Final Business Plan

Final Business Plan

Instructions for Completing and Submitting the Business Plan Assignments

The culminating project for this course is a business plan. When you complete this course, you should have a completed start-up business plan or a strategic plan for a current business that you will be able to use. The business plan will be completed in sections over several modules, with the final version uploaded to Chalk & Wire in Module 8. It is highly recommended that you save a copy of your Business Plan regularly and on multiple devices to ensure there is no loss of previous work. Although every company's business plan will be unique, reflecting its individual circumstances, certain elements are universal. A template from Palo Alto Software has been provided for you that correlates with the information provided in the appendix of your textbook. This template can be downloaded from the Start Here menu and in Module 1. Remember that the discussion questions in each module are designed to provide input for your business plan.

The business plan assignments are assigned as follows:

Part 1: Due Sunday by 11:59 PM EST/EDT in Module 2

Start preparing your business plan by completing the following areas of the business plan template:

• Company (include overview start-up summary, ownership model, products/services, locations and facilities, and start-up funding)

Part 2: Due Sunday by 11:59 PM EST/EDT in Module 3

Continue researching and crafting your business plan. You will submit the following section in this module:

• Opportunity: Market Analysis Summary o Include market segment strategy – trends, growth, needs, industry analysis and

competition

Part 3: Due Sunday by 11:59 PM EST/EDT in Module 5

Continue researching and crafting your business plan. You will submit the following section in this module:

• Execution • Strategy and implementation, strategy pyramids, value propositions, competitive edge,

marketing strategy (promotion and distribution strategies, marketing programs, pricing strategy, and sales strategy and forecast, sales by year, forecast, programs, milestones)

Part 4: Due Sunday by 11:59 PM EST/EDT in Module 6

• Financial plan (see the Excel template provided in the course and complete the Sources and Uses of Funds Statement)

o Include important assumptions, financial indicators and benchmarks, break-even analysis, projected profit and loss, and yearly profit, balance sheet, exit strategy, and cash flow by month.

 

 

Instructions for Completing and Submitting the Business Plan Assignments

Chapter 12 covered creating a successful financial plan. The three basic financial statements that were covered, including the balance sheet, the income statement, and statement of cash flows. Balance sheet is based on the old accounting formula assets equals liabilities plus owners' equity. Balance sheets an estimate of the company's value on a date, much like a snapshot of the company's financial position. The income statement contains the firm's revenues and expenses and determines what companies net income. It provides information about the amount of money going to the company's bottom line. It is important to remember that income and cash are not the same things. The cash flow statement shows the change in the company's working capital over an accounting period. These typically formatted by listing the sources and uses of funds. Also important for the entrepreneur to produce projected financial statements. These projections will help the owner manage the company's cash flow. Another method that the entrepreneur may use to determine the company's performance level is ratio analysis. It's important to understand the four basic categories of ratios used to analyze your company. Leverage ratios tell how much the company is financed by owners and by creditors. A highly leveraged firm has a lot of as compared owners' equity. Operating ratios show how effectively the farm is using its resources. Profitability ratios demonstrate the company's profitability. A break-even analysis is often used for a start-up company to determine the required level of revenues to pay expenses, including your salary.

Chapter 13 was focused on managing cash flows. The entrepreneur must know that cash is the most important asset that a small company has, and the entrepreneur must maintain enough cash to pay normal expenditures, plus keep a reserve for emergencies, without retaining an excessively large cash balance. Large cash balances should be invested into accounts that are easily accessible should the money become necessary. It's important to remember that cash and profit are not the same large number of businesses fail because of cash issues. Many growing companies can be making a profit but still have cash shortages. Thus, it's critical for the entrepreneur to create a cash budget as part of the company's financial planning. Five steps to create a cash budget are determine a minimum cash balance, forecasts sales, forecast cash receipts, forecast cash disbursements, and determine the end of month cash balance. Three main company accounts must be managed in the cash budget, which include Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable's, and inventory. Small business owner can have a tremendous amount of cash tied up in these three accounts. Hence, it's important to have a plan for managing them. It's highly recommended that you read chapter 13 to learn the many techniques that the entrepreneur may use to avoid a cash crisis.

Part 5: Due Sunday by 11:59 PM EST/EDT in Module 7

You must complete the Projected Income Statement Template which is located on the Excel Spreadsheet you used to complete the Sources and Uses of Funds Statement. Complete the green areas that apply to your business and put a 0 (zero) in the cells that don't apply to your company. (Use the Excel template in the course for the financial appendices). You should also continue to develop the written component of your business plan and create the executive summary at this time. The Executive Summary should be completed last. The following are some guidelines for writing this important component of your business plan.

Writing a Business Plan's Executive Summary

A business plan's Executive Summary is the most important component of your entire business plan. In fact, most investors and lenders thoroughly review the business plan's Executive Summary before thinking about the rest of the business plan. Thus, there are several key steps that are required to

 

 

Instructions for Completing and Submitting the Business Plan Assignments

create a winning Executive Summary. First, the business plan creator must strive to present the company's best profile in order to attract a frugal reader's interests. Second, the business plan creator must attain the key knowledge that is required for a successful Executive Summary. Third, attaining this knowledge means that the business plan creator sets aside this task to last. Fourth, the business plan creator must thoroughly and exhaustively research and compile the business plan contents that are covered in this course. Once the business plan sections are complete, and the plan has been reviewed several times, the business plan creator must select and highlight favorable information pertaining to the company's market, operations, products or services, and most importantly, financials. I strongly recommended to write, review, and rewrite the Executive Summary several times until it is perfect. Next, have others review your entire business plan, including the Executive Summary, before submitting the plan to a lender or investor.

Part 6: The Final Business Plan: Submit the final plan including revisions and incorporated feedback to Chalk and Wire no later than 11:59 PM EST/EDT/EDT in Module 8.