How does forecasting relate to planning?
Forecasting is concerned with what the future will look like, while planning is concerned with what it should look like. One would usually start by planning. The planning process produces a plan that is, along with information about the environment, an input to the forecasting process. If the organization does not like the forecasts generated by the forecasting process, it can generate other plans until a plan is found that leads to forecasts of acceptable outcomes. Of course, many organizations take a shortcut and merely change the forecast. (This is analogous to a family deciding to change the weather forecast so they can go on a picnic). For more on the roles of planning and forecasting, see “Strategic Planning and Forecasting Fundamentals” (PDF).
