Director of Corporate Planning

Career Guide
A Director of Corporate Planning leads company-wide planning and performance management. The role aligns long-term strategy with annual plans, budgets, and resource allocation. It partners closely with the executive team to track results, surface risks, and guide timely decisions.

Key Responsibilities

  • Lead annual planning and budgeting cycles
  • Build and maintain multi-year financial and operating plans
  • Coordinate cross-functional planning with Finance, Sales, Product, and Operations
  • Create executive-ready performance reporting and insights
  • Run forecast updates and scenario planning
  • Identify business risks and opportunities and recommend actions
  • Set planning standards, timelines, and governance across teams
  • Improve planning processes, tools, and data quality
  • Facilitate executive reviews and decision meetings
  • Coach and develop planning and analytics team members

Top Skills for Success

Strategic Planning
Financial Planning
Forecasting
Scenario Planning
Budget Management
Performance Management
Executive Communication
Stakeholder Management
Data Analysis
Business Acumen
Change Management
Process Improvement

Career Progression

Can Lead To
Vice President of Corporate Planning
Vice President of Strategy
Vice President of Finance
Chief Financial Officer
Chief Strategy Officer
Transition Opportunities
Corporate Development Director
Investor Relations Director
Business Operations Director
Strategy and Operations Director

Common Skill Gaps

Often Missing Skills
Advanced Scenario ModelingCapital AllocationWorkforce PlanningPlanning Tool ImplementationData GovernanceExecutive Storytelling
Development SuggestionsLead one end-to-end planning cycle, own a company-level forecast, and build a clear executive narrative using a small set of decision-focused metrics. Partner with Finance and People teams to strengthen capital and workforce planning, and help implement or improve a planning tool with strong data definitions.

Salary & Demand

Median Salary Range
Entry LevelUSD 140,000 to 180,000
Mid LevelUSD 180,000 to 240,000
Senior LevelUSD 240,000 to 320,000
Growth Trend
Stable to growing demand, driven by economic uncertainty, investor focus on profitability, and increased need for stronger forecasting and resource prioritization.

Companies Hiring

Major Employers
MicrosoftAmazonAppleGoogleMetaJohnson and JohnsonProcter and GamblePfizerWalmartExxonMobilJPMorgan ChaseUnitedHealth Group
Industry Sectors
TechnologyHealthcareFinancial ServicesConsumer GoodsRetailManufacturingEnergyTelecommunicationsLogistics

Recommended Next Steps

1
Audit current planning cadence and clarify decision owners
2
Create a standard set of planning assumptions and metric definitions
3
Build a simple scenario model with clear triggers and actions
4
Strengthen executive updates with concise insights and recommended decisions
5
Align resource allocation to top company priorities and measurable outcomes
6
Identify data gaps and create a plan to improve data quality
7
Develop a talent plan for the planning team and key business partners