Annual planning for leadership teams
The annual plan that turns next year’s strategy into action
A good annual plan fits on a single page: a few clear choices, three to five priorities with owners and quarterly OKRs that show progress from the first month. Here is how leadership teams build one – step by step.
An annual plan in six steps
What you gain
What a strong annual plan gives your team
An annual plan is worth the effort when everyone can explain it in two minutes – and act on it the next day.
Clear choices
Where you compete next year, why customers choose you – and what you deliberately leave out.
A few priorities
Three to five critical priorities that get real attention, money and people.
One owner each
Every priority has a name next to it, so progress never waits for a committee.
Quarterly OKRs
The year broken into 90-day steps that show early whether the plan works.
The basics
What an annual plan is – and what it is for
An annual plan translates your strategy into the commitments of the next twelve months. It answers three questions: where do we focus, what must go right, and how will we know we are on track?
The budget says how much money goes where. The strategy says where you want to be in three to five years. The annual plan connects the two: it turns long-term direction into a short list of priorities, owners and measurable results for the year ahead.
The building blocks
What goes into an annual plan
Six elements make an annual plan complete. Each one builds on the one before.
Element 1
Where we stand
Key figures, customer signals and the initiatives already running – one shared fact base instead of six opinions.
Element 2
Portfolio split
How money, people and attention divide between today’s core, the next growth engine and future bets.
Element 3
Strategic choices
Which customers and markets get your focus next year, why you win there and what it takes.
Element 4
The critical few
Three to five priorities that must go right, each with an outcome and an owner.
Element 5
Not-now list
The projects you pause or stop to free capacity for the priorities that matter most.
Element 6
Quarterly OKRs
Objectives give direction, two to four Key Results each measure progress over the next 90 days.
Step by step
How to build your annual plan
Start about eight weeks before the new year. The heart of the process is a two-day annual planning workshop with the leadership team; the weeks around it make sure it starts with facts and ends in action.
8 weeks before
Prep session
One hour with the CEO: the strategic question, success criteria, decision rights.
6 weeks before
Pre-survey
Five questions to every leader, answered individually.
4 weeks before
Evidence pack
Ten pages of facts: figures, customers, running initiatives.
3 weeks before
Two-day workshop
Day 1 makes the choices, day 2 turns them into priorities and OKRs.
Before the year starts
Share and cascade
Leaders take the plan to their teams, including the not-now list.
Every quarter
Review and reset
Score the OKRs, learn, and set the next quarter.
Template
Your annual plan template on a single page
Copy this structure onto a flipchart or a slide. If a box takes more than a few lines, the plan is not yet focused enough.
Make it stick
Six habits of annual plans that work
Facts on the wall first
Shared numbers and customer evidence give the debate solid ground.
Write first, then talk
Everyone thinks on their own before the group discusses – every voice gets heard.
Decision rights up front
Agree who gives input and who decides before the first choice is on the table.
Five priorities at most
Fewer priorities mean more focus, more resources and faster progress for each one.
A not-now list
Pausing projects is what creates the capacity your priorities need.
Dates in the calendar
Fix every review before the workshop ends – the rhythm keeps the plan alive.
Two ways to get started
Run your annual planning yourself – or with facilitators
Do it yourself
The annual planning workshop playbook
The Strategy to Action Playbook gives you the complete two-day process on 36 pages: prep questions, agendas, twelve activities with templates and facilitator tips, and the 90-day follow-through.
Get the playbookDone with you
Hire a strategy to action workshop facilitator
Experienced strategy to action facilitators guide your leadership team through the two days, so every leader – including the CEO – can fully take part.
Hire a facilitatorFAQ
Questions about the annual plan
When should we start annual planning?
About eight weeks before the new year. That leaves time for preparation, a two-day workshop and sharing the plan before the first quarter begins.
How long does it take to build an annual plan?
The core work fits into two focused workshop days, plus a one-hour prep session and a short pre-survey beforehand.
What is the difference between an annual plan and a budget?
The budget allocates money. The annual plan sets the choices, priorities and results the money is meant to achieve – ideally, the budget follows the plan.
How do OKRs fit into an annual plan?
The annual plan sets three to five priorities for the year. OKRs break them into 90-day steps: the Objective gives direction, the Key Results measure progress.
Who should be involved?
The leadership team of six to ten people, including the person who makes the final call. Choices made by the people who carry them out stick.
Is there a template for an annual plan?
Yes – the single-page structure above. The annual planning workshop playbook adds a template for every step of the process.
Can someone facilitate our annual planning?
Yes. An external strategy to action workshop facilitator keeps time, focus and fairness, so the whole leadership team can take part in the decisions.
About the author
Joern Steinz (MBA)
Founder of SkillDay, a network of around six trainers. Joern has facilitated workshops since 2014 and supported companies with OKRs since 2019. Before that he worked at Accenture, XING and the freenet Group; he holds an MBA from EADA Business School Barcelona.
Teams we work with
SkillDay works with leadership teams at
Next step
Start your annual plan now
Use the playbook to run it yourself, or let experienced facilitators guide your leadership team through the two days.