A business plan format is a dynamic document which is revisable so that new situations are reflected.
The document should be a three/five-year rolling plan with a strategy covering each year. The majority of emphasis is placed on the current year.
| Purpose | Target Group |
|---|---|
| Management Tool | CEO, Management, Owners, Board of Directors |
| Presentation and Sales | External Stakeholders, e.g. banks, venture capital, customers, suppliers |
| Acceptance of Concepts and Plans | Employees, CEO, Management, Owners, Board of Directors |
| Recruitment | Potential Employees and Members of the Board |
The person who is writing the business plan needs to place different emphasis on different sections of the document. This will result in a number of different plan version.
Each version is aimed at the target group reading it.
Although there may be different versions of a business planning document, the same basic principles irrespective of the size or type of business concerned should be used. The main difference should be the amount and type of information provided.
A business plan version targeted at a specific audience may not have all the sections in the business plan template described below. The targeted plan contains only those sections that are relevant to that specific audience.
For example, a business plan targeted at employees would not contain investment opportunities unless there was an employee share option or partnership plan available.
Externally: A business plan shows prospective investors, customers and suppliers that your ideas are sound and that forecasts are based on documented facts and factors that can be measured.
The document should include a cover page, which may or may not be a formally designed book like cover. If the document is to be presented to an external audience like investors or the bank or to be used for marketing purposes then a formal cover is required.
In either case; whether the cover is formal or not, it should contain the following information:
The written business plan format consists of nine major sections, with some further divided into subsections:
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