Start-up Companies: Don’t rush the business plan

In the recent past the importance of business plans has been emphased by the business media. In order to create a guideline for the proposed business venture it is impeccable that a well structured and well researched business plan must be created. In some cases the entrepreneurs are so busy creating a business plan that they forget the bigger picture. Dave Dauten said: “Just because we increase the speed of information does not mean we can increase the speed of decisions. Pondering, reflecting and ruminating are undervalued skills in our culture” This implies that before entrepreneurs (or intrapreneurs) rush into a new venture the business idea must first be evaluated. I suggest that the first step of entertaining a new business venture is to set up a Formation of Business Idea (FBI) session. In this FBI sessions the idea, data, the dynamics of the venture, the cash flow implications and a realistic and honest short term growth (less than 12 months) etc. of the proposed venture must be discussed. These sessions also serve as a formal meeting of the stakeholders and to clarify and quantify precisely what the new venture implies. In many cases when a vague business idea are formally discussed the impossibilities and hurdles are identified. Start-ups and business extension program ideas must first be formally stated before it move the next step, namely the creation of a business plan. Johan Schwartz - Bivio Consulting