Page1of23BusinessplanforanewbusinessThebusinessplanconsistsofanarrativeandseveralfinancialworksheets.Thenarrativetemplateisthekeytothebusinessplan.Itcontainsmorethan150questionsdividedintoseveralsections.Omitanyquestionsthatdonotapplytoyourtypeofbusiness.Whenyouhavefinishedwritingyourfirstdraft,youwillhaveacollectionofsmallessaysonthevariousaspectsofthebusinessplan.Thenextstageistoeditthemintoasmooth-flowingnarrative.Therealvalueofcreatingabusinessplanisnotinhavingthefinishedplaninyourhand;rather,thevalueliesintheprocessofresearchingandthinkingaboutyourbusinessinasystematicway.Theactofplanninghelpsyoutothinkthingsthroughthoroughly,studyandresearchifyouarenotsureofthefacts,andlookatyourideascritically.Ittakestimenow,butwillhelpavoidcostly,perhapsdisastrous,mistakeslater.Thisbusinessplanisaspecificmodelsuitableforhigh-techbusinesses.Beforeyoubegin,lookatthe1stsectionTailoringtheplan.Ithastipsforfine-tuningyourplantomakeaneffectivepresentationtoinvestors.Ifthisiswhyyou’recreatingyourplan,payparticularattentiontoyourwritingstyle.Youwillbejudgedbythequalityandappearanceofyourworkaswellasbyyourideas.Ittypicallytakesseveralweekstocompleteagoodplan.Mostofthattimeisspentinresearchingandrevisingyourideasandassumptions.Butthisisthevalueoftheprocess.Somaketimetodothejobproperly.Thosewhodosoneverregrettheeffort.Andfinally,besuretokeepdetailednotesonyoursourcesofinformationandontheassumptionsunderlyingyourfinancialdata.TailoringtheplanThegenericbusinessplanpresentedshouldbemodifiedtosuityourspecifictypeofbusinessandtheaudienceforwhichtheplaniswritten.ForraisingcapitalForinvestorsInvestorshaveadifferentperspective.Theyarelookingfordramaticgrowth,andtheyexpecttoshareintherewards:oFundsneededshort-termoFundsneededintwotofiveyears’timePage2of23oHowthecompanywillusethefunds,andwhatthiswillaccomplishforgrowthoEstimatedreturnoninvestmentoExitstrategyforinvestors(buyback,saleorIPO)oProportionofownershipthatyouwillgiveuptoinvestorsoMilestonesorconditionsthatyouwillacceptoFinancialreportingtobeprovidedoInvolvementofinvestorsontheboardorinmanagementFortypeofbusinessHigh-techcompaniesEconomicoutlookfortheindustryWillthecompanyhaveinformationsystemsinplacetomanagerapidlychangingprices,costsandmarkets?Willyoubeonthecuttingedgewithyourproductsandservices?Whatisthestatusofresearchanddevelopment?Andwhatisrequiredto:oBringproduct/servicetomarket?oKeepthecompanycompetitive?Howdoesthecompany:oProtectintellectualproperty?oAvoidtechnologicalobsolescence?oSupplynecessarycapital?oRetainkeypersonnel?High-techcompaniessometimeshavetooperateforalongtimewithoutprofitsandsometimesevenwithoutsales.Ifthisfitsyoursituation,abankerprobablywillnotwanttolendtoyou.Venturecapitalistsmayinvest,butyourcasemustbeverygood.Youmustdolonger-termfinancialforecaststoshowwhenprofittake-offisexpectedtooccur.Andyourassumptionsmustbewelldocumentedandwellargued.Page3of23BusinessplanOWNERSYourBusinessNameDateE-MailWebpagePage4of23Tableofcontents1.Executivesummary......................................................................................................................................62.IntroductiontotheCompanyanditsManagement......................................................................................72.1CompanyOverview..................................................................................................
