Business Plan Template
[my company]
Musterstrasse 123
CH- 4567 Musterstadt
Telephone: +41 (0)12 – 345 67 89
Internet: www.musterfirma.ch
[Your Name]
[Date]
Content
1
Executive Summary ........................................................................................................ 5
1.1
Request........................................................................................................................................... 5
1.2
Summary of Business Plan ............................................................................................................. 5
2
Business Idea .................................................................................................................. 6
2.1
Business Idea and Background ...................................................................................................... 6
3
Company and Management ........................................................................................... 7
3.1
Vision .............................................................................................................................................. 7
3.2
Mission ............................................................................................................................................ 7
3.3
Values ............................................................................................................................................. 7
3.4
Legal Information and Commercial Register Excerpt ...................................................................... 7
3.5
Immaterial Assets............................................................................................................................ 7
3.6
Company History & Key Developments .......................................................................................... 7
3.7
Shareholders and Executives ......................................................................................................... 8
3.8
Management & Key Personnel ....................................................................................................... 8
3.9
Supervisory Organs & Advisory Network ........................................................................................ 8
3.10
Memberships, Accreditations and Certifications ............................................................................. 8
4
Products and Services ................................................................................................... 9
4.1
Description of Products and Services ............................................................................................. 9
4.2
Market Differentiators/Value Propositions ....................................................................................... 9
4.3
Revenues ........................................................................................................................................ 9
4.3.1
Revenue streams and drivers .................................................................................................... 9
4.3.2
Existing and Future Revenues .................................................................................................. 9
4.3.3
Contribution Costing and Profitability....................................................................................... 10
4.3.4
Non-Monetary Benefits, Synergies and Cross-selling Opportunities ....................................... 10
4.4
Research and Development .......................................................................................................... 10
4.5
Partnerships .................................................................................................................................. 10
5
Markets, Marketing and Sales ......................................................................................11
5.1
The Market - Description and Outlook........................................................................................... 11
5.1.1
Market Overview...................................................................................................................... 11
5.1.2
Market Size and Structure ....................................................................................................... 11
5.1.3
Market Share ........................................................................................................................... 11
5.1.4
Market Potential....................................................................................................................... 11
5.2
Customers..................................................................................................................................... 12
5.2.1
Customer Needs...................................................................................................................... 12
5.2.2
Customer Segmentation Characteristics ................................................................................. 12
5.2.3
Customer Relationships .......................................................................................................... 12
5.2.4
Customer Segment Strategy ................................................................................................... 12
5.3
5.3.1
2
Competition ................................................................................................................................... 13
Current Competitors, Potential New Entrants and Substitutes ................................................ 13
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5.3.2
Competition Analysis ............................................................................................................... 13
5.4
Environmental Analysis ................................................................................................................. 13
5.5
Marketing ...................................................................................................................................... 13
5.5.1
Overall Targets ........................................................................................................................ 14
5.5.2
Branding Strategy .................................................................................................................... 14
5.5.3
Promotion, Advertising and Communications Strategy ............................................................ 14
5.5.4
Pricing Policy ........................................................................................................................... 14
5.6
Sales ............................................................................................................................................. 14
5.6.1
Overall Targets ........................................................................................................................ 14
5.6.2
Sales Strategy ......................................................................................................................... 15
5.6.3
Sales Channels ....................................................................................................................... 15
5.6.4
Sales Resources ..................................................................................................................... 15
6
Operations .....................................................................................................................16
6.1
Organisation .................................................................................................................................. 16
6.1.1
Organisational Structure .......................................................................................................... 16
6.1.2
