It is astonishing how quickly 2024 is coming to a close and now it’s time to prepare our businesses for 2025. There is a mind-opening planning exercise that P3 uses with our clients to determine what needs to change and also stay the same in the new year.  

The framework is “Start/Stop/Continue” whereby we identify things we should “start” doing, and those we should “stop” completely, and others that we need to “continue” because they are obviously working well for the organization.  

I find the Start/Stop/Continue planning approach a powerful tool that encourages reflection, prioritization, and alignment (all of which are necessary to develop a clear annual strategy).

Here are three key business areas to apply the Start/Stop/Continue framework to your 2025 plans…and specifically what that might look like for each:

1. Strategic Planning:

 

  • Start: Identify new initiatives, processes, or strategies to implement. For instance, implementing a new customer success framework, creating a new product offering, or introducing new KPIs.
  • Stop: Recognize ways that resources are being consumed without adding value, then eliminate that work (and the drain on your resources).
  • Continue: Build on what’s already working— solid predictive KPIs, cost savings initiatives, or customer retention strategies.

2. Operational Efficiency:

 

  • Start to identify where effort is aligned with result. The intention is to introduce or focus on initiatives that align with the annual business strategy and produce results!    
  • Stop spending too much time on inefficient tasks – eliminate them or determine if any of those tasks can be automated by leveraging AI.
  • Continue reviewing issues that require solving, so there’s a continual path towards optimizing workflows to better align with business goals. 

 

3. Leadership Development:

 

  • Start developing incremental leadership skills for managers – giving them new tools and training needed to lead initiatives and make strategic decisions that benefit the business.  
  • Stop spending time on unnecessary work that doesn’t support strategic goals. If an initiative is required yet it can be assigned elsewhere to free up leadership time, then delegate, delegate, delegate!
  • Continue fostering a strong company culture, leading by example, and communicating transparently.

 

With Start/Stop/Continue embedded into your planning and decision making for 2025, you’ll have a disciplined yet flexible approach that ensures your resources are focused on what really needs to change, and also stay the same, to drive the business forward.