Why Budgeting Fails

2004 reprint from Harvard Business School – “When Jack Welch described the budgeting process as the “bane of corporate America,” he was articulating the frustration of many senior executives and academics who recognize that this annual exercise is rarely justified in today’s fast-changing, highly competitive environment…”

180 View – This older article still applies today. The article describes problems with the budgetinig process and suggests ways to improve it.

Why Budgeting Fails

2004 from Harvard Business School – “When Jack Welch described the budgeting process as the “bane of corporate America”, he was articulating the frustration of many senior executives and academics who recognize that this annual exercise is rarely justified in today's fast changing, highly competitive environment. We couldn't agree more. In fact, we believe that if budgeting is to have any value at all it needs a radical overhaul. In today's dynamic marketplace, budgeting can no longer serve as a company's only management system; it must integrate with and support dedicated strategy management systems, process improvement systems and the like.”

180 View – This paper is old but not dated. The article described the problems with budgeting:

• It's inefficient
• It rapidly becomes obsolete
• It doesn't motivate the right behaviours
• It's out of sync with the strategic plan

And what to do about it.