Human Resources ................................................................................................................... 16
6.1.3
Risk and Compliance, Reporting and Controlling .................................................................... 16
6.2
IT-Infrastructure and Business Processes .................................................................................... 17
6.2.1
IT-Infrastructure ....................................................................................................................... 17
6.2.2
Business Processes ................................................................................................................ 17
6.3
Location, Production and Administration ....................................................................................... 17
6.4
Corporate Sustainability and Social Responsibility ....................................................................... 17
6.4.1
Environmental Laws ................................................................................................................ 17
6.4.2
Sustainability Inspections and Audits ...................................................................................... 17
6.4.3
Social Responsibility................................................................................................................ 18
7
Financial analysis .........................................................................................................19
7.1
Summary of Key Data Forecasts .................................................................................................. 19
7.2
Commentary on Profit and Loss Forecast ..................................................................................... 19
7.3
Commentary on Cash Flow Forecast ............................................................................................ 19
7.4
Sensitivity / Break Even Analysis .................................................................................................. 20
7.5
Funds Required ............................................................................................................................ 20
7.6
Possible Exit Routes for Investors................................................................................................. 20
8
Risks ...............................................................................................................................21
8.1
Environmental Risk ....................................................................................................................... 21
8.2
Process Risk / Information Technology Risk ................................................................................. 21
8.3
Information for Decision-Making Risk............................................................................................ 21
9
Objectives and Milestones ...........................................................................................22
10
Appendix ........................................................................................................................23
10.1
Glossary of Terms ......................................................................................................................... 23
10.2
Sales and Marketing Plan ............................................................................................................. 23
10.3
Revenue Models ........................................................................................................................... 23
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10.4
Current Shareholders .................................................................................................................... 23
10.5
Organisation Chart: Current, year two ........................................................................................... 23
10.6
Job descriptions and Responsibilities ........................................................................................... 23
10.7
Curricula Vitae of Senior Management ......................................................................................... 23
10.8
Financial Projections ..................................................................................................................... 23
10.8.1
Profit and Loss Statements ..................................................................................................... 23
10.8.2
Cash Flow Statements ............................................................................................................ 23
10.8.3
Balance Sheets ....................................................................................................................... 23
10.9
4
Domicile ........................................................................................................................................ 23
„Name of Company” Business Plan – strictly private and confidential
1 Executive Summary
Objective: Show clearly the request of [idea] to potential investors and give a brief and captivating overview
of the concept and the business plan. The management summary is supposed to motivate the potential
investor to read the entire business plan.
1.1 Request
Type of investor
Financial requirements
Type of investments
1.2 Summary of Business Plan
Give a summary of the business plan covering the most relevant areas and highlight the attractive sections
- Business idea and market differentiator
- Products and services
- Markets and marketing
- Operations
- Management
- Financial analysis
- Risks
- Objectives and milestones
The executive summary of the business plan can also be outlined through The Business Model Canvas1, a
one-page summary of the most important aspects of a business plan.
1
The Business Model Canvas has been designed by Alexander Osterwalder and serves as a practical guide in address-
ing and summarizing the most important aspects of a business idea. For more information: http://alexosterwalder.com
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2 Business Idea
2.1 Business Idea and Background
Objective: Clearly describe the business idea, the background of and the context in which the idea can add
value.
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3 Company and Management
3.1 Vision
Objective: The vision states where the organisation wants to go in a short and inspiring way and shows a
definite achievable target state.
3.2 Mission
Objective: The mission states which actions have to be undertaken to reach the objectives set in the vision.
3.3 Values
Objective: The values state according to what values the organization wants to operate and what message
it wants to communicate towards its internal and external stakeholders.
3.4 Legal Information and Commercial Register Excerpt
Objective: Provide information on the official status of the company and / or any subsidiaries / participations. Provide an overview of the legal status of the company, incl. place of registry and any advantages /
disadvantages linked to that. Provide insight into any key litigation actions of and/or against the company.
Provide information on any legal claims, guarantees, contracts, that have a significant influence on the
business results.
3.5 Immaterial Assets
Objective: Provide proof of any possible (inter)national intellectual property rights (patents, trade marks)
and license agreements. Provide an overview of advantages and disadvantages linked to these IP rights
and agreements. Provide insight into any key litigation actions of and / or against the company.
3.6 Company History & Key Developments
Objective: Provide a short overview of the company’s history, incl. facts and figures, in order to show the
ability of the owner and the management to start and run a profitable business and generate sustainable
profits based on existing expertise.
