EOS annual planning: how implementers can put data assets on the Issues List

How does a data asset question fit an EOS annual planning agenda?

It fits as a single Issues List item, not as a pitch: "Do we know what records we hold, and who decides what happens to them when systems change?" Raised that way, it goes through the normal IDS process (Identify, Discuss, Solve), and any follow-up becomes a to-do or a Rock like any other issue.

EOS implementers run two-day annual planning sessions and quarterly sessions where the leadership team clears the Issues List, resets the V/TO and sets Rocks. The room is trusted because the facilitator is neutral. That neutrality is the reason to keep the topic small and the disclosure clear.

This page is for implementers, Vision-building facilitators and other EOS professionals who sit in these rooms. It is not a way to turn a planning session into a sales call.

Where does the question sit in a two-day session?

Use your own session format; these slots are suggestions, not EOS rules. The AI strategy workshop agenda shows a fuller version for leadership teams that want an AI discussion.

How do you word the Issue?

Good issue statements are short and specific. Examples:

• "We plan to cancel our old help desk in Q3. Do we have a full export?"
• "Our CRM goes back many years. Who decides what we keep when we change platforms?"
• "We are retiring the file server. Has anyone looked at what is on it?"

Avoid statements that assume an answer, such as "We should license our data." The goal is to make the team look before they delete, and to let the owner decide whether a licensing screen is worth an hour. When the issue concerns a CRM, what happens to Salesforce data when the contract ends is a useful reference for the notice-date question.

What is the 3-question intro test?

Before you mention any option beyond "keep an export", test whether the company is a plausible fit with three questions you can answer from what you already know.

• Scale: does the company have 50+ full-time employees at peak (contractors excluded) and several years of documented operations?
• Systems: does it run many connected systems, such as email, Slack or Teams, CRM, finance, support and project tools?
• Sponsor: is an owner, CEO, CFO or other authorized representative present, and open to a one-time payment for an exclusive license for an agreed term?

If any answer is no, stop. Keep the issue about preservation only. The who qualifies page has the full baseline.

What do you say in the room?

Keep it factual and offer to take it offline.

A short introduction can be drafted with the introduction email builder. You do not review, export or describe the company's records.

What disclosure applies if you are also a partner?

Say so before you raise the topic: "If this goes anywhere and a deal closes, I may receive a referral reward from SourceX." Then let the leadership team decide without pressure, and offer that they can apply directly at sourcex.si/apply without your involvement.

Check your EOS Worldwide implementer agreement and any client engagement terms for rules on referral arrangements, because those are set by your agreements and not by this page. Where a client's own policies require disclosure, follow them. Never present the option as part of the EOS process.

What pre-work makes the session smoother?

Send the leadership team three prompts in the pre-session survey, so the Issue arrives with facts attached.

1. Which systems or contracts are due to be cancelled, replaced or migrated in the next 12 months?
2. For each one, how many years of records does it hold, and who can export them?
3. Has anyone checked what customer contracts or privacy notices say about using those records?

Collect the answers in the same document as the scorecard and the draft 1-Year Plan. If the answers show nothing is being retired and no one is curious, drop the topic. If a cancellation date falls inside the next two quarters, the Issue earns its place and an export to-do should be assigned before the session ends.

How do partner rewards work?

Partners earn 25% of the eligible platform fees SourceX actually collects from the referred company's licensing deals, capped at $100,000 per referred company. Payment happens only after the buyer pays and SourceX receives its fee. A meeting, introduction or signed agreement alone does not trigger payment, and no reward is guaranteed. The reward is a share of SourceX's fee and is never deducted from what the company receives. Read the program terms before registering.

What does the follow-up look like?

For companies that are closing or restructuring, how to wind down a company without losing its records and the office closure checklist are better starting points than the Issues List. A company that has shrunk can still be eligible, as explained in does a company that downsized still qualify.

When should you leave it alone?

Do not raise it when the team is in a conflict over seats, the owner has asked for no new topics, the company is far below the size baseline, or records belong mainly to clients. A planning session works because people trust the facilitator; protect that first. The management consultant page covers the broader role.

Next step

Add one line to your Issues List prompts this quarter. If a client passes the 3-question intro test, register as a partner and make the introduction.