It is essential to have an up to date business plan, whether your company is in the start-up phase or a mature on-going business, whether it's a company-wide business plan or a departmental one. A business plan is a tool for decision making--it is a living document that should be continuously reviewed in light of the business environment and actual performance. This better enables management to oversee business performance.

A business plan is necessary for three primary reasons:

1. It gives business owners a current assessment of the business as well as a roadmap for the future.
2. It helps a business grow and improve profitability by continuously evaluating and re-evaluating your successes and shortcomings.
3. It is essential to have an up to date business plan in order to secure financing, ranging from an overdraft facility or bank loan to venture capital funding.

Objectives
The objectives of the business plan are first to develop and communicate a plan of action that will achieve the company's strategic objective. Then to provide a means of monitoring progress towards that objective and of stimulating alternative action if the objective is unlikely to be met by the original plan. These cannot be achieved unless the plan defines the strategic objective and includes benchmarks or performance measures at key stages during the year.

The Planning Process
Growing companies need to step back and determine priorities that they can implement within the context of their business. To manage these planning and growth issues, we help you:

• Link long-term vision and strategy with specific short-term actions and performance.
• Tie objectives to measurable actions, avoiding tactics solely oriented to short-term financial results.
• Establish a blueprint for strategic growth that balances financial and non-financial measures.
• Align and integrate strategy, people, process, structure, and technology.

Many companies find that their strategic plans fall short of expectations for a variety of reasons:

• Plans may simply be financial projections that describe how the organization will perform on paper in the future, without a clear vision of how the company will accomplish this.
• Many strategic plans are built without a clear understanding of strategic market trends and competitive dynamics.
• Many plans do not address the specific organizational changes required to implement the plan.
• Finally, companies often perceive plans as written documents and not management tools for effecting change.

Often times, these factors contribute to a lack of management and organizational commitment and the plans are never implemented. Birdwell & Associates's professionals help you design a plan that is not only right for your business, but one which can be implemented to the fullest.