Consider the following statements about the limitations of planning:
(A) Sometimes plans take so much time to draw up that there is not much time left for their implementation.
(B) Checking the accuracy of facts may involve a lot of time, and this time is a part of the cost of planning.
(C) Planning reduces creativity because planning is usually done by the middle management.
(D) The incidental costs of planning include expenses on preliminary investigations to find out the viability of the plan.
(E) The incidental costs of planning include expenses on training workers to carry out the plan.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → (A), (B) and (D) only
(A) Sometimes plans take so much time to draw up that there is not much time left for their implementation. — Correct. This is the limitation planning is a time-consuming process.
(B) Checking the accuracy of facts may involve a lot of time, and this time is a part of the cost of planning. — Correct. Planning costs time and money, and checking facts uses up time.
(C) Planning reduces creativity because planning is usually done by the middle management. — Incorrect. Planning is an activity done by the top management. The rest, middle managers included, only carry out the plans.
(D) The incidental costs of planning include expenses on preliminary investigations to find out the viability of the plan. — Correct. Checking whether a plan can work is an incidental cost.
(E) The incidental costs of planning include expenses on training workers to carry out the plan. — Incorrect. Incidental costs arise while the plan is drawn up: meetings, expert advice and early checks. Training workers belongs to carrying out the plan.
NCERT (2026-27 Edition): “(iii) Planning reduces creativity: Planning is an activity which is done by the top management. Usually the rest of the members just implements these plans. As a consequence, middle management and other decision makers are neither allowed to deviate from plans nor are they permitted to act on their own. Thus, much of the initiative or creativity inherent in them also gets lost or reduced. Most of the time, employees do not even attempt to formulate plans. They only carry out orders. Thus, planning in a way reduces creativity since people tend to think along the same lines as others. There is nothing new or innovative.” “(iv) Planning involves huge costs: When plans are drawn up huge costs are involved in their formulation. These may be in terms of time and money for example, checking accuracy of facts may involve lot of time. Detailed plans require scientific calculations to ascertain facts and figures. The costs incurred sometimes may not justify the benefits derived from the plans. There are a number of incidental costs as well, like expenses on boardroom meetings, discussions with professional experts and preliminary investigations to find out the viability of the plan.” “(v) Planning is a time-consuming process: Sometimes plans to be drawn up take so much of time that there is not much time left for their implementation.” |