Success through business planning
Success through business planning
The dictionary definition of a plan is “a detailed scheme, method, etc, for attaining an objective”. If, we break that down into the two important parts we get the objective and the detailed scheme.
The objective
A business must determine what it expects of itself in the short and long-term. For example its size, location, products, market share, customer base, ranking with competitors, etc. This is what we might consider our objective or goals-let's call the long-term goals our “10-year plan”. (Timescale depends on the objective.)
Along the way to this 10-year plan, we need shorter time periods so we can see if we are on target to achieve our objectives. Let's call these “yearly budgets”, which we will produce for each year and with monthly splits so that we have a check against our performance.
We have now set up how we will monitor our performance, but how detailed should our objective be? As a rule, we make the overall objectives brief and simple to understand. In this way we can be sure that our employees know our objective, i.e. to be the biggest telecoms company worldwide.
The detailed scheme
First, take the objective statement and break it down into defined parts. In the telecoms example, we may say the 10-year plan is to be the biggest in the world - that could mean:
• operating in every major country
• having a turnover of £??m
• employing ??k employees, and
• having a customer base of ??m people.
This is the point at which the detailed planning can now start.
Working backwards from our 10-year objective, we need to set our targets for each year so we can monitor our performance to see if we are on schedule to achieve our goal.
The first (and sometimes also the second) of these years will be set as detailed budgets. Most companies are used to producing these short-term budgets which usually do not require major changes from the current workings of the company as the timescale forward is so short.
Success from planning comes from looking through the objective and noting the turning points or major changes throughout the plan and ensuring the company starts to act in time and in every business respect for these events to happen.
Taking the telecoms company as an example, there may be many key changes depending on the size of the company and the objective set. The timings of actions needed to achieve each key point on time could look something like Table 1.
Table 1: Example of a telecoms company's 10-year plan
Year 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Goal: to increase European customer base by 10 m
Action: appoint advertising agency and set up
telemarketing team
Goal: takeover or joint venture in America
15 m customers, increasing by 2m per annum
Action: appoint an agent in America and/or England
to create a list of suitable companies which
could be approached for this action
Goal: takeover or joint venture in the Far East of a
company with a minimum of 20 m customers
Action: appoint an agent in the Far East and/or England
to create a list of suitable companies which
could be approached for this expansion
Goal: build a new head office and major communications
networking plant in Germany or France to house
world operation
Action: appoint a property development company.
Outline project, find suitable land, design the
building, seek planning permission, look into grants
available, appoint building contractors, etc.
The planning process is already showing that although we set our first key point of increasing our customers by 10 million by year four. Our first task is that of appointing an agent to look for an American takeover or joint venture opportunity. This is expected to take up to four years to complete and so must be started soon if it is to be completed on time.
So far we have looked at the timing of the projects needed to meet our objective, but this is only part of the planning process. We must now look at the other corporate functions and assets to see if we have the necessary skills and finances available within the company, or do we need additional “lead times” to gain these as well?
Some of the additional considerations could be:
• skill based
• Do we have the trained technical personnel to take on the work of designing the world network?
• If not, where do we recruit them?
• What will they cost?
• How long before we can get them?
• Can we train them from our existing staff?
• Looking at our management team, do we have a sufficiently large and experienced accounting, computing, and administration base or do we need to enlarge any or all of these before we can even start any of the projects, and how long would this take?
• asset based
• The main consideration here is to the amount of finance needed not only for the key points, but also for any other expenditure such as recruitment, surveys, market research or agent retainers, etc.
• How are we going to raise the necessary finance?
• How long will that take?
• A bank overdraft for large sums could take many months to arrange and necessitate the use of complicated modelling programs in support of the proposals.
• Do we have such programs and the staff to use them?
The total objective could require finance to the extent that a company “float” or increase in share capital is required. This could take a year to complete and be expensive in itself. We must plan for all these processes and allow for the time taken to complete each of them so that our objective can be met in the timescale required.
But things do not always go according to plan
We must be prepared to amend our plans, look at alternatives and re-schedule the whole operation if necessary. Events will nearly always cause us to rethink even the most rigid or fundamental ideas. So we must be flexible and always bear in mind that we must protect the company we already have and not put it at risk by forcing through an objective that is now proving to be too much of a strain on the resources that are available.
