BUSINESS PLAN

Business plan

technical and economic documentation that helps an entrepreneurto develop the existing business, start a new business, take a loanfrom the bank, optimize its material and human resources, plan thecompany's development goals, generally to streamline its economicactivity

document reflecting the company's activity on a specific timeinterval, usually 12 months, taking also into account the followingperiod (2 to 5 years)

written document that describes the nature of the business, targetmarket, benefits that the business will have on competitors, as wellas the resources and skills available to the business owners

Structure of a Business Plan

Introduction Purpose and Objectives Market Analysis Competition Analysis Marketing Strategy Project Description Financial Statements Financial Projections

Essential Elements of a Business Plan

I Purpose and ObjectivesIn the case of plans intended for reporting the company's management defining the enterprise position on the specific market and in relation to the

competition; setting some realistic goals for business; identifying the operational risks and difficulties for developping their

management strategy; sizing and allocation of financial, material and human resources in order to

achieve a maximum efficiency; monitoring the achievement of the enterprises planned performance; intervention through corrective measures in the case of finding some

significant discrepancies.

In the event of a business plan intended forpotential partners:

to obtain proof of the company's managementability to assess the risks and face andaccurately diagnose the external economicenvironment, establishing the objectives for itsdevelopment

highlighting the main parameters whichdetermine the future development - andprofitability

the business plan destination: it may beaddressed to the management of the companyor bank, investors, business partners, companyshareholders, media, customers, suppliers e.t.c.

Plan will confer competitive advantages in atleast three areas:

Marketing there will be identified customers, theirneeds and expectations, pricing policy, techniques usedfor conquering the wanted market segment;

Personnel there will be defined the rights and duties ofthe manager and employees, hiring and dismissalpolicies, the daily operational process, etc.

Financial learning the preparation and use of cashflow projections, balance sheet, critical point analyzes,etc.

The business plan is an structured process

Why should we do a business plan?

helps to identify the opportunities andpotential obstacles

to successfully cope with the challengesspecific to the industry where the companyoperates

Why we do the business plan?

What are we trying to obtain with it?

Whom we address?

Who will read the business plan and forwhat purpose? -Readers will be differentlyinterested in certain chapters of thebusiness plan

Dimensions of the business plan utility

Ingredients of a Business Plan

II Market Analysis

Key questions:

Which is the industry? Which are competitors in the industry

concerned? Which is the target market? What is the target segment of customers?

Porters model:The five forces of competition

Sizing the industry

Which is the industry size? In order to answerthis question, it is useful to determine:

What is the production capacity of the industry,units sold and overall profitability?

Is the industry geographically dispersed orconcentrated near sources of raw materials orclose to the final consumer for a more efficientdistribution?

Identifying the barriers to market entry

What are the obstacles that could block the entry into thatindustry?

What are the resources, knowledge or skills that we need to enterthe market?

Are there local or international restrictions, requirements related tothe amount of capital or technological level with a view to supplyingthose products or services?

How regulated is the industry concerned?

III Analysis of Competition

Competitors are companies within an industry whichmanufacture goods and provide services similar to thoseproduced by us and other companies from anotherindustry, whose goods and services fall into anothercategory, but which respond to those consumer needs.

Two aspects are taken into account when talking aboutcompetition:

existence of competition. identifying the competition

When analyzing the competitive environment :

to determine the competitors' weaknesses andthe manner they can be exploited;

to confer the product /service thosecharacteristics necessary for achieving successon the market.

Identifying the competitors

Who are our competitors? -Companies that havecome up with the same solution to cover thecustomer needs.

What are the strengths and weaknesses of theproducts /services offered by them?

What market share is held by each of them? What is their market strategy? What makes them successful?

Primary competitors

Secondary competitors

Potential competitors

Assessing the threats coming fromcompetitors

To what extent our business is being threatened by competitors?

Do our products enjoy a stronger recognition?

Will they lock in an aggressive way the market entry of a new player?

Will they recognize and use for their own products or services thespecific characteristics of our product?

IV Market analysis

Market analysis refers to the group of persons or companies whowill choose to buy the product or service because it solves aproblem or comes to meet a need, in a better way than competitors.

At this stage it should answer the following questions: Is there an opportunity in the market? Can you capitalize on this opportunity?

Evaluate the size and growth rate of the market How large is the market to which we address? What is the growth rate? Can the market increase so as to include us? Will the demand for products and services increase?

Defining the target market:

What are the products /services we offer?

What are the solutions that we propose to customerproblems?

What customer needs will we satisfy?

What are the benefits we bring to purchasers?

