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Editor's Notes

1. In a dynamic and complex environment, there are two planning techniques that are appropriate to use: the Project Management and the Scenario Planning Techniques. These are the two most common types of contemporary planning techniques that organizations use according to their needs. Project Management – a one-time project or set of activities which is done on time, on a specific budget, and according to other specifications. In this technique, the objectives are defined, then the activities and resources that are needed are also identified. The sequence and time are established next. There is always a time to start and end this project. Upon completion, the output is compared with objectives. Evaluation is done and any other additional human resources that are required is also determined. The project manager needs to have effective communication skills and persuasion power so that the team members are motivated to work on the project efficiently and achieve completion of its goals and objectives on the specified date. In Scenario Planning, management tries to play out potential situations under different conditions with the hope of reducing uncertainty in the future. It is also called contingency planning because it involves developing scenarios or viewing what the future is likely going to become. It is not advisable to be used in forecasting random events because the inconsistency will make it difficult for management to plan for the future.
2. In the school where I have worked, a project management style of planning works better. The faculty training is a one-time activity that involves all teachers and staff and it was handled and led by the school director. The school director assigns the different committees who will help in the planning of the whole activity. It starts with assessing the recent needs of the teachers and from there, plan on the seminars & workshops that they need to attend. The committee heads meet to plan and discuss on how to better execute the plan and improve it whenever there is a need. There is a schedule when to start the training until the closure or end. Each day has an activity to do. The school staff are also involved to support the committees and the teachers. For example, they prepare the handouts, snacks, invitation and accommodation of the speakers of the seminars, assist the teachers in the different things they need during the seminar, e.g., type their reports for submission, retrieve information that might be needed, etc. At the end of the training, an evaluation is administered to check on the effectivity of the training as perceived by the teachers themselves. From there, the committee discusses on the final review of the completed project. All the activities of the project are properly documented and discussed.
3. The faculty training project was created to address the present needs of the teachers and not to anticipate any possible alternative futures. In the attempt to help improve the teachers by addressing their professional and other needs in the training, the tool that is being used is more on informational/instructional rather than for strategy formation or participative learning. Scenario planning anticipates uncertainties, risk and future decision-making based on a present issue and need people with a wide range of perspectives while in project management the process is more on planning, assigning, implementation, and evaluation of the plan. There is only one direction to follow. Lastly, the faculty training project is implemented in a school setting. Scenario planning is used more in business applications where decision making on anticipating and managing risk is very important as it involves budget constraints. In a school and in this type of activity, project management planning technique applies best than scenario planning.
4. Here are some recommendations that I can suggest to the project manager, in this case, the school director: Agree on precise specification for the project by making an accurate description of the aims of the project. Involve the criteria and flexibilities, budgets, timescales, etc. It is essential to have a project specification as it creates a measurable accountability in assessing how the project is going on and how it rates towards success on completion. Plan the various stages and activities by working backwards from the end aim. From there, identify all the things that need to be done and to start this is to brainstorm ideas to gather issues and some important points so that these issues can be put in the right order while relationships and links are established between each of the issues. Plan some slippage on the timescale. Plan the activities earlier than usual and build some leeway into every phase of the project so that there is a good possibility that it will complete at the right time. In this case, the training must be completed at least a week before the start of classes. It is best to start the training early hence the need to plan it earlier. Planning should be done before the previous schoolyear ends as most of the teachers and staff are on vacation before the start of the training. Establish the team members as early as possible. Since the planning of the project or training needs to be started as early as possible, the team members and their leaders must know their assignment before they go on vacation so that they can prepare for the accomplishment of their tasks well. In the training, those who are assigned to take part in the training, e.g., speakers, coordinators, leader participants during the workshops, must know their assignments ahead of time.