how to critically review a business plan

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A Critical Review: How to Do it Step by Step

Last Updated:  

April 24, 2023

You have been asked to write a critical review of a novel, a painting, a movie, a play, a piece of music... and you don't know where to start? It's not the same as asking "how to write my papers or an academic essay" because a review has a different structure and emphases to pay attention to. But don't panic! Read this post carefully, and you'll learn how to organise and write it step by step. You can also read various sample critiques by other writers to prepare for them better.

Key Takeaways section on how to write a Critical Review

• Understand the purpose : A critical review should summarise and evaluate the work, providing well-argued and justified opinions.
• No standard length : Critical reviews can range from 500 to 800 words depending on the complexity of the work being analysed.
• Five-part structure : Include a title, introduction, summary, critical commentary, and conclusion in your review.
• Create a compelling title : A title should summarise your general opinion; consider writing it after completing the review to capture the essence of your conclusions.
• Offer well-supported evaluations : Your critical commentary should be extensive and supported by arguments, not just simple statements of liking or disliking the work.
• Brief conclusions : Summarise your critical commentary and overall thoughts on the work in a concise manner.
• Prepare before writing : Approach the work without prejudice, take notes, make summaries, and gather relevant information to ensure a successful critical review.

What to take into account when writing a critical review?

The first thing to remember is that it is an expository-argumentative text. Therefore, your critical review must fulfil two objectives:

Summarise the work , i.e., provide an overall view by synthesising its most important aspects.

Evaluate the work , that is, give a personal value judgement about it. Your opinion must be well-argued and justified.

And how long should this text be, you may be wondering. The truth is that there is no standard length. That is, it depends on how long and complex the object of your analysis is (reviewing a short film is not the same as reviewing a three-hour movie). A reasonable measure would be between 500 words minimum and 800 words maximum. But remember - a text must say something, give information, so if your text is short, but you don't think it is necessary to add anything more, don't continue writing! Go to the point and remember: empty text only serves to confuse and divert attention from the main topic.

The structure of a critical review

As we have seen, your review should summarise the work you are analysing and give your opinion about it. To fulfil both objectives, you will have to follow this five-part structure:

• ‍ Title of the review: it should be a title that synthesises your general opinion. For example, if you are reviewing the novel Love in the Time of Cholera, you liked it and what moved you most is how the author narrates a love that resists decades and decades - your title could be something like this: 'Love in the Time of Cholera: the moving tale of a patient love that can do anything. A trick to write the perfect title is to wait until the end of the review since the essence of the title is usually in the conclusions. ‍
• Introduction: this section should be very brief, and in it you will have to introduce the author and the work. In the case of Love in the Time of Cholera, we would briefly talk about Gabriel García Márquez's career and tell that the book is about the love between Florentino, Fermina and Juvenal throughout the years. ‍
• Summary : This third part is broader than the presentation, and it is here where you should go deeper into the theme of the work. It is about choosing those key moments or features that shape the play. Returning to the example of Love in the Time of Cholera, some moments that should be in the expository summary would be the love affair between Florentino and Fermina, her marriage to Juvenal, the death of the doctor, and the reunion with Florentino, since they mark turning points in the story. ‍
• Critical commentary: this point should be the most extensive of all the critical reviews since you must give your opinion about the work, but be careful! it is not enough to say 'I liked it' or 'I didn't like it', but your evaluation must have a basis and be supported by arguments. To do this, you will have to choose the points of the work that most caught your attention and comment on them, saying if you agree with the way it has been presented. And if the work has seemed novel or not, if you think it has maintained coherence from beginning to end, if the characters seem relevant to you, if you think another approach would have been more effective… and why. ‍
• Conclusions: this part should be very brief, and in it you have to summarise your critical commentary and say what you thought of the work in general and how it made you feel.

How to prepare a critical review

To make sure that the writing of your review is perfect, you will have to start preparing it before you start writing while you are enjoying the book.

Approach the works without prejudice! If, for example, you go to a concert thinking you won't like it, you will probably be unfairly negative in your review.

Take notes as you read, watch, listen and observe the work to recover them in your review.