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3.7 Shareholders and Executives
Objective: Demonstrate the skills and capabilities of the company’s executives to run a successful business. Provide an overview of the terms and conditions of leading positions. Display shareholder structure
to be transparent in the ownership of the company, including advantages and disadvantages of the shareholder structure.
3.8 Management & Key Personnel
Objective: Demonstrate experience and expertise of management and selected key personnel which run
the operations (CVs in appendix). Explain management and key personnel roles. Describe strategies to
hire and retain management and key personnel, incl. incentivation.
3.9 Supervisory Organs & Advisory Network
Objective: Demonstrate experience and expertise of the company’s supervisory organs, incl. the board of
directors (if applicable) and possible other advisory networks (e.g. a scientific board, lawyers, bank managers, management consultants, auditors, thought leaders, opinion makers, key influencers, etc.).
3.10 Memberships, Accreditations and Certifications
Objective: Provide an overview of existing and planned obligatory and voluntary memberships in associations, co-operatives, industry boards, etc.). Provide an overview of existing and planned obligatory and
voluntary accreditations (e.g. FINMA, EQUIS) and certifications (e.g. ISO, ITIL).
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4 Products and Services
4.1 Description of Products and Services
Objective: The core products / services have to be described in a short and interesting way showing the
distinctiveness of each product / service.
4.2 Market Differentiators / Value Propositions
Objective: Show the investors the value propositions, the uniqueness and the sustainability of the products
and services and their advantages to the customers. Important information includes recognizable strengths
and weaknesses of the product, where it’s placed on the product life cycle, and how the products and services respond to or even create customer needs. Ideally, an indication of future product and services expansions/extensions are also included. A good way to challenge the sustainability of the value proposition
is to compare it against the four pillars of the Stanford Research Institute’s NABC Analysis2 (Need, Approach, Benefits and Competition).
4.3 Revenues
Objective: Convince potential investors of the constancy and sustainability of the expected revenue
streams and explain the underlying business models.
4.3.1
Revenue Streams and Drivers
Objective: Describe the business model behind the products and services. How is the organization going to
generate revenues with the products and services and how sustainable are these revenue? Assure for a
relative view of each product or service’s share of total turnover and net revenue (details of which can be
found in the section on contribution margin and profitability).
4.3.2
Existing and Future Revenues
Objective: Quantification of the revenue streams and drivers, over a three-to-five year forecast period.
2
The Stanford Research Institute (SRI) developed the NABC-analysis as a means to quickly detect and develop com-
pelling Value Propositions. The analysis is embedded in the SRI’s “five disciplines of innovation” methodology.
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4.3.3
Contribution Costing and Profitability
Objective: Quantification of the individual aspects that drive cost and revenues. Ideally, this section includes a revenue waterfall, displaying the major drivers of costs to “produce” the product or service, and
the major drivers of costs to “sell” the product or service. Assure for a comparison of each product or service’s profitability against the entire portfolio. Comment on the reasons why to focus on specific products
and services.
4.3.4
Non-Monetary Benefits, Synergies and Cross-selling Opportunities
Objective: Description of any non-monetary benefits, synergies and cross-selling opportunities the products and services may have with other already existing products and services within the organization (e.g.
low hardware price to support a service model)
4.4 Research and Development
Objective: Qualitative and quantitative overview of the current and future research and development structure and activities. List all relevant R&D projects, incl. information on purpose, cost, duration, status, prospects, success rate, funding (e.g. grants). Show that [idea] is committed to cutting edge technology and is
aware of the importance of technology. Show the awareness of trends in the business and potential influences on the business model of [idea]. Include technological developments. Detailed technological specifications should be included in the appendix.
4.5 Partnerships
Objective: Explain the partnership strategy of [idea]. Define the reason for partnerships and the importance
for the business model.
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5 Markets, Marketing and Sales
5.1 The Market - Description and Outlook
5.1.1
Market Overview
Objective: Here the investor should receive information about the market in which [idea] intends to operate.
