Art Jacoby's Monthly Newsletters
Newsletter Library - February 2007
The B Myths
Today’s business environment poses greater challenges than ever for growing companies. Markets are fragmented and complex, competition is more severe, and customers demand more for less. So, it’s time to dispel myths and embrace Business Plans as essential tools for creating sustainable advantages.
What is a Business Plan?
A Business Plan describes an opportunity and charts a course for
how to capture it. It aligns all disciplines into a cohesive, actionable
roadmap to take advantage of company strengths and market dynamics.
Good plans are thorough, yet easy to understand; Great plans answer
the toughest questions convincingly.
Let’s address the most common myths about Business Plans:
Myth #1: "We don’t need a plan"
Crafting and constructing a plan, which then can be challenged and
improved by competent advisors, increases your chances of success.
(This is true regardless of whether you are firing on all cylinders
or taking a beating!) It also increases your ability to attract
and retain talent.
Myth #2: "Business Plans are like trophies"
Great plans are intended to guide activities, but they will only
gather dust on your shelf if you don’t engage them as dynamic tools.
Keep them alive with frequent updating.
Myth #3: "Planning is not fun"
Are you kidding? Edit that boring mission statement and breathe
some life into it. Find out what customers want and what your competitors
are doing to satisfy them. Create a "better mousetrap" that steals
the opposition’s thunder and enriches your coffers. This is exhilarating!
Get Started! Business Plans are an indispensable tool. Embrace the process and your plan will be dynamic, alive and useful. Do what the pros do – build the plan, then work the plan.
Art Jacoby is Principal of Art Jacoby LLC, a strategy consultancy that drives business evolution with assessment, planning and guided execution services.
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