach that, in
its purest form, eschews any attempt to guide the economy, relying instead
on market forces to determine the speed, direction, and nature of economic evolution.
• Enterprise architecture planning- planning process of defining architectures for the use
of information in support of the business and the plan for implementing those
architectures
• Environmental planning- the process of facilitating decision making to carry out land
development with the consideration given to the natural environment, social, political,
economic and governance factors and provides a holistic framework to
achieve sustainable outcomes. A major goal of environmental planning is to create
sustainable communities, which aim to conserve and protect undeveloped land
• Event planning and production- thoughtful planning and execution that elevates an
event into an experience. Working with presenters, audiovisual crew, and technology
vendors, event production management teams produce and deliver unique live
experiences at an event.
• Financial planning-the plan needed for estimating the fund requirements of a
business and determining the sources for the same. It essentially includes
generating a financial blueprint for company’s future activities. It is typically done for 3-5
years-broad in scope and generally includes long-term investment, growth and financing
decisions.
• Marketing plan- A marketing plan is a document that lays out the marketing efforts of a
business in an upcoming period, which is usually a year. It outlines the marketing
strategy, promotional, and advertising activities planned for the period.
• Network resource planning- enhanced process of network planning that incorporates
the disciplines of business planning, marketing, and engineering to develop integrated,
dynamic master plans for all domains of communications networks.

• Operational planning- Operational planning is a method a department or team uses

to take the company’s strategic plan and turn it into a detailed map broken up into
various components
• Regional planning- is an urban planning strategy that focuses on the social,
economic, and environmental development of a specific area. Regional plans address
the needs of the entire region rather than just one municipality
• Site planning- Site planning is the unseen foundation of any land development
project. We understand the importance of creating an exciting, properly designed space,
based on understanding the client’s needs and concerns and the nature of the site and
surrounding land uses.
• Strategic planning- Strategic planning is the art of creating specific business
strategies, implementing them, and evaluating the results of executing the plan, in
regard to a company’s overall long-term goals or desires. It is a concept that focuses on
integrating various departments (such as accounting and finance, marketing, and
human resources) within a company to accomplish its strategic goals. The term
strategic planning is essentially synonymous with strategic management.
• Succession planning- uccession planning is the process whereby you identify new
leaders and develop them to take over the role of the incumbent.

For businesses to thrive, it needs to avoid moments of crisis and lack of leadership.

At some point, succession planning will help with such a situation by preparing a
candidate for a planned or emergency replacement. This could be because of
retirement, a new opportunity, or in the event of death.

Succession planning is your safety net to ensure that business operations can remain
smooth. A robust process will help you identify key individuals who could fill leadership
positions.

II. PROJECT CYCLE

PROJECT CYCLE MANAGEMENT (PCM)
A strategy called project cycle management, or PCM, enables you to
manage a variety of projects and raise the quality of your projects over
time. To ensure that the beneficiaries are involved in the project's design,
PCM leverages the concept of a continuous learning cycle and
incorporates logical framework analysis.
PCM or Project Cycle Management is an approach to manage multiple
projects or programmes and to improve the quality of projects by learning
from one project and applying the lessons in the following ones. The
approach was introduced by the World Bank in the 1980, and spread
throughout the development world in the 90s.
PROJECT CYCLE

The phases are:

Programming
Identification
Formulation
Implementation
Monitoring
Evaluation
Implementation and monitoring are frequently done in the same stage.
Some donor organizations place "Financing" or "Proposal Approval" in front
of "Formulation" and "Implementation" as an additional step. Negotiating or
lobbying might be introduced as a step between programming and
identification or between identification and formulation from the perspective
of NGOs looking to establish a project.
The first three steps can be thought of as the project's design phase.
Before the final clearance is issued and work (or practical preparations) can
start, it can easily take up to two years. The project's actual duration
depends on its activities and the needs of the recipients, but it also
frequently depends on financial constraints or the donor's regulatory
framework. Because of this, a series of initiatives (also known as actions) is
consolidated into a broader program. Once more, in such a program it is
crucial to draw lessons from past experiences, but in practice this may not
always be the case (or only to a limited extent).

