Planning on turning your vision into reality? And what’s your best way to avoid challenges and problems during this journey? A solid action plan.
We have outlined 6 steps explaining how to write an action plan. Once you familiarize yourself with them, go ahead and use the editable templates below to start planning right away.
What is an Action Plan?
An action plan is a specific list of tasks in order to achieve a particular goal. It can be regarded as a proposed strategy to execute a specific project to achieve a specific or general goal effectively and efficiently. It outlines steps to take and helps stay focused and organized, whether it’s personal or work-related. Breaking down the goal into smaller, manageable steps, makes it easier to stay motivated and track progress.
It’s an essential part of the strategic planning process and helps with improving teamwork planning Not only in project management, but action plans can be used by individuals to prepare a strategy to achieve their own personal goals as well.
What Are the Components of an Action Plan
By including these components, your action plan can guide you effectively toward achieving your goals.
Goals and objectives: Clearly define what you want to achieve. Make sure your goals are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART).
Tasks: Break down the goals into smaller, manageable tasks or steps that need to be completed.
Timeline: Set deadlines for each task. A timeline helps keep everyone on track and ensures timely progress.
Responsibilities: Assign specific tasks to individuals or teams. Clearly define who is responsible for each task.
Resources: Identify the resources needed to complete the tasks, such as budget, tools, and personnel.
Evaluation: Determine how you will measure progress and success. This can include regular check-ins and progress reports.
Adjustments: Be prepared to make changes to the plan as needed. Sometimes, things don’t go as expected, so flexibility is essential.
An action plan is not something set in stone. As your organization grows, and surrounding circumstances change, you will have to revisit and make adjustments to meet the latest needs.
Why You Need an Action Plan?
Sometimes businesses don’t spend much time on developing an action plan before an initiative, which, in most cases, leads to failure. If you haven’t heard, “failing to plan is planning to fail” said Benjamin Franklin supposedly once.
Planning helps you prepare for the obstacles ahead and keep you on track. And with an effective action plan, you can boost your productivity and keep yourself focused.
Here are some benefits of an action plan you should know;
- It gives you a clear direction. As an action plan highlights exactly what steps to be taken and when they should be completed, you will know exactly what you need to do.
- Having your goals written down and planned out in steps will give you a reason to stay motivated and committed throughout the project.
- With an action plan, you can track your progress toward your goal.
- Since you are listing down all the steps you need to complete in your action plan, it will help you prioritize your tasks based on effort and impact.
How to Write an Action Plan?
From the looks of it, creating an action plan seems fairly easy. But there are several important steps you need to follow with caution in order to get the best out of it. Here’s how to write an action plan explained in 6 easy steps.
Step 1: Define your end goal
If you are not clear about what you want to do and what you want to achieve, you are setting yourself up for failure.
Planning a new initiative? Start by defining where you are and where you want to be.
Solving a problem? Analyze the situation and explore possible solutions before prioritizing them.
Gather your team for a brainstorming session to explore possible goals or solutions. Encourage everyone to share their ideas freely to help shape a clear and focused goal. This collective input will ensure that the goal is well-rounded and reflects diverse perspectives.
Then write down your goal. And before you move on to the next step, run your goal through the SMART criteria. Or in other words, make sure that it is
- Specific – well-defined and clear
- Measurable – include measurable indicators to track progress
- Attainable – realistic and achievable within the resources, time, money, experience, etc. you have
- Relevant – align with your other goals
- Timely – has a finishing date
Use this SMART goals template to simplify this process. Share it with others to get their input as well.
And refer to our easy guide to the goal-setting process to learn more about setting and planning your goals.
Step 2: List down the steps to be followed
The goal is clear. What exactly should you do to realize it?
Conduct a brainstorming session with your team to list all the tasks required. Create a rough template to list down all the tasks to be performed, due dates and people responsible. This allows team members to contribute ideas about potential steps that may be overlooked. Collaboration ensures that every necessary task is identified and accounted for.
Create a rough template to list down all the tasks to be performed, due dates and people responsible.
It’s important that you make sure that the entire team is involved in this process and has access to the document. This way everyone will be aware of their roles and responsibilities in the project.
