Business plans

Entrepreneurs can play a central role in finding solutions to the world's toughest social problems. The failure rate for start-ups, however, is high....

People make business plans for all sorts of reasons — to attract funding, evaluate future growth, build partnerships, or guide development. Unfortunately, the vast majority of these plans are usually out of date by the time the printer ink dries. Business moves fast: the product’s features morph, new competitors emerge, or the economic climate shifts. […]

A business plan that asks -- and answers -- the right questions is a powerful tool.

Advice from people who've made it work.

In a series of four competitions, researchers found that the first two contestants were consistently rated lower.

Glossy descriptions of fantasy markets should not be confused with real customers.

Why the compensation plan and pricing plan trump everything else.

Every seasoned investor knows that detailed financial projections for a new company are an act of imagination. Nevertheless, most business plans pour...

A good business plan is more than a roadmap. It's the key to your business success.

The business plan admits the entrepreneur to the investment process. Without a plan furnished in advance, many investor groups won’t even grant an interview. And the plan must be outstanding if it is to win investment funds. Too many entrepreneurs, though, continue to believe that if they build a better mousetrap, the world will beat […]

The high failure rate among new business ventures is usually chalked up to the fundamental uncertainty of the process. In actuality, say McGrath and Keil,...

It's a better long-term strategy.

The current high level of venture capital investment is driving enormous innovation in business. About 40% of the growth in the U.S. GDP is coming out...

As a manager, people are your most important asset. If the team isn't right, even a perfect business plan can't succeed.

Be clear about your intentions.

Traditionally, the most reliable way for a firm to find its next wave of growth was to apply the capabilities of its core business in an adjacent market....

The most dubious business plans can appear solid, even smart, when illustrated with snappy circle-and-arrow graphics. Look closely, though, and you'll...

When you're innovating for your business, create a "plan to learn" that tests assumptions.

Without an appropriate business plan, an investment can crash and burn.

When Roger Brown and Linda Mason decided to start a child care and early-education company 15 years ago, they knew about the challenges inherent in the...