In the case of long works, make summaries of their parts: it will be easier and faster to synthesise the whole.

Make sure you have a good understanding of the work to be able to judge it correctly. To do this, consult information and bibliography about it.

Now that you know how to write it, your next critical review will be a success!

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Strategy Review: How To Run It & What To Include

If you want to hit business targets before the year or quarter ends, you need to run effective strategy reviews. 

These reviews are an important part of strategy governance, equipping the leadership team with a comprehensive view of the organization’s performance and the data required for confident decision-making. 

Effective strategy reviews also help operational leaders and their teams improve operational efficiency by focusing on initiatives that drive business objectives without getting lost in daily tasks. 

With this in mind, here’s our detailed guide on how to conduct different types of strategy reviews.

What Is A Strategy Review?

A strategy review is a systematic evaluation and assessment of the organization's plans, initiatives , and goals. It’s a regular strategy meeting involving key stakeholders to determine the progress of the company’s strategic direction and check if everyone is still aligned with the business roadmap . 

When doing a strategy review, you must answer the following critical questions:

• How are activities in the strategic plan performing?
• Are we getting the expected results?
• Do we need to revisit the strategy due to some unforeseen issues?
• Are there factors that require us to change the strategic plan?

A strategic review ensures your short-term strategies align with the organization’s long-term strategic objectives and priorities. It also ensures you remain responsive to changes in the external market and that the current strategy is still the best approach to get your desired results.

How Often Should A Strategy Be Reviewed?

Typically, companies revisit their strategic plans once a year or occasionally as needed. Annual or irregular reviews put your organization at risk of missing opportunities, escalating preventable crises, and becoming too slow to adapt to market shifts . 

Strategy Execution Experts at Cascade recommend a different, more dynamic approach. 

They advise businesses to exercise ongoing strategic governance through systematic, bite-sized reviews .

With a more regular approach, you can identify and respond to any changes quickly, as well as reallocate and reprioritize resources depending on your organization’s needs.

They propose performing strategy reviews at two levels:

Dynamic performance & strategy review 

This includes business leaders and department heads . It’s a comprehensive high-level assessment of ongoing initiatives. Doing it quarterly ensures you can make strategic adjustments quickly and remain responsive to shifting market dynamics.

Operational health check 

This one is done more frequently and involves department heads, team leads, and program managers. This monthly review focuses on day-to-day operations and helps detect issues on time. It also ensures strategic alignment at the lower levels of the organization. 

How To Run A Strategy Review?

To effectively run a strategy review meeting, you need a structured process. Here’s a step-by-step guide:

Step 1: Prepare the data before the strategy review meeting

One of the crucial steps prior to the strategy review meeting is having all the required data within your reach—to ensure you’ll have the necessary data the day of the meeting. Using data-backed reports will help you and your management team properly evaluate the business performance and refine your short-term strategies. 

📌 If you’re conducting a quarterly dynamic performance review , you need to collect the following reports:

• Financial performance report that includes department revenue and expenditure forecast
• Resource utilization and availability report that includes the budget vs. actual performance
• Business-level operational key performance indicators (KPIs) , which include competitive & market analysis, and CSAT & customer retention

📌 If you’re doing a monthly operational health check , you must have the following reports:

• Resource utilization and availability report that cover budget utilization to target, and employee availability and resourcing constraints
• Department and team-level operational KPIs , citing the progress to target
• Project and initiative tracking report , which includes risk & dependency tracking and initiative-relationship mapping

These reports must be prepared in advance by the respective business leaders, department heads, team leads, and project managers expected to attend the strategy meeting .

👉 Do it in Cascade: 

Use Cascade’s reports to collect data, show progress, and add business context to all the information. This enables you to communicate clear insights that support better decision-making.

📚 Explore this informative article explaining when to use dashboards versus reports.

Step 2: Review objectives and past performance

This is the step when you get everyone together in a physical or virtual room. Start with recapping the purpose of the strategy meeting and ensure everyone is aligned from the outset. Give attendees enough time to present the reports they put together, including their KPIs and other achievements since the last session. 

