Hockey Stick Budgeting

When you’re budgeting in October or November of 2009 for 2010, January looks so close it is difficult to see how you’re going to get from your current revenue run rate to your overall revenue growth for the following year. What managers usually try to sell to the leaders of the organization is that certain new efforts in 2010 will deliver an outcome that may start out flat (like the blade of a hockey stick), but spikes upward at the end of the year. They do this rather than looking at gradual growth throughout the year. When I see this type of planning whether as a business owner, board member, or executive coach, I become immediately skeptical of the plan. Are you planning for a Hockey Stick Year? When is the last time you actually saw it play out?