Another misuse of financial resources in planning is in the decision-making process. In this case, it is in accordance with the term of “The tail cannot wag the dog”. A single staff section (finance—the tail) shouldn’t have control over the whole company (the dog) during the planning process. The financial people are simply advisers at the conference on money matters to the executive team. They don’t dictate, run the show, or call the shots for the whole executive team. If they do, then the financial staff is in control of your company, not the designated president. Listen to the advice of your financial advisers, but make your own decisions when it comes to the final plan.
In other side, you also should prevent the post-planning veto. Financial people have a habit of negating the complete planning process by publishing the budget. An executive team can spend days preparing a logical, thoughtful plan only to have it significantly altered by the finance section. How can that be allowed to happen? If your plan is altered after the fact, then you have failed as planners. It is not supposed to be that way, and shame on you if you let it happen. The solution is simple. The chief financial officer or vice president of finance should be sitting in the planning conference and working the numbers as the goals are developed. There should be no kickback after the fact. If there is default, then the president is not giving good initial guidance and mentoring to the vice president of finance.