Overview
An annual work plan helps your board focus on the strategic and long-term priorities that drive the organisation forward.
By setting priorities in advance, boards can use meeting time more effectively, meet compliance obligations with confidence, and build strong governance practices.
This article explains how to create and manage an annual work plan in BoardPro.
Create an annual work plan
There are several ways to create an annual work plan in BoardPro. To get started, navigate to the annual work plan dashboard.
From the BoardPro dashboard, click Annual work plan in the left-hand navigation.
This screen shows all existing plans and where new plans can be created.
Create a blank plan
From the annual work plan dashboard, click Create blank plan or Add > Create blank plan.
BoardPro generates an empty annual work plan with three months' setup.
Click Write your item… to start adding items.
From here, you can:
Add fixed compliance deadlines
Schedule strategic deep-dive sessions
Space out policy reviews
Link meetings as you build the plan
Import an existing plan
You can import an existing annual work plan you’ve created elsewhere. This is useful if you’ve been using a spreadsheet or an existing template.
Supported file formats
CSV
Excel (.xls and .xlsx)
Google Sheets
Markdown tables
Docs (.docx)
Import your plan
From the annual work plan dashboard, click Import existing plan or Add > Import existing Plan.
Upload your file or drag and drop it into the modal.
BoardPro processes the file and adds it to your workspace. This can take up to one minute.
Review the timeline to ensure everything imported correctly.
Adjust dates or wording as needed.
You can then:
Click Write your item… to add new items
Use the Add icon (or Return on your keyboard) to add additional items
Use the drag and drop handle to delete items
Link groups of tasks to meetings
Note: BoardPro does not support colour-filled cells. If you use colour coding (for example, green cells to indicate timing), replace these with text before importing.
Use a best-practice template
BoardPro can automatically generate an annual work plan based on governance best practices.
From the annual work plan dashboard, click Add > Use template.
BoardPro creates a plan with pre-populated tasks across each month.
We recommend tailoring the generated plan:
Review the pre-populated tasks
Edit tasks that aren’t relevant using the three-dot menu and selecting Delete
Add your board’s strategic priorities or meeting dates using Add item
Edit your annual work plan
Once your plan is created, you can easily update it at any time.
Edit the plan name
You can rename a plan in two places.
From the annual work plan dashboard:
Click the three-dot menu next to the plan name.
Select Rename, update the name, then click Save.
From within the plan:
Click the plan name at the top of the page.
Edit the name and click outside the field to save.
Add, delete, and move items
To add an item, click Write your item… or Add item
To add another item, click the Add icon or press Return
To delete an item, use the drag and drop handle
To move an item, drag it within a month or into another month
Add, delete, and move months
To add a month, click Add month at the bottom of the plan
To delete a month, click the three-dot menu next to Link meeting and select Delete month
To move a month, drag it using the handle next to the month title
Link a meeting
Linking meetings connects high-level priorities to the detailed context of each meeting.
Open your annual work plan.
Click the link for the meeting next to a month.
Select a meeting from the list or use the search.
The linked meeting appears with a direct link and an attendee list.
Change a linked meeting
Click the three-dot menu next to the calendar icon.
Select Change meeting.
Choose a different meeting from the list.
Unlink a meeting
Click the three-dot menu next to the calendar icon.
Select Unlink meeting.
Important: A meeting can only be linked to one month at a time. Once unlinked, it becomes available to link elsewhere.