| Business plans FAQ |
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A business plan is often the entry-level requirement to getting government money, investor capital or bank loans. Although, you may have a complete picture of the business in your head, investors and bankers need to see if you really have an understanding of the business and have thought it through. It depends on the fact if you need to raise any capital or require investors. If no capital is required a business plan may help your profitability and success. The Executive Summary While appearing first, this section of the business plan is written last. It summarizes the key elements of the entire business plan. (Executive Summary Example) The Industry An overview of the industry sector that your business will be a part of, including industry trends, major players in the industry, and estimated industry sales. This section of the business plan will also include a summary of your business's place within the industry. (Business Plan Example: Industry Section) Market Analysis An examination of the primary target market for your product or service, including geographic location, demographics, your target market's needs and how these needs are being met currently. Competitive Analysis An investigation of your direct and indirect competitors, with an assessment of their competitive advantage and an analysis of how you will overcome any entry barriers to your chosen market. Marketing Plan A detailed explanation of your sales strategy, pricing plan, proposed advertising and promotion activities, and product or service's benefits. Management Plan An outline of your business's legal structure and management resources, including your internal management team, external management resources, and human resources needs. Operating Plan A description of your business's physical location, facilities and equipment, kinds of employees needed, inventory requirements and suppliers, and any other applicable operating details, such as a description of the manufacturing process. Financial Plan A description of your funding requirements, your detailed financial statements, and a financial statement analysis. The length of a typical business plan can greatly vary from 10 pages to a 100-page document. It really depends on the intended use of the plan and it's audience. A Project Manager (an associate with proven Zpryme experience) is vested with the primary responsibility for managing the engagement and the client relationship. The Project Manager for each business plan is selected based on the particular needs of the client as well as the skills and training of the volunteer. In some instances the Project Manager and Director of Consulting meet with a potential client to discuss their concerns. We spend time and effort in gaining an understanding of their organization and their needs before we recommend what and how we can assist them in meeting their goals. The Project Manager plans the work program, leads the business plan team to ensure that the project is on track and running smoothly and is responsible for the preparation of the final report. He or she will be the primary contact during the course of the project and will provide the client with periodic progress reports. Associates are selected on the basis of the skills and experience needed to meet the particular requirements of the client. In selecting the business plan team, Project Managers can draw on the expertise in specialties ranging from social media to health services to product manufacturing to name just a few. Characteristically, associates are assigned based on the match of skills to client needs. However, if a client has a request for a particular associate, if that associate is available he or she will be asked to consider that assignment. If that associate is unavailable, the client has the option of waiting for that associate or meeting with another with similar skills and background. In the event that a associate is assigned and the client is not comfortable with the “fit” the client only needs to inform the Project Manager or Director of Consulting, and another associate with appropriate skills will be designated. It is Zpryme’s expectation that the business plan will run smoothly. In the unlikely event that there might be a concern about project progress or consultant performance, direct communication with the Project Manager should normally lead to solving the problem. Further, clients are encouraged to share any concerns with the Director of Consulting. Zpryme’s goal is to satisfy every client. Zpryme associates are dedicated to the concept that their efforts help clients achieve and sustain needed changes. Typically, the Zpryme final deliverable will be written to be outcome oriented and guide the client toward implementation of recommendations. Depending upon the nature of the project, the actual involvement of Zpryme in implementation will vary. Whenever appropriate, Zpryme engagements include a discussion with the client to determine how the client will implement the recommended actions. The discussion can result in: 1) Zpryme providing assistance in implementation planning during the current project; 2) the client inviting Zpryme to submit a proposal for a separate, follow-up business plan project with an additional term and fee; or 3) the client determining that there is no need for ongoing implementation assistance. Ultimately, implementation of Zpryme recommendations is the responsibility of the client, with whatever assistance from Zpryme is agreed to by both parties. Every project has its own exclusive requirements and time-frame. These will be discussed at an assessment meeting, and the agreed-upon time frame will be incorporated in the consulting agreement. If it is anticipated that there will be a divergence from the time frame, the Project Manager and client will discuss the reasons for the delay and come to agreement upon a revised time frame. All of the work involved in a business plan project is confidential in nature. This includes both the overall details of the project as well as information collected during any internal client interviewing (wherein individual responses are not attributed to any individual, but integrated with the content of all interviews and data). Zpryme will only use a client as a reference with the client's permission. Follow-up is dependent on the nature of the consultancy and the relationship of the consultant and the client. In many instances, several months following completion of the project, a Zpryme asssociate will contact the client to discuss what changes have occurred as a result of the consultancy, and to see if further service might be helpful. And a year following project completion, a Zpryme associate will contact the client to ascertain overall satisfaction with Zpryme and the longer-term project outcomes. Zpryme welcomes repeat business. It’s a fact, more than two thirds of our engagements each year involve organizations with whom we have previously worked. Zpryme encourages clients to return with an additional request for assistance in any leadership, governance, or management area of need. |
