The Business Plan Coaching Program

The Business Plan Coaching program is a series of six (2)-hour coaching sessions custom-designed to provide participants (usually entrepreneurs and managers) with a clearly written and attractively packaged business plan. A well-prepared business plan will demonstrate that the managers or entrepreneurs know the business and that they have thought through its development in terms of products, management, finances, and most importantly, markets and competition. A formal business plan is just as important for an established business, irrespective of size, as it is for a startup. It serves four (4) critical functions as follows:

Helps management or an entrepreneur to clarify focus and research their business's or project's development and prospects
Provides a considered and logical framework within which a business can develop and pursue business strategies over the next 3-5 years
Serves as a basis for discussion with third parties such as shareholders, agencies, banks, investors etc.
Offers a benchmark against which actual performance can be measured and reviewed

OBJECTIVES:

The preparation of a well-written business plan is not the end result of the planning process. The realization of that plan is the ultimate goal. Following are additional objectives for having a well-written business plan:

To force managers or entrepreneurs to understand more clearly what they want to achieve, and how and when they can do it
To play a vital role in helping avoid mistakes or recognize hidden opportunities
To understand better how to position their company in the marketplace
To identify the true level of their competition
To have a thorough knowledge of their company's current and future financial status
To recognize how to manage human resources
To be more aware of their company's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and external threats
To help assess and manage risk

BENEFITS:

Participants gain an understanding of the objectives of business planning
Participants become familiar with the steps that should be followed in business planning
Participants gain know-how in establishing priorities, contingencies and strategic planning
Participants are provided with a framework within which a business must operate and, ultimately, succeed or fail
Participants gain a realistic view of the expectations for an established business or new venture
Participants gain a realistic view of long-term objectives for an established business or new venture
Participants gain an understanding of how to determine a business or project's critical success factors
Participants become familiar with tactical approaches and long-term strategies to use in effectively implementing critical projects within budget, on-time and within scope
Participants are provided with the most important sales document of a business, which could be the key to raising funds or gathering support of key staff

NOTE: Up to an additional four (4) hours could be needed to assemble, write, draft and finalize the documents required for a well-written business plan. This is determined by the scope of the business plan coaching program, specifically, the participation of the managers or entrepreneurs in the business planning process.