Re-energizing your Anaplan Center of Excellence: A new era of value and innovation
<em>Author: Stacey Borne is a Certified Master Anaplanner, former Anaplan Center of Excellence Leader, and runs the Certified Master Anaplanner Program and Anaplan Center of Excellence Programs at Anaplan. </em>
Picture this: Your Anaplan ecosystem is functioning smoothly, but despite the existence of value-add opportunities to expand Anaplan to solve additional business challenges, innovation has slowed, user engagement is declining, and leadership has started to question the ROI of the platform. Adoption challenges exist and stakeholder engagement has slowed. Sound familiar? You're not alone. Many Anaplan Centers of Excellence hit this plateau, where momentum stalls and the original spark that drove platform excitement starts to fade. But this isn't the end of the road — it's a pivotal opportunity. With a refreshed vision, renewed energy, and strategic alignment, your CoE can evolve into a powerhouse of value and transformation.
In today's rapidly evolving business landscape, agility and alignment are more critical than ever. For organizations leveraging Anaplan to power Connected Planning, the Anaplan Center of Excellence (CoE) plays a pivotal role in scaling success. But like any strategic function, a CoE can become stagnant if not consistently nurtured and evolved. That’s where CoE re-energization comes in — a strategic refresh to reinvigorate your approach, drive greater engagement, and unlock untapped value in your Anaplan investment.
Why focus on re-energizing your CoE?
Re-energizing your Anaplan CoE is about more than just updating processes — it's about reigniting purpose. Over time, even the most successful CoEs can fall into routine. Stakeholder interest may wane, innovation may stall, and platform adoption can plateau. A re-energized CoE is one that:
* Champions innovation, expansion, and continuous improvement. Actively fosters a culture of experimentation, regularly exploring new platform features, use cases, and ways to improve planning processes across the business.
* Re-establishes a clear vision and governance model. Revisiting your CoE's purpose, structure, and operating principles ensures clarity, accountability, and alignment across all stakeholders. This is also an opportunity to re-engage your stakeholders to drive support for your roadmap and project initiatives.
* Builds stronger partnerships with business units. Engaging with functional teams fosters collaboration, surfaces new use-case opportunities, and drives adoption by aligning planning solutions to real business needs.
* Elevates end-user engagement and trust. Empowering users through training, transparency, and responsiveness builds confidence in the platform and your controls around your platform management, and encourages widespread adoption.
* Drives measurable business value from the Anaplan platform. Leveraging KPIs, success stories, and performance metrics helps quantify impact and demonstrate ROI to your leadership.
Key pillars of a re-energized CoE
1. Revisit the vision and mission
Start by assessing your CoE's current state. Has your business evolved? Are your original goals still relevant? Re-articulating a vision that reflects today's organizational priorities helps create alignment and re-engage your stakeholders.
2. Energize your talent
A great CoE is built on passionate people. Invest in the development of your model builders, solution architects, and Certified Master Anaplanners. Create space for up-skilling talent through Anaplan's learning paths, recognize contributions, and provide opportunities for cross-functional collaboration and leadership. Encourage participation in the broader Anaplan ecosystem through forums, events, and certifications to keep skills sharp and inspire new ideas. An up-skilled and empowered team is more likely to drive innovation, solve complex business challenges, and elevate the overall value of the CoE.
3. Engage with your champions
Reignite relationships with your business champions. These power users and advocates are key to driving adoption. Re-establish feedback loops, invite them into roadmap planning, and provide early access to new features and capabilities. Involving champions in strategic conversations not only amplifies their sense of ownership but also helps surface high-impact use cases and insights from those closest to the business. Take time to listen to their business challenges and pain points — understanding these firsthand will ensure your CoE is solving real problems and delivering value where it matters most. Regularly recognizing their contributions further encourages ongoing engagement and builds a vibrant network of internal advocates who drive enthusiasm across the organization.