Make sure that each task is clearly defined and is attainable. If you come across larger and more complex tasks, break them down to smaller ones that are easier to execute and manage.
Tips: Use a RACI Matrix template to clarify project roles and responsibilities, and plan projects
Step 3: Prioritize tasks and add deadlines
It’s time to reorganize the list by prioritizing the tasks. Some steps, you may need to prioritize as they can be blocking other sub-steps.
Add deadlines, and make sure that they are realistic. Consult with the person responsible for carrying it out to understand his or her capacity before deciding on deadlines.
Step 4: Set milestones
Milestones can be considered mini goals leading up to the main goal at the end. The advantage of adding milestones is that they give the team members to look forward to something and help them stay motivated even though the final due date is far away.
Start from the end goal and work your way back as you set milestones. Remember not to keep too little or too much time in between the milestone you set. It’s a best practice to space milestones two weeks apart.
Step 5: Identify the resources needed
Before you start your project, it’s crucial to ensure that you have all the necessary resources at hand to complete the tasks. And if they are not currently available, you need to first make a plan to acquire them.
This should also include your budget. You can assign a column of your action plan to mark the cost of each task if there are any.
Step 6: Visualize your action plan
The point of this step is to create something that everyone can understand at a glance and that can be shared with everyone.
Whether your action plan comes in the shape of a lowchart, Gantt chart, or table, make sure that it clearly communicates the elements we have identified so far – tasks, task owners, deadlines, resources, etc.
This document should be easily accessible to everyone and should be editable.
Step 7: Monitor, evaluate and update
Allocate some time to evaluate the progress you’ve made with your team.
You can mark tasks that are completed as done on this final action plan, bringing attention to how you’ve progressed toward the goal.
This will also bring out the tasks that are pending or delayed, in which case you need to figure out why and find suitable solutions. And then update the action plan accordingly.
How to Implement Your Action Plan Successfully
To successfully implement your action plan, share it clearly, set deadlines, provide resources, and keep track of progress. Stay flexible, encourage teamwork, and learn from the process. Tools like Creately can help by providing templates and visual tools and a centralized workspace to keep the plan organized and easy to access.
1. Share the plan
Once the action plan is ready, make sure every team member knows about it. Explain what the goal is and how each person’s role fits into the bigger picture. It’s important that everyone understands their tasks and how their work contributes to the success of the plan. Sharing the plan clearly helps avoid confusion and keeps everyone on the same page.
2. Set clear deadlines
Every task should have a deadline to make sure things stay on track. Assign specific dates for when each task should be finished. It’s also helpful to set smaller milestones along the way for bigger projects so that progress is visible. This keeps the team motivated and ensures that everyone knows when their part is due.
3. Use Kanban boards to manage tasks
Kanban boards are a great way to visualize and organize tasks. You can see which tasks are pending, in progress, or completed, making it easier to manage the workflow. Creately offers templates for Kanban boards, helping teams keep tasks organized and track progress visually. This makes it simple to stay on top of all the moving parts in the action plan.
4. Use or create templates
Templates are useful for standardizing recurring tasks. Whether you are creating a new action plan or organizing tasks for a specific project, templates can save time and make sure nothing important is missed. Creately offers a wide range of templates that can help you set up your action plan efficiently and consistently.
5. Set up real-time alerts and assign dependencies
Real-time alerts keep everyone informed about important updates, like deadlines or changes in the plan. Assigning task dependencies helps team members understand how their work connects with others. For example, one task might need to be completed before another can start. Creately can help visualize these dependencies, assign responsibilities and deadlines, making it easy to see how tasks are linked, ensuring everyone knows when their part is due.
6. Mark tasks as completed
As tasks are completed, mark them off the list. This creates a sense of achievement and helps the team track their progress. It’s also a useful way to see how much work is left to do.
7. Address late or pending tasks
If any tasks are running late or still pending, discuss them openly with the team. It’s important to identify the reasons for delays and find solutions together. Regular check-ins and updates help ensure that issues are addressed before they become bigger problems. Open communication also builds trust and keeps the team aligned on how to get back on track.
8. Review and reflect
After the plan is fully implemented, review how it went. Did everything go according to plan? What worked well, and what could have been better? Ask for feedback from the team to gather different perspectives. Reviewing helps you learn from the process and improve future action plans.
