Like the hoe in the hands of the peasant, or the mouse in the hands of the computer scientist, so the budget for the manager is an instrument not only necessary but useful, not only an obligation but an effective tool for management.
It is still common, unfortunately, the conception of the budget as a mere crystal ball, a painful obligation, interference in technically interesting activities, generating deviations… something external, imposed, annoying and ungrateful. So think those who have not understood or digested this enriching and guiding function throughout the year.
Well managed, the budget is of inestimable value as an instrument of motivation and orientation to the team's action and has a focus on the future.
Help to:
- To get out of the myopic daily-operational plane, to place oneself with the mind at the point of arrival and to trace the path, to have the resources, to measure its achievement.
What do I want. What do I owe. What can I… Next, the how, when and who.
Ambition in desire and realism in approach are required.
The steps to follow in preparing a good budget go through:
- The analysis of the environment: market and competitors Establish the objectives for the usual and new activities, in the context of the medium-term plan Investments that enable new products and services Forecast of people, taking into account their intangible factor Plan of treasury to ensure the financial viability of these projects.
The computer tool used should not distract or hinder budget activity. Let the middle not get in the way. Cumbersome formats, difficult to understand by specialized technical minds, sometimes make this task obnoxious and remove it from the radius of interest. It is work always added to the busy schedule of every manager and manager and for this reason it requires that it be friendly. The effort should be directed to the content and not to the forms.
The budget is a reference, a trend, it makes it possible to know the position between what is desired and what has been done. It is also a source of evaluation: flee from anything goes, whatever you do and it helps to objectify and reward the achievements.
The manager must take into account several points when facing the budget:
- Generate the environment that arouses their interest and use. Approve it only if it is ambitious and realistic. Ensure the viability of the proposed resources. Allow adequate subsequent control.
We do not allow the budget to haunt us. Let's go in your search, let's use it to its full potential. It is not the task of a quick folder to make way for the truly productive: whoever acts like this is cutting, without realizing it, their possibilities of motivation and communication.
Once the role of the budget is understood, the manager does not hesitate to dedicate his best efforts, during the appropriate time, to obtain the best budget, the one that will help him the most to direct and manage the team during the next fiscal year.
