Some Review Questions

1. Suggest and explain some business objectives a newly-created small business might set in the short, medium, and long term.

2. What are the five main parts of a business plan?

3. What is the ‘marketing mix’? Outline its importance in a business plan.

4. What is the difference between job production, batch production, and flow production?

5. What type of production process would you recommend organizations producing (a) ice lollies and (b) dried flower arrangements to use, and why?

6. Why is cashflow so important to a business?

7. Suggest two ways in which a new firm can use its business plan to monitor performance.

8. Explain the possible resource requirements of a new business selling hand-printed silk ties.

9. What promotional methods would you recommend a newly self-employed plumber to use to publicize his service? Give reasons.

10. A friend of yours is investigating premises for her new hairdressing salon. What factors would you advise her to consider when choosing premises, and what potential costs should she be aware of?

11. You have been operating a mobile car repair service for six months. You decide to buy a bigger van using a loan from your bank. How will these transactions affect both your balance sheet and profit and loss account?

12. What factors should you consider in designing a product to sell?

Case Study ‘Business Plan’

Tasks:

Prepare a business plan in five parts for a good or service of your choice. The purpose of the plan is to secure finance from a lender, and the plan should be produced with this in mind. The plan should contain a section on each of the following:

· Your business objectives for the short medium, and long term

· An outline marketing plan covering your product idea, its market potential, pricing and promotion strategies, distribution, methods of selling, and a marketing budget. The marketing plan should suggest a schedule of timings for each of these items.

· An outline production plan covering product design, development, and production methods

· The resource requirements of the business covering human, physical, financial, and time resources

· Financial data and forecasts, including a cashflow forecast, opening and projected balance sheet and profit and loss statement and an outline of your proposed means of monitoring and reviewing business performance and your financial systems.

In each section you must justify the choices you have made – for example, your choice of product, size and location of premises, production method.

Where appropriate, graphs and tables should be included in the text of your plan. Useful illustrations will include:

· A table of your business start-up costs

· A line chart of your projected net cashflow

· A break-even graph to show expected revenues and costs at different levels of output

· GANNT and PERT charts of your planned marketing and production activities

Prepare and make a short presentation of the main points of your plan to your lender. Use a range of visual aids, including charts and graphs, and prepare a brief summary of the plan to hand out to the lender.

Дата добавления: 2015-12-08