Business plan

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A business plan is a formal written document containing the goals of a business, the methods for attaining those goals, and the time-frame for the achievement of the goals. It also describes the nature of the business, background information on the organization, the organization's financial projections, and the strategies it intends to implement to achieve the stated targets. In its entirety, this document serves as a road-map (a plan) that provides direction to the business. [1] [2]

Contents

Written business plans are often required to obtain a bank loan or other kind of financing. Templates [3] and guides, such as the ones offered in the United States by the Small Business Administration [4] can be used to facilitate producing a business plan.

Audience

Business plans may be internally or externally focused. Externally-focused plans draft goals that are important to outside stakeholders, particularly financial stakeholders. These plans typically have detailed information about the organization or the team making effort to reach its goals. With for-profit entities, external stakeholders include investors and customers, [5] for non-profits, external stakeholders refer to donors and clients, [6] for government agencies, external stakeholders are the tax-payers, higher-level government agencies, and international lending bodies such as the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, various economic agencies of the United Nations, and development banks.

Internally-focused business plans target intermediate goals required to reach the external goals. They may cover the development of a new product, a new service, a new IT system, a restructuring of finance, the refurbishing of a factory or the restructuring of an organization. An internally-focused business plan is often developed in conjunction with a balanced scorecard or OGSM or a list of critical success factors. This allows the success of the plan to be measured using non-financial measures.

Business plans that identify and target internal goals, but provide only general guidance on how they will be met are called strategic plans. [7]

Operational plans describe the goals of an internal organization, working group or department. [8] Project plans, sometimes known as project frameworks, describe the goals of a particular project. They may also address the project's place within the organization's larger strategic goals. [9]

Content

Business plans are decision-making tools. The content and format of the business plan are determined by the goals and audience. For example, a business plan for a non-profit might discuss the fit between the business plan and the organization's mission. Banks are quite concerned about defaults, so a business plan for a bank loan will build a convincing case for the organization's ability to repay the loan. Venture capitalists are primarily concerned about initial investment, feasibility, and exit valuation. A business plan for a project requiring equity financing will need to explain why current resources, upcoming growth opportunities, and sustainable competitive advantage will lead to a high exit valuation. [10]

Preparing a business plan draws on a wide range of knowledge from many different business disciplines: finance, human resource management, intellectual property management, supply chain management, operations management, and marketing, among others. [11] It can be helpful to view the business plan as a collection of sub-plans, one for each of the main business disciplines. [12]

"... a good business plan can help to make a good business credible, understandable, and attractive to someone who is unfamiliar with the business. Writing a good business plan can't guarantee success, but it can go a long way toward reducing the odds of failure." [12]

Presentation

The format of a business plan depends on its presentation context. It is common for businesses, especially start-ups, to have three or four formats for the same business plan.

An "elevator pitch" is a short summary of the plan's executive summary. This is often used as a teaser to awaken the interest of potential investors, customers, or strategic partners. It is called an elevator pitch as it is supposed to be content that can be explained to someone else quickly in an elevator. The elevator pitch should be between 30 and 60 seconds. [13]

A pitch deck is a slide show and oral presentation that is meant to trigger discussion and interest potential investors in reading the written presentation. The content of the presentation is usually limited to the executive summary and a few key graphs showing financial trends and key decision-making benchmarks. If a new product is being proposed and time permits, a demonstration of the product may be included. [14]

A written presentation for external stakeholders is a detailed, well written, and pleasingly formatted plan targeted at external stakeholders.

An internal operational plan is a detailed plan describing planning details that are needed by management but may not be of interest to external stakeholders. Such plans have a somewhat higher degree of candor and informality than the version targeted at external stakeholders and others.

Business plans for start-ups

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Typical structure for a business plan for a start-up venture [15]

Typical questions addressed by a business plan for a start-up venture [16]

Revising the business plan

Cost overruns and revenue shortfalls

Cost and revenue estimates are central to any business plan for deciding the viability of the planned venture. But costs are often underestimated and revenues overestimated resulting in later cost overruns, revenue shortfalls, and possibly non-viability. During the dot-com bubble 1997-2001 this was a problem for many technology start-ups. Reference class forecasting has been developed to reduce the risks of cost overruns and revenue shortfalls and thus generate more accurate business plans.

Disclosure requirements

An externally targeted business plan should list all legal concerns and financial liabilities that might negatively affect investors. Depending on the number of funds being raised and the audience to whom the plan is presented, failure to do this may have severe legal consequences.

Limitations on content and audience

Non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) with third parties, non-compete agreements, conflicts of interest, privacy concerns, and the protection of one's trade secrets may severely limit the audience to which one might show the business plan. Alternatively, they may require each party to receive the business plan to sign a contract accepting special clauses and conditions.

This situation is complicated by the fact that many venture capitalists will refuse to sign an NDA before looking at a business plan, lest it put them in the untenable position of looking at two independently developed look-alike business plans, both claiming originality. In such situations, one may need to develop two versions of the business plan: a stripped-down plan that can be used to develop a relationship and a detailed plan that is only shown when investors have sufficient interest and trust to sign a Non-disclosure agreement.

