How Plan's Work

What are plans? How do they Work? Plans are the framework that control and guide development and growth. Plans give direction and formulate strategies to meet the potential of any given community’s needs. In Lewis D. Hopkins article The Logic of Making Plans, the structure behind a plan and the assessment of a plans success is evaluated as well as the plans relationship with regulations. Plans have 5 different mechanisms that shape its purpose and structure. All plans strive to have the follow mechanisms however it must be noted that not all plans contain each of the following factors:

1)      Agenda - a tool that helps focus the attention on what the task is at hand.

2)      Policy - a consistent decision making process.

3)      Visions - an image of what the final outcome should be.

4)       Designs -  a specific final outcome of a particular project

5)       Strategies - a decision process that chooses which desired path of planning to choose for the present and the future.

Regulations are also a major aspect of a plan as they are legal provisions that implement the desired intention of a plan. For example zoning regulations can prevent industrial buildings being constructed in certain areas which would be a factor in a city’s overall plan and therefore part of how plans work.

A plans success is often extremely hard to measure as differing people benefit from the plans aims in different ways. However there is a general formula of measuring a plans overall success.  The effect is one method which is measured by analysing if the intended outcomes were achieved.  The net benefit is another method which is hard to distinguish but is positive if the estimated benefits of the plan out way the costs. Then there is internal and external validity which consider one if the plan fulfilled the logic of how it was meant to work and two did the plan benefit those who need help e.g. bridge the gap between poverty and create equity. In all, plans follow and attempt to incorporate 5 basic principles that determine its focus for bettering communities. This focus can than although sometimes difficult be measured using the 4 principals mentioned above which can classify the success of a plan.