# Create an action plan

> Go to Home → Plans → New plan, or select Create plan on a signal. Pick the signals behind it, name it, choose an owner and a due date, add the first tasks and select Create plan.

- Product: Action planning › Signals and plans
- Who can do this: Super admins, HR admins
- Plan: Action planning
- Where: Admin dashboard
- Last checked: 15 Oct 2026
- Web page: https://www.vantagecircle.com/en/help/action-planning/signals-and-plans/create-an-action-plan/

Go to **Home → Plans** and select **New plan**. Or, in **Home → Signals**, open a signal and select **Create plan**, and that signal is already picked for you. Nothing is saved until you select **Create plan** at the bottom.

## Before you start

- You can't change a plan's title, focus area or scope once it's created. Only the owner, due date and status can change later.
- Signals are optional. A plan about something no signal measures yet, such as pay, can start without any.

## Steps

1. **Evidence.** Pick one or more signals under **Signals**. The list shows signals that are **New**, meaning no plan uses them and nobody dismissed them. **What the data says** on the right shows the baseline and latest numbers for each signal you pick. The focus area, scope and title fill in from your signals until you change them yourself.
2. **Plan.** Fill in the plan's details. All five are required.
   - **Plan title**, up to 200 characters.
   - **Focus area**: one of nine areas, such as Pay & benefits or Manager & leadership. Select **Suggest with AI** for a suggestion based on your signals, then **Use it** if you agree. The suggestion says how sure it is, for example "AI suggests Growth & career (82% confident)."
   - **Scope**: **Whole company** or one department.
   - **Owner**: you, unless you search for someone else. A plan has one owner.
   - **Due date**: two months from today, unless you change it. It can't be in the past.

   Plans on Pay & benefits or Growth & career are marked **Long-term**, because one survey cycle won't fix them.

   ![The Plan section of New plan, with Plan title, Focus area, Scope set to Whole company, Owner and a Due date of 12/06/2026](https://cdn.vantagecircle.com/image/upload/q_auto,f_auto/v1792133343/vantagecircle/help-centre/en/action-planning/signals-and-plans/ap-new-plan-details-18dfc805c2a151ac.png)

3. **Tasks.** Enter a task in **New task**, then select **Add task** or press Enter. For ideas, select **Suggest tasks with AI**. You'll get up to three ideas, each with two to four steps, and nothing is added until you choose. Select **Add** next to an idea, or **Add all**. These tasks start with the plan's owner and due date. You can change both on the task board.
4. Select **Create plan**. If something's missing, the field says so and the page moves to it.

A task you typed but didn't add is still saved with the plan.

## About the AI suggestions

**Suggest with AI** and **Suggest tasks with AI** stay greyed out until you pick at least one signal. They use the picked signals' headlines and numbers. No employee names or answers are sent. If AI can't answer, a message appears under the button. Carry on without it.

## What happens next

The page says **Plan created** and opens the new plan, with its status set to **In progress**. On the Signals page, the signals you picked now show as **In a plan**.

The signals' numbers are saved on the plan as they are today, marked **Saved evidence**. Later updates to the signals don't change them. The owner isn't sent an email or notification.

To leave without saving, select **Cancel** or the back arrow. You'll be asked first, because "Your plan has not been created yet."

## If something goes wrong

**"Plan not created"**
The reason is shown with it. Check the form and select **Create plan** again.

**"There are no open signals right now."**
Every signal is already in a plan or dismissed. You can still create the plan and add signals later from the plan's page, or use **Add to plan** on the Signals page.