Business Planning Flashcards
What procedures does your firm adopt to ensure they are profitable?
Harvest - it is an online timesheet that allows you to track how much time you spend on each job.
This ultimately allows us as a company to assess whether or not that job is profitable. If not then either our fee is too low or we are not working efficiently.
We also use:
Resource planners
Project reviews
Yearly Performance reviews
Team Meetings
Business Development Strategy
Project pipeline monitoring
Give some examples of fee earning vs. non fee earning staff at your company?
Fee earning examples would include:
Quantity Surveyors
Architects
Project Managers
Building Surveyors
Valuers
Commercial Real Estate Consultants
Non fee earning examples include:
Administration staff
Business Development Managers
IT support staff
What issues would a company experience with a high staff turnover?
Increased recruitment costs
Increased training costs
Inconsistent production / performance
Poor staff morale
Lower customer satisfaction / reputational damage
Loss of customers / repeat business
Higher operating expenditure
Reduced profitability
What is an investment appraisal?
An investment appraisal is used to determine whether a business or project would generate the required levels of return and be considered financially viable
The investment appraisal would typically consider:
Rate of return
Payback period
Net present value
What components would you identify within a business plan?
Executive Summary
Marketing Strategy
Vision & Mission Statements
Products & Services
Management Team & Organisational Structure
Financial Forecasts
Responsibilities & Targets
SWOT Analysis
PESTLE Analysis
How can a business plan help a company remain profitable?
Assist with securing new funding and investment
To grow existing client base and projects
Highlight key business objectives
Assist with responding to change
Grow market share
Supports accurate forecasting and budgeting
Allows resource planning
What is a business model?
A business model is the strategy implemented by an organisation to generate revenue and make a profit from its operations.
The business model may detail the following components:
The products or services being offered to the client base.
The business niche or sector being operated in.
Target clients / customers
The route to market entry including costs associated with bring the product or service to the target market
What is meant by the term business strategy?
A business strategy outlines the actions and decisions a company plans to take to reach its business goals and objectives.
The strategy will guide top level executives as well as departments and what activities should and should not be undertaken in order to execute the businesses goals and objectives.
Key components will include:
Vision & Business Objectives
SWOT Analysis
Resource Allocation
Performance Monitoring & Review
What is a business plan?
A written document defining a businesses future objectives and how it plans to achieve them.
What are SMART goals?
Specific.
Measurable.
Achieveable.
Relevent.
Time.
What is SWOT analysis?
A method to assess the:
Strengths.
Weaknesses.
Opporunities, and
Threast to a business.
What is an account planning session?
A review of current workload, resources and fees.
A review of pipeline opportunites and where relationships should be built.
How do you contribute to your companies goals?
Maintain excellence in my work.
Form good client relationships for ongoing business.
Keep up with new technologies and standards.
Upskill new and junior team members.
How do you think an up to date business plan can help an organisation in the current economic climate?
To gain additional investment, funding or finance.
To gain new instructions.
Respond to change.
For budgeting purposes.
Set targets for staff.
What is PESTLE and why should this be considered in business planning?
Political, economic, sociological, technological, legal and environmental (PESTLE):
This is another form of business analysis, based six external factors.
A business can consider these to assess the context in which it is operating and plan accordingly.
For example, what wider economic factors are affecting business performance? What technological innovations might help make the business more effective? And what environmental concerns does the business need to consider?