Action Plan Templates
Business action plan
You may like to read: The Easy Guide to Making a Business Plan for Presentations
Marketing action plan
Strategic action plan
Corrective action plan template
Simple action plan template
Action Plan vs. Plan B vs. Project Plan vs. To-Do List
While all these tools help with planning and organization, they serve different purposes. An action plan focuses on achieving specific goals, a plan B is a backup for when things go wrong, a project plan manages an entire project, and a to-do list keeps track of daily tasks.
| Aspect | Description | Key Features |
|---|---|---|
| Action plan | A strategic document outlining steps to achieve specific goals. | Goals: Clearly defined objectives Tasks: Specific actions needed Responsibilities: Designation of who does what Timelines: Deadlines for tasks Resources: Needed resources Evaluation measures: Criteria to measure progress |
| Plan B | A backup strategy to implement if the initial plan fails or encounters obstacles. | Flexibility: Provides alternative options Risk management: Prepares for challenges Contingency actions: Defined actions for unexpected situations |
| Project plan | A comprehensive document that guides a project from initiation to completion. | Objectives: Clear project goals Scope: Description of what’s included Timeline: Schedule of milestones Tasks: Breakdown of activities Resources: Required resources Risk management: Strategies for potential risks Stakeholders: Identification of involved individuals or groups |
| To-do list | A simple tool to organize tasks for daily or short-term activities. | Simplicity: Straightforward task list Flexibility: Easy to add/remove tasks Prioritization: Order tasks by importance or urgency |
Different Types of Action Plans
Action plans can vary based on their purpose, scope, and the specific outcomes they aim to achieve. Here are different types of action plans, explained in simple terms:
1. Strategic action plan
A strategic action plan outlines the long-term goals of an organization and the steps needed to achieve them. It usually focuses on overall direction rather than day-to-day operations.
Key features
- Focus: Big-picture goals, such as expanding into new markets or improving customer satisfaction.
- Timeframe: Typically covers a longer period, like one to five years.
- Components: Goals, objectives, major initiatives, and performance indicators.
2. Operational action plan
An operational action plan is more focused on the day-to-day activities of an organization. It outlines specific tasks and processes required to achieve short-term goals.
Key features
- Focus: Daily operations and immediate goals, such as meeting quarterly sales targets or improving customer service response times.
- Timeframe: Usually covers a shorter period, like a few months to a year.
- Components: Specific tasks, assigned responsibilities, deadlines, and required resources.
3. Marketing action plan
A marketing action plan outlines the steps needed to achieve specific marketing objectives. It provides a clear roadmap for the marketing team to follow and ensures that all efforts are aligned with the broader business goals.
Key features
- Focus: Marketing strategies, campaigns, and tactics to reach target audiences and achieve business objectives.
- Timeframe: Often linked to specific campaign timelines, product launches, or quarterly/yearly goals.
- Components: Marketing goals, target audience, strategies, tasks, assigned responsibilities, deadlines, and key performance indicators (KPIs).
4. Project action plan
A project action plan is created for specific projects, detailing the steps needed to complete them successfully. This type of plan is often temporary and specific to a single initiative.
Key features
- Focus: Specific projects with defined objectives, such as launching a new website or organizing an event.
- Timeframe: Varies depending on the project, from weeks to several months.
- Components: Project goals, tasks, timelines, team members, and evaluation measures.
5. Personal action plan
A personal action plan is designed for individual goals, helping a person outline steps to achieve personal or professional objectives. This can include career development, health, or education goals.
Key features
- Focus: Individual aspirations, such as advancing in a career or improving fitness levels.
- Timeframe: Can be short-term (weeks) or long-term (years), depending on the goal.
- Components: Specific actions, deadlines, resources needed, and methods for tracking progress.
6. Business action plan
A business action plan outlines the specific steps and strategies that a company will take to achieve its goals and objectives. It serves as a roadmap for business initiatives, ensuring that resources are effectively allocated and actions are coordinated across the organization.
Key features
- Focus: Business goals and strategic initiatives.
- Timeframe: Typically covers a specific period, such as quarterly or annually, with milestones for progress tracking.
