Many companies found the 2009 planning & budgeting cycle to be one of the most difficult they have ever experienced. While they were preparing their plans during the autumn of 2008, the impact of the impending credit crunch was becoming clear; the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy in September 2008 and subsequent Government support for the banking sector were followed by collapsing consumer confidence and sharp falls in interest rates.
Companies faced with dramatic declines in demand were faced with an urgent need to re-plan their business and cut costs to remain profitable and conserve cash. Many organisations found their planning processes not to be sufficiently fast or flexible enough to cope with these circumstances – they often took a large number of iterations to arrive at an agreed plan.
Managers are aware of the risks of arbitrary across-the-board cost cuts, and are looking for more effective ways of planning for 2010. They want to understand how to cut costs without destroying value. Please join us at this practical half-day round table where Stephen Brook, Manager of the IBM Cognos Innovation Center for Performance Management, will discuss best practices for smarter approaches to expense planning – and a faster & simpler 2010 planning & budgeting cycle.