Uses

  • Wikiversity has a Lunar Boom Town project where students of all ages can collaborate with designing and revising business models and practice evaluating them to learn practical business planning techniques and methodology

Fundraising is the primary purpose of many business plans since they are related to the inherent probable success/failure of the company risk.

  • Management by objectives (MBO) is a process of agreeing upon objectives (as can be detailed within business plans) within an organization so that management and employees agree to the objectives and understand what they are in the organization.
  • Strategic planning is an organization's process of defining its strategy, or direction, and making decisions on allocating its resources to pursue this strategy, including its capital and people. Business plans can help decision-makers see how specific projects relate to the organization's strategic plan.
  • Total quality management (TQM) is a business management strategy aimed at embedding awareness of quality in all organizational processes. TQM has been widely used in manufacturing, education, call centers, government, and service industries, as well as NASA space and science programs.

Not for-profit businesses

The business goals may be defined both for non-profit or for-profit organizations. For-profit business plans typically focus on financial goals, such as profit or creation of wealth. Non-profit, as well as government agency business plans tend to focus on the "organizational mission" which is the basis for their governmental status or their non-profit, tax-exempt status, respectively—although non-profits may also focus on optimizing revenue.

The primary difference between profit and non-profit organizations is that "for-profit" organizations look to maximize wealth versus non-profit organizations, which look to provide a greater good to society. In non-profit organizations, creative tensions may develop in the effort to balance mission with "margin" (or revenue).

Satires

The business plan is the subject of many satires. Satires are used both to express cynicism about business plans and as an educational tool to improve the quality of business plans. For example,

See also

Related Research Articles

Benchmarking is the practice of comparing business processes and performance metrics to industry bests and best practices from other companies. Dimensions typically measured are quality, time and cost.

Strategic planning is an organization's process of defining its strategy or direction, and making decisions on allocating its resources to attain strategic goals.

In the field of management, strategic management involves the formulation and implementation of the major goals and initiatives taken by an organization's managers on behalf of stakeholders, based on consideration of resources and an assessment of the internal and external environments in which the organization operates. Strategic management provides overall direction to an enterprise and involves specifying the organization's objectives, developing policies and plans to achieve those objectives, and then allocating resources to implement the plans. Academics and practicing managers have developed numerous models and frameworks to assist in strategic decision-making in the context of complex environments and competitive dynamics. Strategic management is not static in nature; the models can include a feedback loop to monitor execution and to inform the next round of planning.

A marketing plan is a plan created to accomplish specific marketing objectives, outlining a company's advertising and marketing efforts for a given period, describing the current marketing position of a business, and discussing the target market and marketing mix to be used to achieve marketing goals.

Marketing management is the strategic organizational discipline which focuses on the practical application of marketing orientation, techniques and methods inside enterprises and organizations and on the management of a firm's marketing resources and activities.

A balanced scorecard is a strategy performance management tool – a well-structured report used to keep track of the execution of activities by staff and to monitor the consequences arising from these actions.

Shareholder value is a business term, sometimes phrased as shareholder value maximization. It became prominent during the 1980s and 1990s along with the management principle value-based management or "managing for value".

Business analysis is a professional discipline focused on identifying business needs and determining solutions to business problems. Solutions may include a software-systems development component, process improvements, or organizational changes, and may involve extensive analysis, strategic planning and policy development. A person dedicated to carrying out these tasks within an organization is called a business analyst or BA.

Business development entails tasks and processes to develop and implement growth opportunities within and between organizations. It is a subset of the fields of business, commerce and organizational theory. Business development is the creation of long-term value for an organization from customers, markets, and relationships. Business development can be taken to mean any activity by either a small or large organization, non-profit or for-profit enterprise which serves the purpose of 'developing' the business in some way. In addition, business development activities can be done internally or externally by a business development consultant. External business development can be facilitated through Planning Systems, which are put in place by governments to help small businesses. In addition, reputation building has also proven to help facilitate business development.

Corporate communication(s) is a set of activities involved in managing and orchestrating all internal and external communications aimed at creating a favourable point of view among stakeholders on which the company depends. It is the messages issued by a corporate organization, body or institute to its audiences, such as employees, media, channel partners and the general public. Organizations aim to communicate the same message to all its stakeholders, to transmit coherence, credibility and ethics.

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to business management:

Sales management is a business discipline which is focused on the practical application of sales techniques and the management of a firm's sales operations. It is an important business function as net sales, through the sale of products and services and resulting profit, drive most commercial business. These are also typically the goals and performance indicators of sales management.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Philanthropreneur</span>

A Philanthropreneur, also known as a Philanthro-capitalist, is a Portmanteau of entrepreneur and Philanthropy. The Wall Street Journal used the term in a 1999 article, while a publication entitled The Philanthropreneur Newsletter existed as far back as 1997. Philanthropreneurship is often considered the start of a new era in Philanthropy, characterized by the development of the Philanthropist's role and the integration of business practices.

