Drawing on the expertise of J+D Forecasting, this article examines the Annual Operating Plan process: how to build one that holds up across a full planning cycle, and the pitfalls that undermine even well-intentioned processes.
The article covers:
- How anchoring the AOP to the Long Range Plan creates a single source of truth
- The importance of maintaining the right AOP-LBE relationship
- How to build assumptions that are specific, measurable, and tracked
- The three recurring mistakes made in AOPs and how to overcome them
- The role AI can play, and where forecasting judgment still has to be human
Also included: an expert Q&A with Amanda Randall, Senior Director, Implementation at J+D Forecasting, on cross-functional alignment, global-affiliate friction, and what it actually takes to sustain an assumption log.
