Support plans
A support plan names one dimension, one number to reach, and the quarter to reach it by. The outcome is the score in the closing quarter measured against the target. It is arithmetic and it is not appealable.
Every plan opened since the programme began recording them, most recent first.
| Stack | Opened | Closes | Dimension | Baseline | Target | At close | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Protein Stack, Whey Isolate | 2026-Q3 | 2026-Q4 | Syrup Retention | 1.6 | 2.5 | pending | Open |
| Boxed Mix, Just Add Water | 2026-Q2 | 2026-Q3 | Absorbency | 2.0 | 2.5 | 2.1 | Target not met |
| Hotel Breakfast Buffet Stack | 2026-Q1 | 2026-Q2 | Structural Integrity | 2.8 | 3.0 | 3.0 | Target met |
Register to date. Plans closed: 2. Targets met: 1. Stacks that remained in the cohort after their plan closed: 0.
How a plan opens
The curve requires the bottom bucket to be occupied every quarter. A stack allocated to it opens a support plan in the following quarter. That rule is applied by the build rather than by a person, and the build fails if a stack was allocated to the bottom bucket and the following quarter carries no plan for it.
One consequence is worth stating plainly, because it follows from the two rules together rather than from either one. The bottom bucket is never empty, so there is never a quarter without a plan. This is a property of the distribution, not a finding about the cohort.
A plan may also be opened before a stack reaches the bottom bucket, at the discretion of the reviewer. The register marks those, because a plan opened early is a judgement and a plan opened by placement is not.
How a plan closes
On the close quarter the score on the named dimension is compared to the target. At or above the target is met. Below it is not met. Nothing else is considered, including the direction of travel, the size of the improvement, or the rating the stack holds at the time.
A plan cannot be closed early and a stack cannot leave the cohort while its plan is running. Both are enforced by the build. The intent is that a plan runs its full course regardless of how the quarter looks part way through.
A stack whose plan closes not met leaves the cohort from the following quarter. This is the only mechanism by which performance removes a stack from the programme. A rating does not do it, and the bottom bucket does not do it, which is why a stack can hold the lowest rating in the cohort for several quarters and remain under review.
What a plan is not
A plan does not change a stack's level. Level describes expected scope and is assessed separately on the leveling page.
A plan does not change how a stack is calibrated. It is measured on the same dimensions with the same weights against the same cohort, and a stack on a plan can be allocated to any bucket the sort puts it in.
A plan target is an absolute number on one dimension. A rating is a position relative to the cohort. The two are not connected, so a stack can meet its target in full and hold the same rating, or improve on every dimension and be allocated lower than the quarter before. Where that has happened it is recorded on the stack's own page.
Open plans
Support plan · 2026-Q3 to 2026-Q4 · Protein Stack, Whey Isolate
Open- Dimension
- Syrup Retention
- Baseline at open
- 1.6
- Target
- 2.5
- At close
- pending
Intervention. Reduction in isolate proportion.
Opened at the reviewer's discretion. The stack was not allocated to the bottom bucket in 2026-Q2, so no placement required this plan.
- 2026-Q3Plan opened ahead of the threshold. Syrup retention 1.6 against a target of 2.5.
Closed plans
Support plan · 2026-Q2 to 2026-Q3 · Boxed Mix, Just Add Water
Target not met- Dimension
- Absorbency
- Baseline at open
- 2.0
- Target
- 2.5
- At close
- 2.1
Intervention. Buttermilk substituted for water at no additional preparation cost.
The target was not met. The stack leaves the cohort from 2026-Q4 and is not calibrated after 2026-Q3.
- 2026-Q2Plan opened following the 2026-Q1 calibration. Absorbency 2.0 against a target of 2.5.
- 2026-Q3Absorbency 2.1. The substitution was made in one of the two reviewed sittings.
Support plan · 2026-Q1 to 2026-Q2 · Hotel Breakfast Buffet Stack
Target met- Dimension
- Structural Integrity
- Baseline at open
- 2.8
- Target
- 3.0
- At close
- 3.0
Intervention. Reduction in holding time under the lamp.
- 2026-Q1Plan opened. Structural integrity 2.8 against a target of 3.0.
- 2026-Q2Structural integrity 3.0. Holding time was not measured directly and the improvement is attributed to the plan.