Detailed planning gives us goals which are achievable because we have allowed the time to think them through, to implement them and arrange for the technical manpower and financial requirement before any problems arise.
Stuart Skinner FCC FCMA is a financial consultant and business trainer with Elite Training European Ltd.
© Copyright – Stuart Skinner 2005
Success through business planning - To learn more about this author, visit Michael Miles's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
Stuart Skinner reckons the key to business prosperity is all in the planning. But how?
The dictionary definition of a plan is “a detailed scheme, method, etc, for attaining an objective”. If, we break that down into the two important parts we get the objective and the detailed scheme.
The objective
A business must determine what it expects of itself in the short and long-term. For example its size, location, products, market share, customer base, ranking with competitors, etc. This is what we might consider our objective or goals-let's call the long-term goals our “10-year plan”. (Timescale depends on the objective.)
Along the way to this 10-year plan, we need shorter time periods so we can see if we are on target to achieve our objectives. Let's call these “yearly budgets”, which we will produce for each year and with monthly splits so that we have a check against our performance.
We have now set up how we will monitor our performance, but how detailed should our objective be? As a rule, we make the overall objectives brief and simple to understand. In this way we can be sure that our employees know our objective, i.e. to be the biggest telecoms company worldwide.
The detailed scheme
First, take the objective statement and break it down into defined parts. In the telecoms example, we may say the 10-year plan is to be the biggest in the world - that could mean:
• operating in every major country
• having a turnover of £??m
• employing ??k employees, and
• having a customer base of ??m people.
This is the point at which the detailed planning can now start.
Working backwards from our 10-year objective, we need to set our targets for each year so we can monitor our performance to see if we are on schedule to achieve our goal.
The first (and sometimes also the second) of these years will be set as detailed budgets. Most companies are used to producing these short-term budgets which usually do not require major changes from the current workings of the company as the timescale forward is so short.
Success from planning comes from looking through the objective and noting the turning points or major changes throughout the plan and ensuring the company starts to act in time and in every business respect for these events to happen.
Taking the telecoms company as an example, there may be many key changes depending on the size of the company and the objective set. The timings of actions needed to achieve each key point on time could look something like Table 1.
Table 1: Example of a telecoms company's 10-year plan
Year 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Goal: to increase European customer base by 10 m
Action: appoint advertising agency and set up
telemarketing team
Goal: takeover or joint venture in America
15 m customers, increasing by 2m per annum
Action: appoint an agent in America and/or England
to create a list of suitable companies which
could be approached for this action
Goal: takeover or joint venture in the Far East of a
company with a minimum of 20 m customers
Action: appoint an agent in the Far East and/or England
to create a list of suitable companies which
could be approached for this expansion
Goal: build a new head office and major communications
networking plant in Germany or France to house
world operation
Action: appoint a property development company.
Outline project, find suitable land, design the
building, seek planning permission, look into grants
available, appoint building contractors, etc.
The planning process is already showing that although we set our first key point of increasing our customers by 10 million by year four. Our first task is that of appointing an agent to look for an American takeover or joint venture opportunity. This is expected to take up to four years to complete and so must be started soon if it is to be completed on time.
So far we have looked at the timing of the projects needed to meet our objective, but this is only part of the planning process. We must now look at the other corporate functions and assets to see if we have the necessary skills and finances available within the company, or do we need additional “lead times” to gain these as well?
Some of the additional considerations could be:
• skill based
• Do we have the trained technical personnel to take on the work of designing the world network?
• If not, where do we recruit them?
• What will they cost?
• How long before we can get them?
• Can we train them from our existing staff?
• Looking at our management team, do we have a sufficiently large and experienced accounting, computing, and administration base or do we need to enlarge any or all of these before we can even start any of the projects, and how long would this take?
• asset based
• The main consideration here is to the amount of finance needed not only for the key points, but also for any other expenditure such as recruitment, surveys, market research or agent retainers, etc.
• How are we going to raise the necessary finance?
• How long will that take?
• A bank overdraft for large sums could take many months to arrange and necessitate the use of complicated modelling programs in support of the proposals.
