Businesses are increasingly abandoning long-term strategic planning as economic uncertainty and rapid market shifts force leaders to make short-term decisions, according to new research.
A survey of 500 senior executives commissioned by Menzies LLP found that more than half (55%) of UK businesses do not maintain a regularly reviewed five-year strategy.
Instead, many firms are driven by immediacy rather than direction. Fifteen per cent of leaders admitted they rely primarily on reactive, short-term responses rather than structured planning, while 7 per cent said they were unsure when their organisation last held a formal strategy session.
The findings suggest a widening gap in corporate planning discipline, with only 38 per cent of companies regularly stress-testing their strategies through scenario modelling or “wargaming”.
Even fewer—just 32 per cent—said their strategies are routinely reviewed by external advisers such as investors, banks or non-executive directors, raising concerns about oversight and resilience.
Despite this, businesses appear to be aware of what they lack. Almost 40 per cent said cloud-based financial modelling tools would improve agility, while 36 per cent pointed to real-time forecasting systems. More than a third (35 per cent) said they need a clearer long-term vision or roadmap to guide day-to-day decisions.
The results highlight a growing tension in UK boardrooms: the demand for agility amid instability versus the strategic clarity traditionally associated with long-term growth planning.
Oliver Finch, Partner at Menzies, says: “The long-term plan isn’t dead – but the five-year spreadsheet that gets dusted off once a year certainly is.
“Today’s environment, many firms are drifting towards short-term planning because it feels more practical. But without a longer-term strategic lens, businesses risk driving in the rear-view mirror – losing direction, growth and the very agility they need to build in to be able to adapt today.
“What businesses need is a hybrid approach – a clear long-term vision paired with the discipline to review, stress-test and adapt it far more frequently than they do today.”
Finch added: “The firms that stall tend to be spending too much time looking backwards at data that’s already out of date.
“When you move to live, three-way forecasting and keep it refreshed – ideally over a two-to-five-year horizon – you start making decisions on the future rather than reacting to the past.
“A sharper short-term view, reviewed monthly or quarterly, gives you the flexibility to course-correct without losing sight of where you’re ultimately headed. Combine that with genuine external challenge from advisors, investors or non-executives, and you have the foundations of a hybrid plan that is both ambitious and adaptable.”
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