FT Essential Guide to Writing a Business Plan

Introduction

Part 1 Preparing your plan

1 Essential preparation

Result

Need

Preparation



Part 2 Writing your plan

2 The business

Background

Business mix by segment

Segmentation in a start-up



3 Market demand

Market size

Market growth

Market demand for a start-up

Market demand risks and opportunities



4 Competition

Your competitors

Competitive intensity

Competition in a start-up

Industry competition risks and opportunities



5 Strategy

Competitive position

Strategy

Strategy in a start-up

Strategic risks and opportunities



6 Resources

Management

Marketing

Operations and capital expenditure

Resource risks and opportunities



7 Financials and forecasts

Historic financials

Market-driven sales forecasts

Competition-driven margin forecasts

Funding the plan

Full financial forecasts

Forecasts in a start-up

Financial risks and opportunities



8 Risk, opportunity and sensitivity

Meet the Suns and Clouds chart

What the Suns and Clouds tell you

Sensitivity testing



9 Conclusion

Conclusion

Executive summary

Investment highlights



Part 3 Reviewing your plan



10 Monitoring and evaluating

Monitoring your plan

Evaluating your plan

Beware these characters!



Postscript: 12 hot potatoes



Appendices

Appendix A: Deriving competitive position

Appendix B: Structured interviewing of customers



Index