- Components: Business objectives, key performance indicators (KPIs), assigned responsibilities, action steps, timelines, and resource allocation.
7. Contingency action plan
A contingency action plan outlines steps to take in case of unexpected events or emergencies. It helps organizations prepare for risks and uncertainties.
Key features
- Focus: Risk management and response strategies for potential problems.
- Timeframe: Ongoing, as it needs to be updated regularly based on new risks.
- Components: Identified risks, response actions, responsibilities, and communication plans.
8. Change action plan
A change action plan is created when an organization undergoes significant changes, such as restructuring, implementing new technologies, or altering policies.
Key features:
- Focus: Managing the transition effectively and minimizing disruptions.
- Timeframe: Varies based on the scale of the change, often several months.
- Components: Objectives for change, steps to implement, stakeholder communication, and training needs.
9. Corrective action plan
A corrective action plan is developed to address specific problems or deficiencies within an organization. It outlines steps to correct issues and prevent them from happening again.
Key features
- Focus: Identifying and resolving problems, such as quality issues or compliance failures.
- Timeframe: Varies depending on the severity of the issue, including both immediate and long-term actions.
- Components: Problem description, root cause analysis, corrective actions, assigned responsibilities, timelines, and monitoring measures.
10. Emergency action plan
An emergency action plan outlines the procedures to follow during various emergency situations to ensure the safety of individuals and minimize damage. It provides a clear response strategy for emergencies such as fires, natural disasters, or medical incidents.
Key features
- Focus: Immediate response to emergencies, ensuring safety and effective communication.
- Timeframe: Designed for use during emergencies, with regular updates and drills to maintain readiness.
- Components: Emergency procedures, designated roles, communication plans, evacuation routes, and contact information for emergency services.
Learn more about: Corrective Action Plan template.
Additional resources: The Easy Guide to Creating a Business Contingency Plan
Who Should Make Action Plans?
Action plans can be developed by various individuals or groups within an organization, depending on the context and the type of plan being created. Here are some key stakeholders who typically make action plans:
Management: Management teams, including executives and department heads, often create strategic and operational action plans to align organizational goals with operational activities.
Project managers: Project managers are responsible for developing project action plans to guide specific initiatives, ensuring that all tasks are coordinated and completed on time.
Team leaders: Team leaders or supervisors create team action plans to define goals and responsibilities for their team members, fostering collaboration and accountability.
Individuals: Individuals can create personal action plans for their professional or personal development, outlining specific steps they want to take to achieve their goals.
Quality assurance teams: Quality assurance teams may develop corrective action plans in response to identified issues, focusing on resolving deficiencies and preventing future occurrences.
Safety officers: Safety officers are typically responsible for creating emergency action plans to ensure preparedness for potential emergencies, outlining procedures for protecting personnel and property.
Cross-functional teams: Cross-functional teams may collaborate to develop action plans for organizational changes or major projects, leveraging diverse perspectives and expertise.
When to Develop an Action Plan?
You should develop an action plan whenever you have specific goals, need to address problems, or implement changes. They provide a clear guide to keep everyone on track and accountable.
Setting new goals: Create an action plan when you have new goals to achieve. It helps outline the steps needed to reach those goals.
Launching projects: Before starting a new project, develop an action plan to define tasks, timelines, and who is responsible for what.
Addressing problems: If issues come up, such as quality problems or inefficiencies, create an action plan to identify solutions and outline steps to fix the problems.
Implementing changes: When you plan to make changes in the organization, like restructuring or adopting new processes, an action plan helps manage the transition smoothly.
Preparing for emergencies: Develop an emergency action plan to ensure you are ready for potential emergencies, outlining clear steps to follow during a crisis.
Evaluating performance: After reviewing how well you’ve met your goals, create an action plan to address any shortcomings and outline ways to improve.
Improving collaboration: When multiple teams need to work together, an action plan helps coordinate efforts and clarify each team’s responsibilities.
Action Plan Best Practices
Follow these best practices to make your action plans more effective. They provide a clear path to achieving your goals while keeping everyone involved and accountable.
Be specific: Clearly define your goals and actions. Vague plans can lead to confusion, so detail what you want to achieve and how you will do it.
Set realistic timelines: Establish achievable deadlines for each task. Make sure your timelines are realistic to avoid frustration and keep everyone motivated.
