ImagesMagUK_Digital_Edition_March_2018

BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT www.images-magazine.com 20 images MARCH 2018 ■ A paper by the UK Trade Policy Observatory has modelled the likely impact of Brexit on 122 manufacturing sectors in the UK, based on estimates leaked from the Treasury. “The sectors classified as ‘textiles, apparel & footwear’ industry grouping seem likely to shrink as a result of Brexit: a very high proportion of their output is currently sold in the EU market,” says the paper’s authors. Leicester, an area known for manufacturing apparel, is reported by the authors as being one of the areas most at risk of a substantial decline in manufacturing employment. www.blogs.sussex.ac.uk/uktpo ■ The Financial Times reported in February that the government is unlikely to publish its white paper on post- Brexit immigration policy until October. Josh Hardie, CBI deputy director-general, responded to the report saying: “Firms need time to plan for change and that is why many will be deeply disappointed by any delays to the white paper. It is perfectly possible to be clear on people’s rights to work in the UK, for the transition period at least. The government should commit now that people’s rights to work won’t change over the first two years from our date of departure from the EU.” www.ft.com www.cbi.org.uk What are the benefits of continuous business planning, and what’s the best way to go about it? Business planning gets a bad rap. Often, it’s viewed as no more than a tedious requirement to secure funding, and once sufficient funding has been obtained, some business owners then make their number one biggest mistake: they let their business plan languish, forgotten, in a drawer, while they get on with doing what their business does. These business owners are missing out on a valuable business tool. A business plan is not, and should never be considered, a one-time effort, with a single end goal. Of course, it’s invaluable for securing funding, but a good business plan’s scope to enable businesses to reach their goals goes far beyond that. It’s an invaluable tool that should be an on-going process, the results feeding straight into the business’s strategy, helping it grow and achieve. A business plan is a fantastic way of exploring the business, defining objectives and your approach to them. This is useful not only at the start to ensure you’re well-prepared for the reality of running a business, but also throughout your business journey. As you progress, new opportunities, new threats and market changes will all naturally evolve, and you as a business owner will need to navigate them. With a robust plan, you’re far better placed to do this. So we’ve established that a business plan is important. But how do you write one? There’s no such thing as a ‘standard’ format for a business plan. You’ll need to work out the format and amount of detail that works best for your business, but a good rule of thumb to start with is around 15-25 pages, incorporating a balance of words, numbers and carefully-selected images. The key to a successful plan is to ensure that you have communicated your business vision and information fully and clearly, while not overwhelming the reader with superfluous detail. It’s vital to be as honest and clear as possible. Whether you’re a new start-up or at a growth stage, any investor, bank manager or any other typical business plan user will look to highlight areas where you could have been more prudent, or perhaps missed a vital business risk. Don’t try to hide things. Not only is it likely that an investor will spot it – making you look at best, ill-informed; at worst, dishonest – but providing a fair, honest and balanced view of both the opportunities and the risks for your business is important for any potential stakeholder, and also for your own strategy. Not identifying or addressing weaknesses is damaging both in terms of an investor’s perception of you as a business owner, but also for your business strategy. The more honestly that it’s prepared, the more robust the plan is – and the better its value for any business owner. A business plan is both a strategic plan and also a vision and a clear appraisal of the business. Once you start trading, it can be so easy to get caught up in working ‘in’ the business. A business plan provides an excellent accountability tool for you to set targets and budgets, which you can then track actual performance against, to ensure your business is working to achieve your goals. If you find you’re not hitting your KPIs, it’s time to reconsider your efforts and adjust accordingly. A well-thought out business plan gives you direction and structure, helps your business grow and positions you for success – but it can’t do that from the bottom of a drawer! Expert advice on the business of running a garment decoration company Jessica Shears is head of account at Dennis and Turnbull, a multi-award winning chartered accountancy firm that offers a range of professional accountancy and business advisory services. www.dennisandturnbull.com Q&A