Читать книгу Business Plans For Dummies - Paul Tiffany - Страница 21

If your company is large enough to boast a management team, you should divvy up the work involved in putting together your written business plan. We’re not suggesting that you delegate responsibility just to make your job easier (although it certainly does). Different people bring different insights to your plan. With a team in place, you have a wider array of people and perspectives ready to read and review drafts, offer suggestions, and fine-tune the document to make it as good as you possibly can.

We can’t give you a simple formula for putting together your team. Every business is different. We can’t even tell you the ideal number of people to choose — that depends on the size of your company and the complexity of your plan. But here are a few tips that can help you create an efficient and effective team:

 Keep your team lean and mean. Too many planners are like too many chefs in the kitchen — they get in each other’s way. A bloated team can mean endless meetings and too many points of view. Involve only the number of people you think you really need to get the job done.

 Appoint people who want the job. Sure, you may have trouble finding volunteers who jump up and down at the chance to work on a business plan. But you need to make sure that whoever you choose is at least willing and able to complete the task. To spark your people’s enthusiasm, take time to explain why creating a written business plan is so important. See Chapter 2 if you need help convincing your team of the importance of a plan.

 Organize your team around the plan. By accomplishing this, you make sure that your people know the purpose of their task and how their work fits into the larger picture. Some of the assignments are straightforward. Your financial person takes charge of the financial review. Your marketing head puts together the customer segmentation section. However, if certain pieces of the plan are more complex than others or require tight coordination among units, think about assigning a small group to work on them.

 Put one person in charge. Keeping track of the whole process can be a job in itself, especially if you have a large team or a complicated plan. Name one person as the project director to manage the team and ensure that employees complete tasks on schedule. Make sure every person on the team understands that the person you choose has the ultimate authority.

 Appoint a wordsmith. A business plan is a written document. If you’re lucky, you have someone on your team who enjoys writing — or at least has the talent to put words down on paper with clarity. Pick a lucky person to be in charge of writing key sections of your plan, such as the executive summary. They can also serve as senior plan editor, checking grammar and spelling and making sure that the writing style is clear and consistent throughout the plan.