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Business Planning > Scenario for Managing Plans for Contacts

Scenario for Managing Plans for Contacts

This scenario gives one example of how Oracle CRM On Demand business planning functionality might be used. You might use Oracle CRM On Demand business planning functionality differently, depending on your business model.

In this scenario, an account manager is responsible for managing plans for contacts, independent of the contact's relationship to an account. For example, the contact is a key opinion leader, a consultant, or researcher whose influence goes beyond the associated accounts.

The account manager or industry liaison performs the following tasks to manage the plan for a contact:

1. The account manager creates a business plan for each contact, prior to the planning period. The plan establishes the high-level goals for the contact for the associated period. An annual plan and typically child quarterly plans are available, particularly for important contacts.

   Goal-related fields are likely to be qualitative targets rather than revenue targets. It is unlikely that any type of hierarchy exists, which is similar to the hierarchy of account plans that correspond to the overall account, operating units, and so on. For information on how to set up a business plan, see Business Plans.

2. In the approval process for the business plan, the account manager changes the status of the plan from Draft to Submitted. Other key personnel review and edit the plan. The account manager approves the plan, changing the status to Final Approved. At the end of the planning period, the account manager can change the status to Expired to reduce the number of active plans.
3. The account manager completes the objectives. Objectives are goals that are at a lower level in the plan. For example, an objective can be to deliver a certain number of academic presentations. The account manager can associate specific activities and opportunities with either a business plan or an objective. For information on how to set up an objective, see Objectives.
4. As opportunities arise (for example, an opportunity to deliver a lecture or fund research), the account manager enters the opportunities, associating them with either the plan or objective. For information on how to set up opportunities, see Opportunities.

While performing the planning activities, the account manager can do the following:

• View plans, objectives, opportunities, and activities that are explicitly associated with a contact and associated accounts.
• View any objectives that apply to all contacts.
• Review existing activities continuously, and create follow-up activities and opportunities.