Asking Better Questions for 2027

Planning isn’t about the Plan, it’s about the Questions!

The true power behind a Planning Process is not the answers you eventually use to write the plan. It is about identifying the right questions at the beginning of the process.

The typical questions we ask ourselves, “What worked?”, “What didn’t?” and “How can we achieve more with same resources?“ are all good questions.

BUT industries change. Often, our businesses have grown, sometimes substantially. There is new legislation to navigate. There are new people in key positions. And many more changes besides.

The questions from last year can become out of date and no longer relevant.

When working with clients recently, I’ve been rewriting the questions that need to be asked for their businesses for 2027. The questions are future focused. They are about the current situation. They are challenging the current thinking and situation.

When we get stuck in the same loop and are only focusing on what we can do with the existing resources or model, opportunities and insights can get missed. We need to ask better questions of ourselves, our team and our clients. Perhaps we need to explore answers in our industry associations and networks, to ensure we stay ahead of the competition.

Do you turn to your same standard questions when you enter planning mode?

If you do, I’d love you to challenge yourself this year and start outside your normal way of looking at your business. Ask the impossible questions and explore the answers:

• What if cashflow wasn’t an issue? What would we do differently? Why?
• What if there was an abundance of amazing candidates to fill our positions? Which positions would we hire first? Why?
• What if we could automate that key process? What difference would it make to our success? Why?

When we start with big solutions and then move towards solving the ‘how’, there is a different level of creativity and problem-solving unleashed. You and your business will benefit from it.

We’d love to help you plan different for 2027. If you’d like our help with the process, please book a meeting below or call us on 1300 474 672.