Strategic planning for remote tax operations can be difficult. Not having your team in the same room increases the complexity of the planning process.

Fortunately, you can use technology and follow best practices to implement remote strategic planning meetings. These tips can help.

Follow these guidelines for strategic planning for remote tax operations.

Prepare for Your Remote Strategic Planning Meeting

Set goals for your strategic planning meeting. Clarify what you want to discuss and accomplish.

Create an agenda that aligns with your goals. Include time to review last year’s tax information, identify areas for improvement, and create actionable goals for the current year. Ensure each agenda item directly contributes to attaining the meeting goal.

Send the agenda to meeting participants several days in advance. Provide adequate time to review the agenda and prepare to contribute.

Choose Communication and Collaboration Tools

Select a visual work platform such as ClickUp and a videoconferencing tool such as Microsoft Teams to support participant engagement. Include features such as chat functions, online whiteboards, and polling to encourage idea-sharing and interaction throughout the strategic planning meeting.

Use a file-sharing platform such as Google Docs to share documents, research, reports, insights, and data. Organize the information into folders by topic, date, or relevance. Also, use clear labeling and structuring so participants can easily access and navigate the information.

Schedule Short Strategic Planning Meetings

Holding short strategic planning sessions helps participants maintain focus. Breaking up the sessions by topic encourages participants to contribute ideas and engage in discussions.

Schedule short, regular breaks between and throughout sessions and a long break for lunch. Frequent breaks let participants stretch, relax, and recharge. Participants can come back ready to engage and be productive.

Review the Action Items

Verbally review the action items at the end of your remote strategic planning meeting. Include who is responsible for each item and the deadline. Participants should understand the goals they are working toward, their role, and the action items they are accountable for.

Document and add each action item to your shared folder. Or, use a collaborative task management tool such as Asana to list the action items, assign responsibilities, and set deadlines. Participants can review and update the information and use it to track their progress in attaining company goals.

Schedule Follow-Up Strategic Planning Meetings

Checking in during follow-up meetings lets your team review achievements, address obstacles, and overcome challenges in reaching company goals. Then, your team can make adjustments to ensure the strategic plans align with company goals and course corrections support goal attainment.

Follow-up meetings could involve conversations about progress, implementation, or similar strategic planning topics. For instance, one meeting might focus on reviewing the status of action items. Another meeting might focus on executing specific strategies detailed in the initial plan.

Do You Need to Hire Tax Professionals?

Unity has a vast, deep network of experienced tax experts who can help your Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston, or Austin area company with strategic planning. Contact us to start filling your unique staffing needs today.