The end of Summer usually triggers planning for next year.  Strategy refresh, product refreshes, marketing and budgeting surface to the top of the list.  Norton Henry Holdings works with each of our companies to develop thoughtful plans to maximize growth and returns for the short- and long-terms.  

Here are our 10 principles to developing a great annual plan:

1. Set a North Star. 
What is your top priority for the year?  It can be more than one, but no more than three.  The North Star should tie directly to improvement in growth (e.g., Revenue, Profit) and / or returns (e.g., Profitability, Returns on Capital, Returns on Time).

2. Start with a blank page.
It's too easy to take last year's plan, update the text and numbers.  Rolling over last year's plan is not a plan at all.  Start with a blank page and re-cast your business.  This is the principle that informs principle #3.

3. Zero-based budgeting.
With a clear North Star and a blank page, budget the business (Revenue, Costs, Capital) starting from zero.  How would you allocate resources to achieve your North Star priorities?  Avoid being biased by the past.

4. Highlight differences.
Be explicit about what is different about the plan compared to last year.  The difference can be drawn in several ways.  How are choices and actions different versus competitors?  How are choices different versus last year?  How do processes need to change?

5.  Involve everyone.
Ultimately the entire team will be accountable to implement the strategy and deliver the budget.  To get buy-in and "skin in the game", be sure to involve everyone throughout the entire process of determining priorities, setting targets and making changes.

6. Make trade-offs.
It is impossible to do everything, or meet everyone's needs.  As a leader, be prepared to make trade-offs and say "no" to plans that do not align with the North Star priorities.  This is un-democratic, but practical due to limited resources.

7. Bring data not opinions.

Where this is disagreement about the way forward, bring data to inform the answer instead of opinions alone.  Ultimately, judgement may be required to resolve a disagreement related to the plan.  However, enrich the discussion with data and facts.

8. Cascade the plan into actions.

An impactful annual plan affects everyone on the team.  Starting with the priorities, the budget and then the actions underlying each line of the budget, make clear who owns the actions needed to make the plan a reality.

9. Make a Scorecard to measure progress.

No plan is complete without a system to measure the performance.  Develop a simple, transparent, and "admin light" scorecard to assess whether targets are being met on a monthly basis.  This will serve as everyone's dashboard while driving toward the North Star priorities. 

10.  Don't let the Earth's rotation limit planning.
The premise of this list is that the end of Summer is the start of turning sights to planning for next year.  However, planning shouldn't be dictated by the season.  Design into your schedule a regular discussion to review the plan and adapt (e.g., monthly, bi-monthly, quarterly)