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Planning In any planning system, from the simplest budgeting to the most complex corporate planning, there is an annual process. This is partly due to the fact that firms (19).......their accounting on a yearly (20)......., but also because similar (21)....... often occur in the market. Usually, the larger the firm, the longer the planning takes. But typically, planning for next year may start nine months or more in advance, with various stages of evaluation leading to (22)....... of the complete plan three months before the start of the year. Planning continues, however, throughout the year, since managers (23) ....... progress against targets, while looking forward to the next year. What is happening now will (24)....... the objectives and plans for the future. In todays business climate, as markets constantly change and become more difficult to (25)....... , some analysts believe that long-term planning is pointless. In some markets they may be right, as long as companies can build the sort of flexibility into their (26).......which allows them to (27).......to any sudden changes. Most firms, however, need to plan more than one year ahead in order to (28).......their long-term goals. This may reflect the time it takes to commission and build a new production plant, or, in marketing (29)....... , it may be a question of how long it takes to research and launch a range of new products, and reach a certain (30)....... in the market. If, for example, it is going to take five years for a particular airline to become the (31)....... choice amongst business travellers on certain routes, the airline must plan for the various (32)....... involved. | 