Assign responsibilities: Clearly assign tasks to specific individuals or teams. This ensures accountability and helps everyone understand their role in the plan.
Prioritize tasks: Identify which tasks are most important and need to be done first. Prioritizing helps you focus on what will make the biggest impact.
Use measurable outcomes: Include ways to measure progress. This could be through key performance indicators (KPIs) or specific milestones that show how close you are to achieving your goals.
Communicate regularly: Keep everyone informed about progress and any changes to the plan. Regular communication helps maintain motivation and keeps the team aligned.
Be flexible: Be prepared to adjust your action plan as needed. If you encounter unexpected challenges or changes, adapting your plan will help you stay on track.
Review and reflect: Regularly review the action plan to see what is working and what isn’t. Reflecting on the process allows you to learn and improve future action plans.
Any More Tips on Creating an Action Plan?
An action plan is designed to guide your way to accomplishing your goals. It turns your vision into actionable goals and steps. And it helps you stay focused and motivated.
From an individual employee in an organization to larger departments can make use of action plans to steer their way towards completing their goals.
Maybe you are about to create your very first action plan, or you are already a pro at writing them. Either way, we’d like to hear your opinions on how to write an action plan. Do share them with us in the comments section below.
FAQs About Action Plan
What are the common mistakes to avoid when collaborating on creating an action plan?
Lack of clarity on goals: Make sure the team understands the goals and objectives of the action plan. The goals should be specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART).
Unclear responsibilities: Assign clear roles and responsibilities for each team member to avoid confusion and ensure accountability.
Overcomplicating the plan: Keep the action plan simple and easy to understand. Avoid adding unnecessary complexity or detail that may confuse the team.
Failure to prioritize tasks: Prioritize tasks based on their importance and urgency. This will ensure that the team focuses on the most critical tasks first.
Inadequate resources: Ensure that the team has access to the necessary resources such as time, budget, and equipment, to carry out the action plan successfully.
Lack of communication: Effective communication is crucial to the success of any action plan. Ensure that team members are regularly updated on progress and any changes to the plan.
Failure to monitor progress: Regularly monitor progress and adjust the action plan as needed to ensure that it stays on track and achieves its goals.
What are the different types of action plans?
Strategic action plan: This type of plan outlines the long-term goals and objectives of an organization, and the actions that will be taken to achieve them. It typically covers a period of several years and includes high-level strategies and initiatives.
Operational action plan: This plan focuses on the day-to-day operations of an organization, outlining the actions that will be taken to achieve short-term goals and objectives. It typically covers a period of one year or less and includes specific actions and timelines.
Project action plan: This type of plan is used for individual projects and outlines the actions that will be taken to achieve specific project goals and objectives. It includes a detailed breakdown of tasks, timelines, and responsibilities.
Sales action plan: This plan focuses on the actions that will be taken to increase sales and revenue. It includes specific strategies for marketing, sales, and customer service.
Marketing action plan: This plan outlines the actions that will be taken to promote a product or service and increase brand awareness. It includes strategies for advertising, social media, public relations, and other marketing initiatives.
Crisis management action plan: This type of plan outlines the actions that will be taken in the event of a crisis, such as a natural disaster or security breach. It includes specific protocols for communication, evacuation, and other emergency procedures.
Who can use an action plan?
An action plan can be used by anyone who wants to achieve specific goals or objectives. It is a useful tool for individuals, teams, and organizations in a variety of contexts. Here are some examples:
Individuals: An individual can use an action plan to achieve personal goals such as losing weight, completing a degree, or starting a business.
Teams: A team can use an action plan to achieve goals related to a specific project or initiative. For example, a marketing team may use an action plan to launch a new product.
Small businesses: Small businesses can use an action plan to achieve goals related to sales, marketing, operations, or finance.
Non-profit organizations: Non-profit organizations can use an action plan to achieve goals related to fundraising, volunteer recruitment, or program implementation.
Government agencies: Government agencies can use an action plan to achieve goals related to policy implementation, disaster response, or public safety.
Educational institutions: Educational institutions can use an action plan to achieve goals related to improving student outcomes, increasing enrollment, or expanding programs.