PROGRAMMING
The programming phase provides the
connection between each project and
the organization's overall plan. Over
the next few years, how does the
NGO or development actor hope to
realize the primary goal of the
organization (as stated in its vision
and mission, for example)? Many organizations engage their
beneficiaries and other stakeholders in a participatory process to find a
solution to this question. This frequently results in some sort of long-term
strategy statement, which provides broad guidelines for the activities and
projects the organization will undertake, in which nations or areas, with
what target consumers, and relying on what resources (own resources,
donor funding, etc.)
Some organizations only consider their fieldwork when reflecting. Some go
even further and create a long-term vision for every facet of their job,
including human resources management, financial management, quality
management, an external communications plan, an advocacy strategy, and
so forth.

The organization's strategy will frequently fit within a larger vision, such as
shared policies created with the NGO sector in your nation. This could also
result in the addition of specific thematic or country policies to the overall
plan that detail how the organization will carry out these policies over the
following few years (for instance a gender strategy, a food security
strategy, a country strategy, an ecological durability strategy, etc.)
The organization may also create standard methods or tools at this
stage that will be applied in the upcoming years. These may consist of
useful principles that can be applied to various initiatives or lists of criteria
(for choosing partner organizations or beneficiaries, for example), as well
as other tools.
All of this is not formulated randomly. The concept behind the project cycle
is that these reflections are nourished by the lessons discovered from
earlier endeavors, among other methods through evaluations but also by
inviting individuals who were involved to join in this phase.

IDENTIFICATION

This stage involves developing the

project idea and determining whether
it satisfies the demands of the (future)
consumers. In other words, the
project's relevance is evaluated. This
means that, on the one hand, we
must determine whether it aligns with our plan. But more crucially, it must
be founded on a thorough understanding and analysis of both the
requirements of the recipients and the circumstances in the target zone or
country. This is where the local partners' experience is useful because, in
general, it is expected that the project will be developed in conjunction with
the local partners to ensure its quality.
As a result of this phase, an initial draft of the project is elaborated which
contains all elements of the intervention logic:
 What activities do we want to do?
 To achieve what tangible results (outputs)?
 To remedy what situation? Why do we do this project? In other words
what is the purpose of our project?
 How will our project contribute to improving the overall situation in the
intervention area? What will the impact be in the long run?
In other words, the logical framework's first column is developed. The idea
behind PCM, like the logical framework method, is that there is a cause-
and-effect chain. The actions lead to the tangible outcomes, and via the
combination of these outputs we will actualize the objective of our project.
At this stage, we also have a look at the resources we will require and try to
estimate what the entire budget of the project will be.
This project draft frequently needs to go through an organizational approval
process, which requires the director, the executive board, or some sort of
project committee to review the project and offer their permission.

FORMULATION

Once the basic concept of the

project is determined and approved,
it is time to go into detail. Often, this
comes down to writing a detailed
project proposal. In the concept of
PCM, models are used for
establishing:

 The narrative proposal, which gives an overview of the project and

explains in detail:
 What the situation is of the target groups in the area of
intervention/country;
 Who the partners are;
 What the objectives are;
 How the objectives fit in the donor’s policy/the country development
strategy;
 What activities will be executed;
 What the risks are and how they will be dealt with;
 How the partners will collaborate with local authorities and other
stakeholders
 The budget proposal, detailing every expense and sometimes
regrouping them per activity or output
 The logical framework of the project
 A detailed planning of the activities
  Other documents to explain how the organization manages its
projects, such as partner identification forms, registration forms for
beneficiaries and target groups, the official NGO registration and so
on.
Sometimes the NGO has (and is allowed to use) its own models, but often
donor agencies will oblige NGOs to use their templates.
Often these templates help the organization to really think the whole project
through and to conceive of every detail. On the other hand, the amount of
detail that is sometimes requested can be overwhelming and very often the
same information must be repeated between projects – which again goes
against the idea of continuity and learning. But with all this information, the
partner organizations will get a good idea of the viability of the project and
any pitfalls that may be on the road.
It is at this stage that we can integrate the whole logical framework
approach as a participatory approach to determine the various elements of
the project:
 Validating and detailing every element of the intervention logic (first
column of the log frame)
 Thinking about how the project will be monitored and evaluated
(second and third columns of the log frame).
 Reflecting about risks and assumptions (fourth column), and how to
deal with problems should they occur (and what their possible impact
will be).
 Practical organization like who does what and when? How will the
communication and reporting be organized? Who is responsible for
what?
IMPLEMENTATION