It is just for familiarising the investor with the industry and has to be brief therefore.
Description of relevant industry
- Current size
- Growth rates
- Competitive position
- Description of current and future ways to do business and the reasons for change
5.1.2
Market Size and Structure
Objective: Describe the different markets the organization wants to operate in. Show the investor that the
chosen markets have significant volumes, now and in the future. Describe the most important segments
within the market, main distribution channels, pricing policies, customer and supplier structures. Describe
commonalities with respect to buying / selling and consumption behavior and / or patterns. Describe how a
new market is expected to develop, incl. trends and developments, existing and new market niches.
5.1.3
Market Share
Objective: Plausibly describe what products and services of the organisation address which markets and
what relevant market share the company wants to reach within a certain timeframe, compared to the most
important competitors. How will the market react on the new products and services? How do the revenues
and profits per segment compare to competition?
5.1.4
Market Potential
Objective: This section shows the investor the opportunities the chosen market segment has to offer and
the intended market share of [idea]. It has to be clearly stated which position [idea] will have in the future
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concerning differentiation strategies (cost, quality, properties of products / services). What are the main
barriers to entry (e.g. patents and rights owned by competition), what is the level of (technological) innovation in the sector, what are the expected growth rates of the target markets and why, what are the key
success factors?
5.2 Customers
Objective: To approach the potential customers in a focused way, segmentation criteria have to be defined
(industries, individuals, services involved, geographical segmentation). In a second step, their individual
needs have to be assessed and a characterisation has to be done.
5.2.1
Customer Needs
Objective: Assessment of the needs of the customers. What do they really want? What are their current
issues that need to be overcome? What are they willing to pay for and under what circumstances? What
appeals to them?
5.2.2
Customer Segmentation Characteristics
Objective: Definition of segmentation criteria. The segmentation allows for a clustering of needs, behaviours or other attributes and supports the targeting and addressing of a specific category of buyers. Customer groups represent separate segments if for example the needs vary in such a way that distinct offers
are justified, multiple distribution channels are required, different customer relationships are needed or the
willingnesss-to-pay varies greatly. Important is therefore to include “soft” factors, such as social status,
mental and physical health or environmental factors.
5.2.3
Customer Relationships
Objective: Definition of ways to interact with customers and manage the customer relationships. Here, the
organization describes the types of relationships it wants to establish with specific customer segments. It
typically involves overall objectives around customer acquisition, customer retention, cross- or upselling
and is characterised by a number of ways to interact: personal interaction, (dedicated) account management, self-service, automated service, communities, co-creation, peer-support, etc. Usually, there is no
“one-size-fits-all” approach – several forms of customer relationship management will coexist within the
organization.
5.2.4
Customer Segment Strategy
Objective: Definition of a strategy to address the specific needs of each segment.
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5.3 Competition
Objectives: The Current and future competitors have to be evaluated to show potential risks and derive
actions to prevent the competitors from becoming too strong. Potential new entrants and substitutes have
to be considered in this phase too.
5.3.1
Current Competitors, Potential New Entrants and Substitutes
Objectives: The current competitors, potential new entrants and substitutes section lists the strongest and /
or potentially strongest competitors, as well as substitutes. Minimum information required on competitors is
the following:
 Name, location and main activities
 Target markets and market share
 Strategic objectives
 Products and services
 5P strategy (product, place, price, promotion, personnel)
 Possible reaction to competition
 Main strengths and weaknesses
Important is to not only include nationally known organizations, but also less known international organizations, as well as possible indirect competition (e.g. spin-offs of universities, in-house departments of (large)
corporations).
5.3.2
Competition Analysis
Objectives: This section describes the strengths and weaknesses of the strongest and / or potentially
strongest competitors, compared to the own organization. This section should clearly demonstrate how the
organization intends to differentiate itself from the competition in its target markets.
