Balancing Act

Do you have these concerns about your business?

“Grow my business”
“Pay down debt”
“Manage my finances better”

If the answer is yes to any of these then you may want to consider creating a business plan.

It is funny how the same question seems to surface time and time again. It seemed that every client meeting I had this past week boiled down to this one question.

“What can I do to make my business more successful?”

...

Each time I heard the question, I started to ask how their business was doing compared to their business plan. Oddly enough this was usually met with a disturbing and sometimes humorous blank stare.

The look of emptiness is the give-away that someone jumped into their business feet first without taking a look at what they need and what their business can realistically produce. What was more interesting is that in each case, the business owner really could not clearly explain their business model.

There are many reasons why business owners have trouble with their business plan. According to the respondents of a Capital-Dynamics.com survey these were the greatest challenges:

• 38% Coming up with the projections
• 26% Deciding when it was finished
• 18% Competition analysis
• 17% Marketing strategies
• 16% Just getting it started
• 13% Defining the market

Many only think about creating a business plan in terms of securing financing. The truth is that most people who have invested the time and energy in creating a business plan have found it to play a critical role in the management of their business on a day to day basis.

Contrary to popular belief, successful business planning is not only about impressing loan officers or venture capitalists. Business plans are really the reflections of decisions you will make to create a successful business.

Business planning is about quantifiable results. The primary goal of a business plan is to serve as the road map to your business success. This important business tool is what you will use to measure your business research and assumptions against the impact of the real world.

Ironically, a well structured, properly executed business plan will demonstrate to lenders, investors and others exactly what kind of results your business is capable of achieving.

So if the value of the business plan is in the way it reflects the decision making process and ultimately the quantifiable results, then what makes a good business plan?

The Four Way Test

Because your business plan plays such an important role in the success of your business, you naturally want a business plan that communicates expectations, responsibilities and possibilities in a way that all team members understand their role in your business’s success. We suggest using this Four Way Test for determining if your business plan process is capable of producing results:

Prepared properly, your business plan will become the very foundation upon which your business operates.

Your business plan will provide you with an organized, logical approach to managing your business at every stage.

A well-prepared business plan will provide you with the following tools:

1. Set goals, define objectives –
Develop processes to meet stated objectives

2. Create business performance reviews with
quantitative measurements

3. Take corrective actions and adjust where
necessary

4. Establish new business

5. Substantiate business viability for lenders and
investors

6. Establish key roles

7. Establish value for legal purposes and sale of
property

8. Evaluate opportunities for growth or expansion

When we work with clients on creating a business plan we make sure we incorporate the following:

-Establish solid business guidance
-Implement clear measurable goals
-Define individual and team responsibilities
-Establish attainable target deadlines for tasks
-Develop methods for tracking implementation
-Deliver quantifiable results

With an established business plan, you will be in a better position to make decisions with confidence and manage for success.

After all, how can you succeed if you have not defined what success is?

We would be happy to talk with you about your planning needs. Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at (203) 404-3974 or send me an email at jrosen@rospro.com