Once funding is secured, there is

nothing to stop us from executing
the project (although ‘nothing’ may
be too optimistic sometimes). At
this step, we can start with the
practical preparations of our project: recruiting additional staff;
organising the project team at different levels and locations; setting
up logistics and purchasing new equipment; introducing ourselves
and the project to the people, the media, the local authorities, the
representatives of international organisations and so on.
The monitoring and accountability system has to be put in place too.
This includes the system for financial management and reporting; the
system to monitor the execution and results of our activities; the
administrative management system; the risk monitoring system and
emergency handling system; and the planning of financial audits and
(external evaluations).
At this point in time, the situation of the beneficiaries is measured
before the activities start, using the indicators. This is known as the
baseline, which will serve to compare the evolution of the situation of the
beneficiaries to as the project progresses. However, some donors will
oblige you to establish a baseline during the formulation phase and
incorporate it in the project proposal. Even so, it may be a good idea to
establish the situation at the very start of the project, especially when it’s
been a while since the baseline was established, because other things may
have influenced the beneficiaries’ situation.
The project’s planning that was established during the formulation
phase may also need to be updated. It is not rare that a lot of time has
passed between the development of this planning and the final approval of
the project by the donor. In the meantime the situation may have drastically
changed. Experience also shows that it is only now that serious reflection is
given to the planning of the activities, as the project team is confronted with
the reality and limitations of working in a given setting with certain
resources and time available.
Implementation is all about doing the right activities to respond to the actual
needs of the beneficiaries. The information you receive from your
monitoring system should allow you to respond flexibly to those needs. At
least that is the original idea behind the project cycle. In the worst case,
you are totally bound by your contract with the donor and obliged to follow it
to the letter, even if you know that the situation has changed and that you
are not doing the right things. Most donors are open to adapting the original
contract in some way, but often within limits. Also, the procedure to change
your contract may be cumbersome and slow, and modifying the contract is
not something you would go through more than once during the project.

MONITORING
The monitoring and implementation
phases are often taken as one
because they are so intertwined. In
any case it is clear you can’t speak of
consecutive phases because they go
together. Monitoring is about checking
whether your project is going as
planned, meaning that:
 You’re doing the activities according to plan
 You’re getting the outputs that you want
 You’re spending the budget according to plan
 Monitoring is not about the fundamentals of your project, i.e. the
question whether you’re doing the right things in the first place.
To monitor the project’s outputs, you’re using the indicators of the
logframe. To monitor the progress of the activities, you’re using the
project’s planning (updated). To monitor expenses, you’re using the
project’s accountancy and compare it with the budget.
In the concept of PCM, monitoring is needed to adapt your project flexibly
to the ever-changing needs and the ever-evolving situation in the field.
Monitoring should allow you to take project management decisions on the
go:
 Change the activities that you do, or change the order of the
activities, or put an end to certain activities because they don’t lead to
the results that you expected.
 Verify whether outputs are achieved in time and change priorities
and/or reroute resources (staff, finances, equipment…) to make sure
they will be achieved.
  Avoid financial mismanagement or expending too much or too fast.
Maybe the cost of certain activities may have to be reviewed and
other solutions may have to be found. In other cases, the costs will
turn out to be lower than expected, and additional activities may be
organized to exceed the original objectives of the project.
 Determine whether you should start up a procedure to re-negotiate
parts of your contract: because the situation has changed drastically;
because risks have materialized, and you can’t handle them as you’d
hoped; because you’re spending more than expected; because you
want to re-allocate your resources; etc.
In this sense, monitoring does not equal controlling. However, in practice
the opposite is often true, and monitoring becomes something to satisfy the
donor and produce the necessary reports in time.