• Do we have such programs and the staff to use them?
The total objective could require finance to the extent that a company “float” or increase in share capital is required. This could take a year to complete and be expensive in itself. We must plan for all these processes and allow for the time taken to complete each of them so that our objective can be met in the timescale required.
But things do not always go according to plan
We must be prepared to amend our plans, look at alternatives and re-schedule the whole operation if necessary. Events will nearly always cause us to rethink even the most rigid or fundamental ideas. So we must be flexible and always bear in mind that we must protect the company we already have and not put it at risk by forcing through an objective that is now proving to be too much of a strain on the resources that are available.
Detailed planning gives us goals which are achievable because we have allowed the time to think them through, to implement them and arrange for the technical manpower and financial requirement before any problems arise.
Stuart Skinner FCC FCMA is a financial consultant and business trainer with Elite Training European Ltd.
© Copyright – Stuart Skinner 2005
Success through business planning - To learn more about this author, visit Michael Miles's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
| |||
 |
No article feedback found. | ||
|
Leave Your Feedback | ||
|
|||
 Planning Vs Worrying
| |||
| A story from STORIES OF SHIFT: How to Deal with Difficult Situations and Change Them to Positive Opportunities |
|||
|
More on Strategic Planning What Do You Think
| |||
| Many small businesses believe they are too small for strategic planning. Is that what you think? Do you think you do not have the time to solve problems by thinking strategically? Do you think you know how your busi... |
|||
|
Strategic Planning
| |||
| Organizations wanting to ensure long range success must have an effective Strategic Planning Process. Does Yours? |
|||
|
Year End Strategic Planning - To Plan or Not to Plan - That is the Question\"
| |||
| Reflecting recently with very fond memories of my educational path in life, I thought of my commencement speech entitled: "To Be or Not To Be Involved - That is the Question." Well, this made me think that perhaps... |
|||
|
Succession Planning - Your Route To Sustainable Business Success
| |||
| Succession planning is all about having a great team working for you and then more. It's about releasing the unlimited potential in the whole of your workforce. To do that you need to know them all very well indeed.... |
|||
| |||
Dianne CramptonDianne Crampton is an executive leadership coach, team consultant, author and president of TIGERS Success Series, Inc. Dianne has been helping CEO's and Executives connect their employees to their core values and goals for over 20 years using the trademarked TIGERS team culture process, which stands for trust, interdependence, genuineness, empathy, risk and success. To download a free white paper on behaviors that build strong teams and behaviors that will predictably tear them down go here. - Visit Dianne Crampton's Website |
|||
Leanne Hoagland-SmithAre your sales where you want them to be? Will you be one of the few who achieves sales or business success or one of the many who have failed to change? Are you tired of being told you are like everyone else? Then you may find my first book on sales of interest. Be the Red Jacket in the Sea of Gray Suits, The Keys to Unlocking Sales available at Amazon or at http://www.processspecialist.com/red-jacket.htm. This book is a reflection of my no-nonsense approach to improving sales to overall business results. If you are truly committed to making sustainable changes, then I can help you secure a positive return on your investment because I focus on executable solutions not telling you the problems you already know you have. From training to corporate (group) coaching to executive one on one coaching, my approach is to assess, create awareness, build a goal driven action plan and then execute. The bottom line question is "Not do you or your employees know it, but do you or they want to do it?" Please call for a free strategy session at 219.759.5601. - Visit Leanne Hoagland-Smith's Website |
|||
Jay Kubassek(Jay's Full Bio: EvanCarmichael.com/jaykubassek) Jay Kubassek is a Canadian born entrepreneur, internet marketing genius, professional speaker, international real estate developer/investor, executive film producer, extreme sport enthusiast and a passionate supporter of several charities worldwide. In 2007, Jay's vision and dedication to help other entrepreneurs and business owners duplicate his marketing success led to the creation of his fourth company CarbonCopyPRO, an internet marketing firm already worth over 15 million dollars that has over 20 employees and contract workers with clients is 12 different countries. Jay resides in NYC with his girlfriend Jamie, three year old son Milo and dog Cooper. As executive producer he recently premiered his first film in the 2008 Cannes Film Festival. As an adventurist he is racing the 2008 Baja 1000 off-road race and is a member of the 2008 U.S. National Elephant Polo Team, The New York Blue who will be representing the US in the 2008 World Championships in Nepal. Visit Jay's Blog: www.JayKubassek.com - Visit Jay Kubassek's Website |
