Some business owners may leverage their extensive experience when embarking a new venture, while others may utilize resources to help guide the creation and development of a new company. An effective business plan is necessary regardless if you have the experience or resources at your disposal. A business plan helps ensure your business is prepared for success. In other words, the strategy behind a well-crafted business plan can contribute to your business being organized, operating efficiently, and has a path to promote growth. We’ve outlined the key components of a well-executed business plan

Develop clear and actionable processes and workflows

A business plan is your best and most comprehensive opportunity to define important elements of your company. The specifics can vary significantly from one organization to another depending on the nature of the work you do and how you plan to do it. The important thing to remember is to be specific and review the plans for any potential gray areas or causes of confusion.

This is your opportunity to define your business hierarchy - the chain of command and supervisory responsibility - and the protocols for important workflows. As a business owner, you can review your plan and make iterations regularly if it’s not working efficiently, or you identify new efficiencies in your process. Implementing a business plan established a single source for your company to confidently reference.

Identify problems before they impact operations

A complete business plan addresses finances, workflows, expected growth and other important considerations. With a detailed plan, your company has a defined path you believe it can follow. Viewing a business plan as a map for success lets you identify potential obstacles or barriers. For example, if the complete accounting of financial needs for the company ends up being higher than expected, you can adjust before operations begin and such changes become significantly more complicated.

Additionally, an in-depth plan can also help you identify more efficient ways to operate and provide opportunities to remove redundancies. Building a solid business plan and undertaking thorough reviews of it before the company starts operating can lead to significant improvements before your doors open.

Establish financial goals for your business

Heavy equipment costs and the number of customers you expect to work for within a given time frame are key components of every business plan. Although you can't always guarantee these numbers are totally accurate, they allow you to estimate a ballpark figure for budgeting. That concept, the evolution of an element of the business plan into an organizational goal, is an important element of success.

You can allocate the appropriate amount of resources to a job when you can quantify the number of clients for the financials to come out in the black. You can also recognize when a goal is reached, and start putting more effort into hitting it for the next quarter or fiscal year. The same general concept applies to operational aspects of a business like hiring staff, purchasing and servicing equipment, and more.

Determine the needs of your business

Having a general idea of the equipment and machinery your business needs to achieve objectives and successfully perform work is not enough. Your business should be able to determine how much equipment is needed and whether equipment will be acquired through credit, a loan, or a lease. You can only have a comprehensive financial projection and a complete understanding of the desired assets when this information has been collected.

Furthermore, a business plan adds context and specificity to any company, defines important parameters, and leaving left to risk. As you create your business plan, be sure to prioritize your work and include as much relevant information as possible.