EVALUATION
Evaluation is concerned with the very
reasons why you designed your project
in the first place, whereas monitoring is
concerned with determining whether
the project is carried out according to
plan. Do the outcomes of your initiative
successfully affect the lives of your
beneficiaries in the way you intended?
Was your intervention strategy effective? What are the expected and
unforeseen outcomes and impact of your project? What can you infer about
yourself from the way you set up your activities? What lessons can you
draw from your undertaking that you can apply to subsequent endeavors
and actions?
Evaluations can be:
 Internal evaluations: conducted by the organization itself.
 External evaluations: conducted by an external evaluator, either an
individual or a (specialized) organization or firm. Often donors will
require you to do external evaluations because they are supposedly
more independent and reliable. On the other hand, external
 evaluators may not understand the situation as well as the local staff
or partners do. Often, time and financial constraints also weigh on the
quality of the evaluation and many evaluators rely heavily on the
project team anyway, which beats the point of independency (also in
the end it is the NGO that pays the bill).
Projects with a long duration often have mid-term or several intermediary
evaluations in addition to the final evaluation. To do a good evaluation, the
evaluators need access to information from the monitoring system. One of
the most common problems is that no baseline situation has been
established at the onset of the project, making it difficult to appreciate the
evolution of the project and of the situation of the beneficiaries.
In addition to providing an evaluation report, most evaluators will organize a
feed-back meeting of some sort. This is important for people to learn about
the findings of the evaluation and the good things and bad thing about the
project. This way they can take the information along for the next project.

III. CHARACTERISTICS OF PROJECT

CYCLE MANAGEMENT
1. CONSISTENCY
 Whatever project you are working on, consistency must be
upheld.
 During the project cycle, a set of standards must be met.
 Consistency throughout the entire PMC process aids in
preserving the project's quality.
 Another crucial aspect of success standards is consistency.
2. FLEXIBILITY
 While the project must be consistent, this does not imply that
the PMC is inflexible.
 Depending on the project's needs, PMC needs to be changed.
 PMC is adaptable to recognize the project and its peculiarities.
3. TRANPARENCY
 It is the project's most crucial component.
 There must be transparency in all works at all PMC levels.
  Maintaining transparency is important, particularly when
planning resources.
 Conflict may be avoided with more transparency.

IV. ADVANTAGES OF PROJECT CYCLE

MANAGEMENT
1. Goal achievement
 The project's goal is the main objective, and the entire PMC works
toward it.
 The plan and execution work together to achieve the goals within the
allotted time.
 The objectives are made SMART.

2. Effective use of time and resources

 The PMC aids in making the best use of resources and time.
 The resource strategy created at the outset aids in efficient utilization.

3. Better Communication
 All the staffs get together in planning and brainstorming the ideas
which fosters the better communication
 Roles and responsibilities that have been established in advance
serve to reduce tension.
 Project involves teamwork and is completed collectively.

4. Risk Assessment
 Risk assessment is one of the PMC's key components.
 It takes place at the planning stage.
 Risk may be managed if it is identified early on and one
stays prepared.

v. DISADVANTAGES AND LIMITATIONS OF

PROJECT CYCLE MANAGEMENT
1. High Cost
 Conducting and guaranteeing the specifics of all cycle sessions might
raise the expense of a project with a limited budget.
2. Complex
 Due to the numerous phases and tasks that must be completed, MC
can make the project appear more complicated.
 Plan rigidity might lead to a tense situation.
3. Lack of creativity
 PMC can occasionally stifle creativity.
 The tight schedules, demanding workplace, pre-established activities,
and process could prevent the staff's creativity from blossoming.

References:

Project Cycle Management (PCM). (n.d.). Logframer.

https://www.logframer.eu/content/project-cycle-management-pcm

Wagle, K. (2018, August 21). Project Management Cycle (PMC), Its

Phases and Characteristics. Public Health Notes.
https://www.publichealthnotes.com/project-management-cycle-pmc-
its-phases-and-characteristics/
Introduction to Project Cycle Development. (n.d.). Center for Civil
Society and Nonprofit Management.
https://csnm.kku.ac.th/learning/course/module/37-introduction-
project-cycle-management

Mullane, T. (2015, April 24). The Basic Steps in the Management

Planning Process. Linked In. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/basic-
steps-management-planning-process-terry-mullane?
fbclid=IwAR2c88aipAs16OFXnLIExnxpFeTW7U9wg9Sv1ZbRggVyq6
oMYGIk6SVeguA