This article walks through how to create an Action Plan in 15Five. Action Plans are strategic tools that help leaders organize, assign, and measure the work they’re doing to improve key HR outcomes engagement, performance, and turnover. Once you use 15Five to diagnose areas to focus on, Action Plans help you move from insight to impact by outlining clear, accountable, and measurable steps.
In this article, you will learn...
- Entry Points for Creating Action Plans 📍
- How to Draft an Action Plan 📝
- What Happens Next? ➡️
- Related Articles 📖
- Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) ❓
Access and availability
⛔️ Required access to Engagement or the HR Outcomes Dashboard.
👥 This article is relevant to HR Admins, Account Admins, and Managers.
📦 This feature is available in the Engage and Total Platform pricing packages.
Entry Points for Creating Action Plans 📍
In 15Five, there are two ways to create an Action Plan:
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From scratch, based on your organization's unique insights, goals, and priorities
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With AI-generated recommendations surfaced by 15Five using data from the HR Outcomes Dashboard, Engagement campaign results, or Manager Effectiveness insights from Kona.
👉 This article focuses on how to create an Action Plan from scratch—ideal when you’ve used 15Five to diagnose where to focus and are ready to plan your next strategic move.
Tip
If you're interested in using AI-powered recommendations, head to the “Related Articles” section at the bottom of this article for direct links to how-to guides.
Where to Start an Action Plan in 15Five
You can create an Action Plan from scratch anywhere in 15Five where you see a "Draft Action Plan" button.
Here's where that option appears:
- Actions > Action Plans > Draft Action Plan
- Outcomes Dashboard > Draft Action Plan
- Outcomes Dashboard > Action Plans > Draft Action Plan
- [For customers on the Engage Plan] Surveys > Engagement > View results > Draft Action Plan
Note
Account Admins and HR Admins can create Action Plans from any of the locations listed above—including areas that offer AI-generated recommendations. Managers, however, can only create Action Plans by navigating to Actions > Action Plans.
How to Draft an Action Plan 📝
Once you click the "Draft Action Plan" button, a creation form will appear on the right side of your screen. Follow the steps below to build a targeted, measurable plan tailored to your organization’s needs.
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Select a Target Group. This is the group of people you intend to impact with the Action Plan. Click Select group(s) to refine the target group.
The following filters are available:- Groups: Target a specific group(s). Groups in this list are organized by Group Type.
- People: Target specific individuals. All employees in your organization's 15Five instance will appear in this list.
- Demographic Attributes: Target individuals who are assigned specific demographic attributes. Demographic attributes include Age, Ethnicity, Gender, Race, and Tenure. Learn how to enable and populate demographic attributes.
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Outcome Segments: Target individuals who fall within a specific performance level (top, mid, bottom, or unmeasured).
Note
To protect the confidentiality of engagement survey participants, it's not possible to target individuals who fall within specific engagement levels.
Note
Account Admins and HR Admins can target any cohort across the organization. Managers can only target their direct reports.
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Provide a name and description for your Action Plan. These fields will be visible to anyone with access to the HR Outcomes Dashboard and anyone who is assigned an action within the plan.
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Determine the outcome(s) you want to target. Select which outcomes the Action Plan is intended to impact: Engagement, Performance, and/or Turnover.
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Select the metrics you want to improve. Select the metrics you want to track in connection to the Action Plan. Once you launch your action, you'll have access to a dashboard containing selected metrics so you can easily measure progress. Learn more about available metrics →
- When you're done, click Draft Action Plan.
What Happens Next? ➡️
After clicking Draft Action Plan, you will be directed to the Action Plan's Overview page, where you can start adding actions. Actions are the specific tasks that drive the progress and success of the plan over time. For detailed steps on how to add actions, refer to our "Add actions to an Action Plan" article.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) ❓
Yes. To create an Action Plan that applies to your entire organization, use the People filter when selecting the targeted group, then choose Everyone.
This allows you to assign actions and track outcomes at a company-wide level—ideal for broad initiatives.
HR Admins, Account Admins, and Managers can create Action Plans. Managers can only create Action Plans that target their direct reports. HR Admins and Account admins have more flexibility, allowing them to create and oversee plans across all group types and groups, including plans that target the entire company.
15Five’s AI-generated Action Plan options help you take targeted action based on patterns in your people data. They appear in the following places: