Your 2026 planning to do list
As we inch toward the end of the year (how did that happen?), the collective pressure starts to rise because projects need wrapping, stakeholders want updates, and somewhere among the Christmas parties, EOY reports, and inbox avalanches - you know you’re supposed to be planning for 2026. Here’s the truth about what we don’t acknowledge enough:
You can’t plan well when you’re exhausted and you can’t set clear goals when you’re drowning. Plus, you definitely can’t create a team communication strategy from a place of chaos. So if you’ve been feeling stretched, overwhelmed, or like you’re just keeping your head above water, planning for a whole new year can feel impossible. Which is why the conditions you set to begin with, matter most.
So instead of diving straight into templates and tactics, let’s talk about the real starting point:
creating the conditions for good planning.
Step 1: Make planning a shared experience
A lot of communication leads end up carrying the weight of planning alone, but a plan built solo is a plan that’s hard to execute. Your team needs ownership, not just updates. When they’re a part of shaping the goals, they’re naturally more committed and aligned and they also bring intel you don’t have: what’s happening on the ground, what’s bubbling in other departments, and what opportunities you might be missing.
A collaborative planning process isn’t a “nice to have.” It’s an accelerant for execution.
Step 2: Break the bubble!
It’s incredibly easy to plan inside your organisational echo chamber, but the world of communication is evolving fast, and the best ideas rarely come from staying put.
So look outward before you look inward.
Follow industry thinkers and agencies
Check out trend reports and predictions (Gartner is a great starting point)
Head along to a networking event or two
Bring in an external facilitator if you can (we do this, too!)
Sometimes all you need is a new voice or a fresh perspective to unlock bold thinking again.
Step 3: Change the environment to change the energy
If you want meaningful planning, don’t do it between back-to-back meetings in a room with bad lighting. Shift the physical energy. Why do you think so many workshops happen off site? Take half a day, get off-site and go somewhere where the team can think expansively instead of reactively. Brunch workshop? Why not? In a year full of heavy lifting, adding a little joy to the process can spark better ideas than any PowerPoint ever could.
Step 4: Now, you can build the plan
Only after you’ve created space, refreshed your thinking, and brought the team together should you start crafting the actual plan. Here’s the structure to work through:
1. Align your team goals to the business goals
Where can communications genuinely move the needle?
What will success look like by December 2026?
How will you measure it?
2. Set your deliverables
What are you actually going to do?
Events? New feedback mechanisms? Improved channel mix?
Run each idea through this filter:
Is it aligned?
Is it feasible with our resources?
A simple 2×2 matrix saves a world of pain here.
3. Determine your enablers
What skills, tools, platforms, or processes do you need to make this real?
Do you need learning and development? Recruitment? A new content system?
Don’t skip this! Without enablers, deliverables stay theoretical.
4. Set your boundaries
A strong plan says what you will do, but a smart plan also says what you won’t. If your team wants to be seen as strategic advisors, it means letting go of the small, tactical tasks that keep you trapped in “order-taker” mode. You can redirect without saying “no”, but you do need to make the shift.
5. Recognition and reward
How will you capture wins, celebrate momentum, and share learnings?
What awards or speaking opportunities could raise the team’s profile?
Recognition isn’t fluff because it builds confidence, cohesion, and capability.
If you only do one thing before the year ends, let it be this:
Create the space that allows your 2026 plan to be intentional, not reactionary.
A clear, energising, achievable strategy doesn’t come from rushing, it comes from pausing long enough to think, collaborate, and reset.
