My previous Blog looked at Step 1 of ‘The 4 Step Business Plan’, a simple approach to structuring your business plan based on the concept of approaching planning just as you would organising a long trip.
You may recall Step 1 was about understanding where you are going by defining your Vision for your business. Now we need to establish where you are starting your journey from, so Step 2 asks, ‘where are you now?’
Start with an overview of the current state of your business – the type and structure, its stage, history and ownership. Then do a really deep dive into the products / services you offer, your customers, routes to market and any intellectual property. Use this opportunity to refine your pitch – a couple of sentences to capture the attention of a prospective customer. To avoid cluttering up the main body of your plan, move any product specs, technical information, research, etc to the back as Appendices – remember your plan should be easy to read, review and update.
As part of the ongoing planning process, this can be a really useful time to undertake some form of audit / review in order to gain a snapshot of your business. Repeat at intervals to try and identify any changes or trends.
An essential component of Step 2 is the completion of SWOT and PESTEL analyses. (The PESTEL looks at the impact of external factors – Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Environmental, Legal – and aims to measure a market. The SWOT considers the internal, resource based Strengths and Weaknesses of your business and the external, environment based Opportunities and Threats). The key is to avoid merely stating already well known and familiar perceptions. Really take the time to delve deeper – involving colleagues can be a useful way to gain fresh ideas and different perspectives.
Your PESTEL and SWOT will help inform and support other parts of your plan, e.g. your chosen strategies will reflect the Strengths and Opportunities you have identified and a training plan will address any skills gaps noted under ‘Weaknesses’.
Having now established the desired destination and starting point of your business journey, we now need to consider how you intend to make this journey, that is, your goals and strategies. We will explore Step 3, ‘How will you get there?’ in my next blog.