Expert Views on the Business Plan
Carl Schramm is not only a former CEO and President of the Ewing Marion
Kauffman Foundation he is also an expert PhD economist. Carl is very fond of the
entrepreneur and the business plan. As an entrepreneur I can relate to Carl’s list of
characteristics of an entrepreneur.
He describes an entrepreneur as someone who in the past has worked at least
one job they didn’t like. Truth be told they have probably worked at a lot of jobs
they didn’t like. Entrepreneurs have worked in more than one segment of the job
market in their lifetime. They have probably jumped from real estate, to sales, to
construction, and beyond. Entrepreneurs are able to spot potential when nobody
else does. What others may see as a disaster an entrepreneur will see a mountain of
opportunities. Most of us have worked in a startup before. Entrepreneurs are the
ones that are not afraid to take a bite, they are not afraid of the risk of failing.
Carl is a bit different from your average and his way of thinking is not like
many others. Carl does not believe that a business should stick to its plan like a
book. How can one forecast what you do not know? They only thing you can do is
predict and try to meet or exceed those expectations. He is absolutely right. Every
company should have a written business plan but that is only for a reference point.
The direction the business takes is unpredictable it depends greatly on the success
of the business. Instead of reading a business plan when determining if he will in
vest in a business or not he looks at the companies state. Is this the time, has the
company already reached momentum? Carl’s take on this business plan is great
for an expert like himself who can spot a superstar. It is a great idea however for
someone new to this it wouldn’t hurt to at least read the business plans.
Simone Brummelhuis who is also an expert in the field of new business ventures
has an interesting take on business plans as well. With her background being
entrepreneurship and law she is well aware of the risks involved in startups. She
is also very familiar with the process and legal work behind it. Brummelhuis’s take
on the business plan focuses highly on the executive summary. She believes more
time she be spent on developing an excellent executive summary as this will benefit
the company the most. Investors focus on this aspect of the business plan more
than others so make it shine. She also believes in focuses on what is currently in
the making for the business. What are we doing today to ensure our success? This
should be included according to Simone.
The key components investors are looking for in a plan are the things that
businesses are doing now. Investors also look at the executive summary the most.
It’s important to make this section of the business plan perfect. Some experts even
suggest putting the executive summary at the top portion of every page in your
business plan. This plan is crucial because it’s the pitch that the investor reads. It
is his determining factor. This portion of the plan will actually get the rest of the
plan to be viewed if it’s good enough. Just like a movie has a great introduction a
business plan should have an awesome executive summary.
Carl Schramm, Straight Talk On business (2012) retrieved 11/25/12 from
http://www.bpexpertviews.blogspot.com
Eric Markowitz, How to Write an Executive Summary (2012) 11/25/12
http://www.inc.com/guides/2010/09/how-to-write-an-executive-summary.html
Simone Brummelhuis, Blog, (2012) retrieved 11/25/12
http://www.bpexpertviews.blogspot.com