|||
Linda RichardsonLinda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website |
|||
David BarrDavid Barr is the President of Venture Opportunities, Inc. David has been a professional business broker/intermediary since 1980 focusing on General Business Brokerage and Mergers and Acquisitions representing client transaction value from $400,000 to $20,000,000. Mr. Barr has handled the sale of over four hundred and fifty companies. David earned a university degree from the State University of New York majoring in economics and business. David holds the Mergers and Acquisition Master Intermediary and the Certified Business Intermediary designations from the International Business Brokers Association. He is also a Senior Business Analyst and a Texas licensed Real Estate Agent. For more information about David and Venture Opportunities, visit www.bizdealmaker.com. - Visit David Barr's Website |
|||
Jeff FosterWebBizIdeas.com is a Minneapolis website design company founded to help people start an internet business by providing them with website, business, and internet resources that help foster the growth of successful online businesses and develop innovative Internet business ideas. - Visit Jeff Foster's Website |
|||
Anne BarrAnne Barr has over 26 years experience in sales and marketing, six years as a franchisee. She has assisted over 367 business owners and purchasers to achieve their goals in career change, transition and exit strategy. She holds the designation of Certified Franchise Executive from the International Franchise Association, Certified Business Intermediary from the International Business Brokers Association and Board Certified Broker from the Texas Association of Business Brokers. Anne is active in professional organizations, networking groups and volunteers for non-profit entities. As owner/operator of four successful businesses, Anne has proven people skills and enjoys helping clients find the right "fit" in business ownership. Visit www.FranchiseOpportunitySpecialist.com for more information about me and my company. - Visit Anne Barr's Website |
|||
Casey GollanCasey Gollan, Business Coaching & Mentoring Programs. Add $1 Million to $10 Million in the next 1 to 3 years. Since 1996 Casey has to added hundreds of millions of dollars to businesses. Watch a free video see client results Business Coaching website. - Visit Casey Gollan's Website |
|||
|
To learn more about the Evan Elite Author Program please contact us. | |||
 | |
 Michael Miles (Visit Michael's Website) Mick has over 30 years experience as a manager, trainer and consultant. Numerous training courses and studies have enabled him to qualify as a tutor and facilitator in personal development and management issues. He is a Home Office appointed Trainer of Trainers and a City and Guilds NVQ Assessor. He also holds a Management Diploma and a Postgraduate Certificate of Education by the University of East Anglia. Training with Dr. Richard Bandler and Dr. John Grinder the creators of Neuro Linguistic Programming, Michael Breen a leading expert and master trainer in NLP and Paul McKenna the world’s best known hypnotist, has qualified Mick as a practitioner of NLP. Delegates on all the courses that he delivers appreciate the benefits of this. His experience and creative thinking skills have also enabled him to design and deliver numerous core skills and management courses for large organisations. Since 1996 Mick has been the Managing Director of Elite Training European Ltd. You may have heard Mick on the radio or read about him in the press. He is often asked to give his opinion on the topics he teaches.
|  |
 |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
 |
| Modeling the Masters: Learn the true secrets behind Walt Disney's business success factors & grow your company! Video produced by Phanta Media |
|
|
 |
| Have you written articles that would be of value to entrepreneurs? Become an expert on our site by publishing them! Expose yourself to a wide audience, drive more traffic to your website and get more sales! Click Here for details. |
 |
 | ||
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
| ||
|
|
|
Get advice & tips from famous business owners, new articles by entrepreneur experts, my latest website updates, & special sneak peaks at what's to come!
|
|
|
 |
 Integrity Guide Program Health Check The Leader’s Edge Universal Search Woman business success |
|
 | ||
 |
Top 50 Raising Capital Blogs
Top Blogs To Watch In 2008 | |
 |
The Top 10 Guy Kawasaki Posts
Best Posts for Entrepreneurs | |
| ||
 |
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||
 |
|
|
||||||||||||