4. Modernize operational governance
From change management to model maintenance, a healthy governance framework keeps everything running smoothly. Use this opportunity to review existing practices and re-assess if there are any opportunities for improvement to risk mitigation procedures or efficiency optimization. Standardize practices, automate where possible, and introduce mechanisms for usage tracking, quality assurance, and model health checks.
5. Complete a CoE charter and revisit your roadmap
A strong Center of Excellence starts with a clear foundation. Completing an updated Anaplan CoE Charter is a powerful step toward re-energization. It helps clarify your CoE's purpose, scope, structure, and success measures — and serves as a guiding document for stakeholder alignment. An Anaplan CoE Charter template is available to download here.
Use this moment to also review and refresh your Anaplan platform roadmap. If you're not sure where to go next, your Customer Success Business Partner (CSBP) can be a strategic resource in helping you identify potential innovation and expansion opportunities, some of which may be able to leverage Anaplan's newer platform features and offerings, such as Anaplan Applications, Anaplan CoPlanner, Anaplan XL Reporting, or Anaplan Data Orchestrator (ADO). Additionally, collaborating with your senior leadership to review the roadmap ensures alignment with broader business goals and uncovers any missed opportunities.
6. Showcase value
Bring your impact to life. Create a dashboard of KPIs that reflect the CoE's contribution to business outcomes. Highlight process improvements, time savings, and financial insights delivered through Anaplan. Tell stories that resonate with executive stakeholders and frontline users alike.
7. Create space for innovation
Introduce an innovation pipeline that encourages exploration of new use cases and creative problem-solving. Celebrate successes and completed projects, host ideation workshops, and provide safe spaces to test and learn. By nurturing innovation within or hosted by your CoE, you can uncover high-impact opportunities that optimize decision-making, streamline processes, and ultimately drive greater ROI from your Anaplan investment.
Signs of a re-energized CoE
Wondering what success looks like? A re-energized CoE doesn't just function — it thrives. Here are the telltale signs that your Anaplan Center of Excellence is fully engaged, aligned, and driving impactful outcomes:
* Regular engagement from stakeholders and executives. Stakeholders are actively involved in planning conversations, sponsor initiatives, and advocate for the Anaplan CoE's strategic priorities.
* A dynamic pipeline of new use cases. The CoE maintains a steady stream of ideas and planned initiatives that expand Anaplan’s value across different business areas.
* Strong participation in enablement programs. Team members regularly engage in training, certifications, and community events, keeping their skills sharp and their contributions impactful.
* End users who trust and advocate for the platform. Users rely on Anaplan as a trusted source of truth and promote its benefits to others across the organization.
* A culture of experimentation, feedback, and iteration. The CoE continuously tests new ideas, actively gathers input, and evolves models and processes to stay aligned with changing business needs.
Conclusion
Re-energizing your Anaplan Center of Excellence is a strategic decision that can breathe new life into your planning ecosystem. It’s about creating momentum—by inspiring your people, aligning with your business goals, modernizing your operations, and expanding your vision for what's possible. Whether you're reigniting executive engagement, discovering new innovation paths, or simply refreshing your roadmap, every step contributes to unlocking more value from your Anaplan investment. Now is the time to take action, lean into your Anaplan CoE's potential, and lead your organization toward smarter, faster, and more connected planning.
Call to action
If you're part of an Anaplan CoE team or leading one, the best way to take your next step is to get involved. Start by completing or refreshing your Anaplan Center of Excellence Charter—a vital tool to align your mission, structure, and success measures. Once completed, you can share it with your Customer Success Business Partner (CSBP) and the Anaplan CoE Program at coeprogram@anaplan.com to ensure you're connected with the right guidance and resources.
Additionally, we invite you to request access to the Anaplan CoE Program Community page. It's your hub for collaboration with other Anaplan customer CoEs, accessing exclusive tools and templates for Anaplan Center of Excellence teams, staying informed on upcoming events, and getting the most out of your Anaplan investment.