An action plan integrates all of the strategies you have developed throughout your business plan into a highly organized and prioritised plan of action designed to achieve your stated business mission and goals.
This is achieved by breaking down the strategies you developed into small, achievable steps and then identifying the actions you need to take for each step. It can be used as a short term (6-12 months) action plan to achieve short term business goals, a medium term action plan (2-3 years) or a long term action plan (3-5 years).
An action plan identifies the business goal (what you would like to achieve) and the strategies that can be implemented to reach that goal.
It also explains the specific actions that need to take place in order to achieve the business strategy. This will include the timeframe, roles and responsibilities, performance indicators and alternative methods that can be implemented to reach the business objectives.