So just how does Santa manage to deliver all his presents by Christmas Eve? Well, the answer lies in his planning. Here’s how Santa plans his Christmas run:
He follows a solid planning process
A few years ago, Santa was in a real slump. The effects of global warming affected his regular delivery route, and fluctuations in the global currency market drove the cost of running his toy factory through the roof. Suddenly, there was no budget in place to cover the costs of wrapping paper, the maintenance of machinery, and more. To save Christmas, Santa needed to update his planning processes, and fast.
For most companies, the foundations of a solid financial plan include an Income Statement, Cash Flow Statement, and Balance Sheet. But proper planning also involves feeding these foundational plans into sub-plans for all the operations of your business.
For Santa and North Pole Inc., for example, this included creating new plans to oversee:
- Administration: Creating naughty and nice lists, tracking Christmas wishes, and updating addresses and other client info.
- Toy manufacture: Ordering parts, assembly, and testing.
- Packaging: Present wrapping, storage, and loading into the sleigh on December 24th.
- Shipping: Updating delivery routes, feeding and caring for the reindeer, and sleigh maintenance.
He sets clear KPIs for his entire team
Santa might seem like a one-man-band, but don’t forget that he wouldn’t exist without the support of his reindeer, elves and Mrs. Claus. So, how does North Pole Inc. continue to function smoothly with so many moving pieces? With proper performance management, of course.
Santa’s operations are all supported by a clear KPI model that tracks the performance of every member of North Pole Inc. from the administrative elves right down to Santa himself. After putting together his foundational and operational plans, Santa identified the key metrics to monitor the performance of everyone on his team.
He plans for the worst
2 years ago, Santa hit a slump and Christmas Eve was almost ruined. Luckily, he learned from his mistakes. Today, Santa uses Apliqo’s sophisticated FPM solutions to recreate worst-case scenarios ahead of time, analyze how they affect his operations, and create action plans to overcome these potential downturns.
And finally…
He always leaves time for milk and cookies
If there’s one thing that helps Santa stay on track, it’s some solid downtime. This Christmas, remind yourself and your entire team to spend quality time with friends and family and unwind before diving into the year to come.
Come January, remember to review your planning processes and reach out to the team at Apliqo to see how we can help you best run your business.
Merry Christmas!
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