5.4 Environmental Analysis
Objective: Potential influences of changes in the political, regulatory or socio-cultural environment have to
be considered carefully. Typically, the PESTLER influence model can be used: Political, Economical, Social, Technological, Legal, Environmental and Regulatory influences.
5.5 Marketing
Objective: It is important to show the investor the conversion of the vision [idea] into a concrete marketing
strategy and to bring it down to earth. Show the commitment of the management to invest in building a
strong brand and to create customer loyalty. The importance of customer attraction and retention has to
become clear. In addition, the pricing policy has to be set and communicated.
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5.5.1
Overall Targets
- Build a strong and unique brand
- Build customer loyalty
To reach these targets a marketing strategy has to be developed including:
- Timeframe (priorities)
- Budget
5.5.2
Branding Strategy
Objective: Develop a branding strategy, create market awareness and a corporate identity (NB: esp. the
corporate identity aspect is closely linked to the company values).
5.5.3
Promotion, Advertising and Communications Strategy
Develop promotion and sponsoring strategies, develop advertising campaigns, define public relations
measures. Describe how to make best use of social media to attract and retain customers. Develop “messages that stick” (4 step approach: 1) segment, 2) target, 3) position, 4) advertise / sell / communicate).
Quantify each measure and define measures for success / targets (e.g. x number of page impressions, y
app downloads, z featured articles in media 1, 2, 3, etc.).
5.5.4
Pricing Policy
Objective: Define and describe the pricing strategy, in a sales and marketing context. The products and
services’ market positioning is usually reflected in the pricing of these products and services.
5.6 Sales
5.6.1
Overall Targets
- Reach a sales volume of xy
- Build a performing sales team
To reach these targets a sales strategy has to be developed including:
- Timeframe (priorities)
- Budget
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5.6.2
Sales Strategy
Objective: Develop a sales strategy with respect to where to focus on first (segmentation) and how to grow
sales over time.
5.6.3
Sales Channels
Objective: Define sales channels, define sales agreement structures (e.g. exclusivity rights, commissions,
trade agreements, etc.).
5.6.4
Sales Resources
Objective: Quantify the sales force resource requirements. Define incentivation schemes. Define measures
of success.
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6 Operations
6.1 Organisation
Objective: Communicate the ability of [idea] to establish proper organisational structures and procedures to
run a profitable business.
6.1.1
Organisational Structure
Objective: Define an appropriate organizational structure and reporting lines, in line with the overall goals
and objectives of the organization. Especially in labour intensive areas, it may be wise to develop scenarios (e.g. conservative, realistic, optimistic), as labour costs have a high impact on an organisation’s liquidity.
 Define suitable organisational structure
 Define reporting structures
6.1.2
Human Resources
Objective: Provide the investor with a qualitative and quantitative overview of the required skils, as well as
with a strategy to fill any possible gaps.
 Define management of the company. Include CVs in appendix
 Define skills and know-how set required, compare against current situation
 Define number of personnel required, compare against current situation
 Define in-vs. outsourcing of personnel (complete insourcing, outsourcing, free-lancers, consultants,
etc.)
 Define training and development schedule
 Define incentive measures
 Define income classes
 Define job descriptions
 Define hiring strategies
 Define HR budget
6.1.3
Risk and Compliance, Reporting and Controlling
Objective: Define the most relevant obligatory and voluntary reportings and controlling functions
 Define internal controlling structure, units and systems, intervals, and authorities
 Define financial planning procedures (liquidity management, cash collection, working capital, etc.)
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 Define investment planning (replacement and enlargement investment, divestments)
 Define budget preparation (process of preparation, producing, controlling and authorization)
 Define external reporting standard and implementation requirements (e.g. Swiss GAAP FER, IFRS)
 Define risk factors and mitigation procedures (e.g. dedicated risk management function, insurance,
foreign exchange hedging)
 Define organization handbooks and trainings
6.2 IT-Infrastructure and Business Processes
6.2.1
IT-Infrastructure
Objective: Show nature, quality and extent of IT infrastructure and emphasize areas, which are likely to be
critical to future success like service reliability, speed, ease-of-use, scalability etc.
