Shank, J. K., Niblock, E. G., & Sandalls, W. T. Jr. (1973). Harvard Business Review.


Long-range planning often involves conflicts between creativity and practicality. It is important to maintain an equilibrium when making trade-offs between plans and budgets. Three questions influence this balance: how to link planning data and financial statements; how to integrate people responsible for planning and people responsible for budget; and how to determine the proper sequence of annual planning and budgeting cycles.