PROJECT BRIEF FOR N1576 NEW VENTURE CREATION AND BUSINESS PLANNING Individual project: A business plan of 3500 words (90%) to be submitted via Canvas. This individual work will be based on each student’s perspective relating to the team’s discussions on the project. Each plan needs to be written individually without input from other team members (no matter, whether, in the end, results are similar). Each team’s work will be checked carefully to make sure that each submission is individual, and this is particularly the case in relation to the financials which will evidence the individuality of the work. 3500 word business plan The individual project of 3,500 words should follow the format of an expanded business plan. The word count does not include the appendices and the final references list, all the rest is included. You should include the following: MAIN STRUCTURE OF THE INDIVIDUAL PROJECT: Note, each section will be discussed during the weekly workshop. Before the executive summary, please specify the group you belonged to and the idea presented in the group presentation (this short paragraph is not included in the word count) 1) Executive Summary max 100 words [Here you can summarise the most important aspects of your business idea. In a few words, try to explain WHY your idea is good and why people should invest in your business. The executive summary is a synopsis of the key points of your entire plan. That’s why, even being the first to read, it makes sense to write it last. It should include highlights from each section of the rest of the document – from the key features of the business opportunity through to the elements of the financial forecasts.] 2) Venture Overview: [What business will you be in? -What will you do? -Company Goals and Objectives -Company strengths and core competencies: What competencies does this company have, that make it valuable? What are the company’s strengths? For instance, the location can be a strength, your past experience in a given industry can be a core competence you have developed.] 2 – Business model canvas (see the corresponding lecture and the examples provided) you can include the map of your business model, especially if you want to propose a different one from the one proposed by your group. 3) Source of competitive advantage 4) Critical risks/threats and opportunities 5) Market analysis (overview) [Here you can briefly describe your target market, number of customers, etc. in the appendix you will go into the details of the full market analysis and you can use the tools you learned in the Marketing module]. 6) Competitor Analysis [This section shall highlight the competitive advantages of your direct competitors, what do they offer, and what they do not offer? From this, it shall emerge a gap for your business to fill. You shall focus on the main competitors and describe their source of competitive advantage, their market share and any relevant information. You shall use a benchmarking analysis (see the relevant workshop). You may dedicate a short paragraph to indirect competitors also.] 7) Financial Plan (Overview) [Here you should present the pricing strategies for your products and services. Be prepared to answer what the competition is charging for similar products. Here you start making assumptions about the business figures. You know what you are selling and at what price. But how many units do you think you can sell? Here you have to discuss and justify the assumptions you are making. You can also make quick calculations about an average month…] 8) Operations plan [In this section you shall try to address as many questions as possible as recommended in the relevant lecture on Operation Plans; this section will suit 3 your specific idea, so not all questions apply equally to all new venture creation; if you need to provide additional details you can use the appendix] 9) Management Team [this section shall outline the management team you identify and this can be different from the one described in the group coursework and can include key people you may want to have in your companies such as influencers or experts consultants.] 10) Funding Request [here you will describe your source of funding following one or more options described in the corresponding lecture, . business angels, venture capitalists, bank loans.] 11) Exit Strategy: short final paragraph in which you consider how you may eventually exit the market (the strategies are discussed in one of the lectures). All sections are equally important, so there is no recommended number of words for each section. Overall, the report should have a good balance. Appendices are compulsory and have no word limit. Use these for providing more details and elaborate better on what you have presented in each overview section. APPENDICES: 12) Market Analysis (full) 13) Types of Product and Service 14) Marketing and Promotion ( segmentation, type of customers) 15) Key Suppliers 16) Financial Plan [full]: 1) cashflow years 1-3 2) projected Profit and Loss 3) Sales Forecast 4) fixed and variable costs 5) Loans 4 Money should be in the British pound References (not included in the word count) The file can be either a PDF or a Word document and must be named with the company name/idea, . recyclable . Criteria for Evaluation. The evaluation is based on the following criteria: Individual project A) Overall structure. B) Line of argument and reference to concepts and tools discussed during the course, and to the recommended reading materials provided on canvas. C) Evidence provided. D) Presentation and format.