6.2.2
Business Processes
Objective: Define business processes that are most likely to have a significant impact on the organisation’s
success (e.g. distribution and logistics, order fulfillment, customer service, Order-to-Cash, etc.). Also include IT and project management processes and standards (e.g. ITIL, SCRUM, Agile Project Management, etc.).
6.3 Location, Production and Administration
Objective: Show nature, quality and extent of the organisation’s locations (e.g. head office, office locations,
production facilities, sales locations, etc.), as well as the administrative support.
6.4 Corporate Sustainability and Social Responsibility
Objective: describe and define the organisations’ environmental and social responsibility programs.
6.4.1
Environmental Laws
Objective: Reassure the investor of compliance with legal obligations and obligatory and / or voluntary
regulatory frameworks, incl. the degree of performance.
6.4.2
Sustainability Inspections and Audits
Objective: Define and / or provide proof of existing sustainability inspections and audits. Provide information on the breadth and depth of these inspections and audits, the institutions executing the audits,
frequency, background and reports. Provide insights in the rationale and strategy behind voluntary disclosures.
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6.4.3
Social Responsibility
Objective: Define and / or provide proof of existing social responsibility activities. Provide information on
the breadth and depth of these activities, frequency, background and reports. Provide insights in the rationale and strategy behind the social responsibility programs.
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7 Financial Analysis
Objective: Bring together and comment all of the company's revenues, market and cost projections in a
summary-type financial format; file the detailed financial projections in the Appendix
7.1 Summary of Key Data Forecasts
Objective: Give a quick overview over the development of key figures
Address key data from P&L-Statement, Balance Sheet and Cash-Flow Statement possibly supported by a
table like the following:
CHF Million
Revenues
Revenue Stream 1
Revenue Stream 2
Total Revenues
% growth
EBIT
EBIT margin
Net Income/Loss
Operating Cash Flow
Net Cash Flow
CAPEX
No. of employees
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
7.2 Commentary on Profit and Loss Forecast
Objective: Describe assumptions for key figures in the profit and loss statement and comment development of base line)
Points to address:
- Trend of revenue mix
- Trend of key costs (e.g. IT infrastructure, headcount, marketing)
7.3 Commentary on Cash Flow Forecast
Objective: Describe and comment development of cash flow
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7.4 Sensitivity / Break-Even Analysis
Objective: Develop one most realistic scenario and show sensitivity of financial statements in relation to the
most critical drivers of success.
7.5 Funds Required
Objective: Explain your capital needs to potential investors.
7.6 Possible Exit Routes for Investors
Objective: Describe possible exit routes for investors.
Describe exit routes for investors if feasible and/or planned (e.g. public offerings, take-over by third party,
purchase of the company by institutional investors)
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8 Risks
Objective: Explain all key business risks that might cause failure of success and derived actions and initiatives to minimise these risks.
8.1 Environmental Risk
Objective: Identification of environmental risks, evaluation of potential consequences and probability of
occurrence. Show potential action steps to control the risks.
8.2 Process Risk / Information Technology Risk
Objective: Explain the risk of failure of IT as the backbone of operations.
8.3 Information for Decision-Making Risk
Objective: Comment the factors of the information for decision-making risk and the actions taken to minimise these factors.
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9 Objectives and Milestones
Objective: Describe key objectives and milestones for the operational phase.
Points to address:
- Key objectives by department
- High-level timetable for each major segment of the plan
- Company implementation plan based on strategic initiatives
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10 Appendix
10.1 Glossary of Terms
10.2 Sales and Marketing Plan
10.3 Revenue Models
10.4 Current Shareholders
10.5 Organisation Chart: Current, year two
10.6 Job Descriptions and Responsibilities
10.7 Curricula Vitae of Senior Management
10.8 Financial Projections
10.8.1 Profit and Loss Statement
10.8.2 Cash Flow Statement
10.8.3 Balance Sheet
10.9 Domicile
- Tax issues
- Operating reasons
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