Business Plans - Are they really worth it?
Someone asked on LinkedIn - Are Business Plans really worth the effort?
There are Business Plans and business plans. The official Business Plan used for investors and banks may not be "worth the effort" if a loan or investment isn't part of the short term plan.
But having a written business plan, whatever that entails for a specific company is extremely important. I've seen this not only for my clients, but for my own office.
Not only is the process of research and coming up with the meat that will go into the plan important - but I think the process of actually writing it down is vital. When we talk, especially in groups - like at a meeting - our words tend to be less precise. When we write, especially when multiple people have input, our words become more specific.
It's almost like a magic talisman. If care and thought are put into a plan, companies seem to do better. If they either don't bother writing up a business plan, or they don't put any real thought into it, they do worse. Of course, as I wrote that down - rather than just thinking it - I realized... hmmm.... maybe it's not the business plan itself. Maybe it's that executives who are the type who would create a business plan are also the type that are more likely to succeed.
So I'd change my answer to - it's only worth the effort if you see the value to begin with.
