Core Concept – Business Plan
Based on the modules covered throughout the program, and your learning experiences, you are required to draft a business plan for a business of your choosing. This could be as a sole trader, a partnership, or a limited company, and is not specifically related to forming a business in Ireland. As it is your business plan which represents your business opportunity, you can decide what should be included in the plan, however, it is important to remember that the business plan provides you with a route map of your business for the first year or longer. You are required to address the major headings that are provided in the business plan template.
The minimum major Business Plan headings are as follows (with sub-headings outlined in the Business Plan template for guidance purposes):
- Executive Summary
- Company Description (this element is linked to the Entrepreneurship module)
- Market Analysis
- Marketing/Sales Strategy
- Research and Development
- Staffing and Operations
- Financial Projections (this element is linked to the Management Accounting 2 module)
- Appendix 1: Reflections
PART 1: ELEVATOR PITCH (RECORDED) (Addressing MLO 1)
You are required to create an elevator pitch based on your business idea, which is basically a short presentation that will include your recorded narration of content. An elevator pitch is a short overview of your business, products, or services, and typically is used in business settings such as face to face meetings. An elevator pitch can be one of the simplest yet most powerful tools for a small business owner, and as the name suggests, it is supposed to be short and to the point but convey a very informative pitch.
The pitch needs to be developed using Microsoft PowerPoint, any version and must be 5 slides maximum. The only required content element is the inclusion of SWOT analysis; this will fulfill the requirements of MLO 1. The SWOT can be based on your business idea, the market you intend to target, or the environment – micro or macro.
PART 2: BUSINESS PLAN (Addressing MLO 2, 3, 4, 5)
Using the supplied Business Plan template (Appendix 2 on Moodle), you are required to create a business plan for a business idea of your choosing. The business can take the form of a sole trader, partnership, or limited company and can be based in Ireland, or abroad or global. It is assumed that this business is new, and the purpose of the business plan is to seek initial funding or investment feedback.
The business plan template supplied was downloaded from the Enterprise Ireland website to provide a realistic learning experience on the production of a business plan. However, the template has been modified to suit the basic requirements of the Business Planning module. The template contains sub-headings and guidance text – this is there purely for guidance purposes only and can be ignored or used within your specific business plan.
In addition to the business plan, you are required to provide an Appendix to capture your reflections during the entire process of creating and developing your business plan. Reflection-in-Action is a concept connected to Reflective Practice or Reflexivity. Reflecting-in-Action is a process whereby an
individual makes a conscious effort to think about an activity and to consider what was positive, negative, or challenging. This reflective process allows the individual to consider changing a course of action, to consider how an action can be enhanced or improved for now and in the future. The reflection-in-action element will take the form of an informal reflections appendix in which you can structure this as you feel necessary.
The major headings for your business plan must include the following:
- Executive Summary
- Company Description (this element is linked to the Entrepreneurship module)
- Market Analysis
- Marketing/Sales Strategy
- Research and Development
- Staffing and Operations
- Financial Projections (this element is linked to the Management Accounting 2 module)
- Appendix 1: Reflections
You are not limited to the headings above. You can create new headings or even rename the headings above so long as the context is not changed. The sub-headings provided in the Business Plan template are for guidance purposes only.