Corporate venture capital (CVC) is the investment of corporate funds directly in external startup companies. CVC is defined by the Business Dictionary as the "practice where a large firm takes an equity stake in a small but innovative or specialist firm, to which it may also provide management and marketing expertise; the objective is to gain a specific competitive advantage." Examples of CVCs include GV and Intel Capital.

In business, operational objectives are short-term goals whose achievement brings an organization closer to its long-term goals. It is slightly different from strategic objectives, which are longer term goals of a business, but they are closely related, as a business will only be able to achieve strategic objectives when operational objectives have been met. Operational objectives are usually set by middle managers for the next six to twelve months based on an organisation's aim. They should be attainable and specific so that they can provide a clear guidance for daily functioning of certain operations. This business term is typically used in the context of strategic management and operational planning.

An international joint venture (IJV) occurs when two businesses based in two or more countries form a partnership. A company that wants to explore international trade without taking on the full responsibilities of cross-border business transactions has the option of forming a joint venture with a foreign partner. International investors entering into a joint venture minimize the risk that comes with an outright acquisition of a business. In international business development, performing due diligence on the foreign country and the partner limits the risks involved in such a business transaction.

Entrepreneurial finance is the study of value and resource allocation, applied to new ventures. It addresses key questions which challenge all entrepreneurs: how much money can and should be raised; when should it be raised and from whom; what is a reasonable valuation of the startup; and how should funding contracts and exit decisions be structured.

Growth planning is a strategic business activity that enables business owners to plan and track organic growth in their revenue. It allows businesses to allocate their limited resources toward a centered effort to adapt to changes in the industry driven by digital disruption and differentiate from competitors. The strategies and tactics included in a growth plan focus on the key driver of revenue generation - the customer.

In the 1980s, a change in companies organizational culture began when internal and external actors started to demand more from the companies from whom they acquired goods and services. Actors wanted companies to reflect their core values, or the values that were established the moment when the organization was created; these values also need to reflect the company's organizational culture. These actors were later on given the name of stakeholders, people or groups who have an interest, claim, or stake in the organization. To be more specific, they focus on what a company does and how well it performs. As companies began to maximize their profits, stakeholders became more demanding and influential in the decision-making process. These groups of stakeholders began insisting on a more dynamic, stimulating, and rewarding work environment that would result in better work conditions.

References

  1. "Business Plan Definition - Entrepreneur Small Business Encyclopedia". Entrepreneur. Retrieved 2018-10-29. Business Plan - Definition: A written document describing the nature of the business, the sales and marketing strategy, and the financial background, and containing a projected profit and loss statement[.] A business plan is also a road map that provides directions so a business can plan its future [...].
  2. Bida Journal of Management and Technology. 1 (1). Bida: School of Business and Management, Federal Polytechnic: 113. 2008 https://books.google.com/books?id=qWYnAQAAIAAJ . Retrieved 21 December 2020. [...] business plan [...] a guide or roadmap for any business activity. A business plan can also be referred to as a blue-print or scheme of a business enterprise.{{cite journal}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  3. U.S. Small Business Administration, "Business Plan Template", accessed 28 December 2020
  4. U.S. Small Business Administration "Business Plan" (n.d.) Retrieved 2020 December 28.
  5. Small Business Notes Archived 2010-11-26 at the Wayback Machine business plan outline for small business start-up
  6. Tufts University non-profit business plan
  7. Chechi, Haris (2023-08-01). "Strategic planning vs business planning: how they're both key to success". Glion. Retrieved 2024-02-15.
  8. State of Louisiana, USA Archived 2012-09-15 at the Wayback Machine government agency operational plan
  9. Tasmanian government project management knowledge base government project plan Archived June 22, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  10. M&M Consultants Archived 2020-11-13 at the Wayback Machine You might know where we’re going with this – "potential investors, banks, private equity, and funding. People and institutions you want money from. If that’s the case, your business plan, and the way you present it, might be crucial to your success. If it’s not convincing, your business won’t be convincing either." Thus resulting in you not getting an investment.
  11. Boston College, Carroll School of Management, Business Plan Project Archived 2008-01-16 at the Wayback Machine The business school advises students that "To create a robust business plan, teams must take a comprehensive view of the enterprise and incorporate management-practice knowledge from every first-semester course." It is increasingly common for business schools to use business plan projects to provide an opportunity for students to integrate knowledge learned through their courses.
  12. 1 2 Eric S. Siegel, Brian R. Ford, Jay M. Bornstein (1993), The Ernst & Young Business Plan Guide (New York: John Wiley and Sons) ISBN   0-471-57826-6
  13. "How to Master Your Elevator Pitch". 24 May 2010. Retrieved 2014-10-14.
  14. Contributor (7 January 2012). "How To Create An Early-Stage Pitch Deck For Investors".{{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  15. Creating a Business Plan: Expert Solutions to Everyday Challenges. United States: Harvard Business School. 2007. pp.  7. ISBN   978-1422118856.
  16. "Cayenne Consultng LLC Ten Big Questions" (PDF). Cayenne Consultng LLC. 2015-03-28. Retrieved 2015-03-28.
  17. Bernier, Roger Laurent. Five Criteria For a Successful Business Plan in Biotech. Archived from the original on January 6, 2012.