Marketing Strategy

An enterprise will take into account

- its position within its branch of activity,- its set objectives,- existing opportunities and available resources.

The marketing strategy involves a permanent monitoring ofchanges in demand and taking measures in order to adapt

to constant trends

Marketing Strategy

Drafting a marketing strategy

How to bring together product and market?

How do we encourage consumers to buy from us?

The most effective way is to develop, implement and

monitor a marketing plan.

Marketing Plan Guide

The marketing strategy should reflect themission and philosophy of the business.

It is also necessary to incorporate the resultsof market research.

Carrying Out the Marketing Plan

Through SWOT analysis we will examine the viability of thebusiness by identifying the strengths, weaknesses,opportunities and threats.

Strengths describe the companys internal, positive,tangible and intangible attributes.

What are we doing properly?

What resources have we got?

What advantages have we against competition?

Are we favoured by the location?

The weaknesses:

lack of experience, limited resources, lack of access to technology or capacity, lower offer of services or a poor location of the

business.

These are factors that are under control, but fora variety of reasons, they need to be improvedso that we can effectively achieve our marketingobjectives.

The opportunities evaluate attractiveexternal factors which represent thereason of the business existence andprosperity. These are external factors ofthe business.

What opportunities exist in the marketsector where you activate, from which youcan expect to take advantage?

Threats include factors beyond our control that couldplace our marketing strategy and even the business in aposition of risk.

These are external factors - there is no control overthem, but they could be anticipated if there was anemergency plan to handle the prevention and resolutionof these issues.

V Business Presentation

Should be included information such as:

What is the starting point of the idea or business presented? (Is it inthe phase of concept, start-up or expansion?)

What market will the business serve? What is the business type (manufacturing, retail or services)? What are the products / services provided? Why consumers will use the product /service concerned? (What

makes the consumers use these products /services? What is the current financial situation of the business?

What to include:

History of the idea or business Market served by the business Type of the business (production, retail sau

services) Products/ services provided What makes the consumers use those products/

services Current financial situation of the business Team of management

Also may be included informations on:

Who will run the business (to be highlighted theskills in coordinating teams, the most interestedin the employees preparedness being the usersfamiliar with the industry in which the businessactivates)?

Which is the structure / organization form of thecompany?

Location where the company will carry out itsactivity.

Highlighting the products or services offered Operational Analysis - main objective - to

prove that we are focused on the keyoperational factors that will make your businessa success.

Determining the breakeven - should show theusers which are the key operational factors thatbring value to shareholders. It determines howmany units of product or service must be sold inorder to cover the cost of production, after thispoint the sales being profit-making.

Identification of other operational factors ofsuccess

In addition to breakeven, these may also be: Advantages in raw materials supply. Technological innovations in production and

distribution. A favorable geographical position. Access to properly trained or cheap workforce An effective pricing strategy.

Management Plan

Introducing the team as a whole In this section we show how each team member

will contribute to the success of the project. Thepresentation should include why the chosenteam is the best team to manage the risks andcapitalize the opportunities, referring to:

Highlighting the teams strengths andweaknesses.

Presentation of the Management Teamphilosophy.

BUSINESS PLANBusiness plan Structure of a Business Plan Essential Elements of a Business Plan Slide53Plan will confer competitive advantages in at least three areas:The business plan is an structured process Why should we do a business plan?Slide61Slide48Ingredients of a Business PlanII Market Analysis Slide40Porters model: The five forces of competitionSizing the industryIdentifying the barriers to market entryIII Analysis of Competition Slide36Slide37Slide35Assessing the threats coming from competitors To what extent our business is being threatened by competitors? Do our products enjoy a stronger recognition? Will they lock in an aggressive way the market entry of a new player? Will they recognize and use for their own products or services the specific characteristics of our product? IV Market analysis Slide2What are the products /services we offer? What are the solutions that we propose to customer problems? What customer needs will we satisfy? What are the benefits we bring to purchasers?An enterprise will take into account - its position within its branch of activity, - its set objectives, - existing opportunities and available resources. The marketing strategy involves a permanent monitoring of changes in demand and taking measures in order to adapt to constant trends Drafting a marketing strategy How to bring together product and market? How do we encourage consumers to buy from us? The most effective way is to develop, implement and monitor a marketing plan. Slide64Carrying Out the Marketing Plan Through SWOT analysis we will examine the viability of the business by identifying the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Strengths describe the companys internal, positive, tangible and intangible attributes. What are we doing properly? What resources have we got? What advantages have we against competition? Are we favoured by the location? Slide65Slide66Slide67V Business PresentationSlide69Also may be included informations on:Slide71Slide72Management PlanSlide60