A plan is not a series of targets that need to be achieved. A plan puts the activity and targets into a chronological context.

Performance targets should be phased across the year to allow clear tracking of progress towards the annual target. Flat phasing – dividing the annual target by 12 to get monthly targets – is not very sophisticated and does not take account of the changes you plan for the year. Neither will it take account of the natural changes that occur during the year and can lead to challenges towards the end of the year to achieve annual targets.

Being clever about what will be achieved by when can lead to achieving results with less stress and more success. If there is a plan to grow items, the base business might be flat phased across the year with the targeted increased phased over a six-month period. This could be after the installation of a new PRM system that is planned to support this target.

Similarly, you may have a target to undertake 400 MURs, but you know that between August and October you will do fewer MURs because of holidays and your flu vaccination service and December is always difficult for MURs. Setting yourself a lower target for these months and increasing the target for the remaining months will avoid you getting to the New Year with a mountain to climb.

Implementation targets should also be phased. Some activities will naturally follow others. Planning projects throughout the year will ensure enough resource to achieve them.