The Biz Plan you DON’T take to the Bank

Debate

The debaters...Your panel:• Jason Flick

– President & Co-founder at Youi Labs– President / CEO at Flick Software

• Andrew Bailes– VP Finance & Planning at Cryptocard– past Principal – Atkins Management Consultants

Your moderator:• Glen Orsak

– strategic advisor & coach – OME biz sector– past Partner – Deloitte Consulting

Setting up the debate…

“Planning is an unnatural process - it is much more fun to do something.”

“Don't tell me that planning doesn't do any good. I know better. The things I plan for don't happen.”

“The one thing I know about this forecast is that it will be wrong. I just don’t know ‘what’ wrong.”

Start the debate…

“The best thing about not planning is that failure comes as a complete surprise,

rather than being preceded by a period of worry and doubt.”

[Sir John Harvey-Jones – BBC Host of “Troubleshooter”]

A good biz plan:CONTENT:

• clearly defines the business model (revenue sources, value chain, etc)• defines the customer, their needs, the channels, their alternatives• portrays multiple scenarios and possible strategies• defines your degree of reliance on suppliers• pushes strategic thinking beyond comfort zone of the founders• provides a basis for defining accountabilities & tracking performance• defines the team, their credentials, roles and their skin in the game

• oh yeah…and it also clearly defines the cash funding requirements (subject of part 2 of this series)

A good biz plan:OUTCOMES

• aligns expectations of stakeholders• builds confidence for first customers• essential recruiting tool for critical talent• evolves/improves as your business develops• develops & tests a key entrepreneurial skill• helps to resolve the debates, but…

• it is never done

A process to follow…

A table of contents to consider…

Source: Glen Orsak

And another table of contents to consider…

Source: BDC

Key Participants…

The Best Resources: Just a few…• BDC: www.bdc.ca/business_tools/

• Harvard Business School: www.hbs.edu/entrepreneurship/resources/businessplan.html

• Center for Business Planning: www.businessplans.org/

The topics for debate…• Is biz planning a waste of time other than when raising capital?

– or what else could you do with the time it takes to develop the plan?

• Should you hire a writer to develop your biz plan?– and should you read it when it is done? or is it your job as a founder?

• Is your biz plan just a document?– or a random collection of files and docs? or is it an idea, your verbal pitch, etc?

• How often should your biz plan change?– or should you frame it and hang it on the wall?

• What should be part of your biz plan?– cash flow forecasts only? or other pieces of fiction and graphic art?

Contact InfoJason Flick

jason@youilabs.com

@jasonflick

http://ca.linkedin.com/in/jasonflick

Andrew Bailesandrew@bailes.co.uk

http://ca.linkedin.com/pub/andrew-bailes/2/707/979

Glen Orsakglen.orsak@gmail.com

@glenorsak

http://ca.linkedin.com/in/glenorsak

A good biz plan…Should answer 9 questions about the business:

1. Who is the customer?2. How does the customer make buying decisions?3. To what degree is the product or service compelling to the customer (a

game changer)?4. How will you determine product/service pricing?5. How will you reach your customers (channels)?6. How much does it cost to acquire a customer?7. How much does it cost to deliver the product or service?8. How much support will customers need – what will this cost?9. How easy will it be to retain customers?

Source: HBR

A good biz plan…Should answer 14 questions about you:

1. Where are you and your co-founders from?2. Where were you educated?3. Where have you worked for who?4. What have you accomplished professionally and personally?5. What is your reputation and eminence in the business community?6. How is your experience relevant?7. What is your personal view of the risks, challenges and chances for success?8. Who else should be on the team?9. Are you prepared to recruit people that are better than you (at something)?10. How resilient are you under adversity?11. Can you make hard choices – will you give up on your own ideas?12. How committed are you?13. What are your motivations?14. What skills and abilities do you have that are relevant?

Source: HBR