Review significant milestones and examine everyone’s performance thoroughly. This detailed evaluation of historical performance will help you identify patterns and trends to help you achieve future goals.

Step 3: Open the floor for a strategic discussion

After the reports have been presented, encourage the attendees to share their observations and insights. 

Explore the “why” behind the reported information. Why did some activities yield these kinds of results, and why didn't others? Determine if there were any missed opportunities that should’ve been taken or best practices that drove success. 

This is also a great opportunity for leaders to gain valuable insights about what’s happening in other departments and business units. You or a designated facilitator should ensure there’s a balanced discussion and everyone gets to speak. 

Step 4: Discuss new strategies and changes

Next, lay down the rules for how you'll decide which new strategies to pursue, focusing on what will help your organization hit its targets. 

Look at the upsides and downsides of each idea. Facilitate structured discussions and debates to deliberate on the merits of each strategy, ensuring every aspect is thoroughly examined. Use decision-making tools like SWOT analysis that can turn tough strategic decisions into a clear-cut process. 

Final decisions can be achieved through consensus or voting, depending on the organization's culture. 

💡For high-risk strategies , consider pilot testing and have contingency plans in place. 

Step 5: Assign new initiatives and responsibilities

For each new strategy or strategic objective, assign owners and set deadlines.  This will help you create accountability and eliminate ambiguity on who is responsible for what. Deadlines also create a sense of urgency and prevent procrastination. 

Defining clear roles before you end the current review process will ensure that employees will remain committed to the strategy and a more efficient review session next time.

💡Different companies have their own way of doing things—some assign owners during the review meeting, some do it after (check out step 6 below). Pick the method that's best for your organization, but remember assigning owners is a must for accountability.

👉 Do it in Cascade:

Using Cascade, you can directly link each action item to its owner and set a specific deadline. A nice progress bar will show the percentage completion of an item. There’s also an indicator of whether an item is on track, behind, or delayed.

Step 6: Keep everyone in the loop post-meeting

When rolling out new strategies and changes post-review, clarity is key to keep the momentum going. Department heads and team leads must effectively interpret meeting outcomes into actionable departmental plans and relay them to their teams.

For example, if a new sales strategy is in place, the sales manager should outline the action plan, assign responsibilities to team members, and share timelines during a kick-off meeting.

Follow this up with weekly check-ins for progress reports and space for team members to share insights or hurdles they're facing.

Cascade alerts your team whenever changes are made to the plan. Tag owners/contributors, and they'll be notified in real-time. This will help you keep everyone in sync and focused on new priorities. 

Cascade Strategy Execution Platform boosts operational efficiency by cutting duplication and aligning teams toward common goals. It helps to eliminate waste stemming from misalignment, promoting smoother operations and improved performance.

What Are The Benefits Of A Strategy Review?

Breaking away from conventional practice and implementing a more frequent strategy review has several advantages:

Stay flexible and quick on your feet

By keeping an eye on how your strategy is doing, you can spot new market trends, what your customers want, and what your competitors are up to. 

This means you can quickly tweak your plans and reallocate resources to grab new chances or dodge potential setbacks. Being agile in business today means you're always ahead of the game, ready to outpace your rivals.

Make decisions based on data

When you review your strategy, you're guided by hard data—evaluating KPIs and various business metrics . This data-centric approach grants you a clear lens to assess performance and direct key choices that propel your business ahead. You base your decisions on hard evidence, not just guesses or stories. 

This know-how empowers you to distribute resources where they're most effective and double down on strategies that truly deliver. Regular strategy reviews will also lead to better annual plans rooted in data.

Spot potential problems early on 

By looking at performance metrics and how things are going, you can catch small issues before they turn into big headaches. Mitigating risks proactively means you can sidestep major troubles that might hurt your company's good name.

Keep the company's operations aligned with its business strategy

With regular strategic reviews, teams, and departments across the organization can coordinate their efforts to match the company's main objectives. This coordination helps break down silos between different business units and improves cross-functional collaboration , which is crucial for achieving overall success.

Use Cascade To Hit Your Business Targets  🚀

In strategy meetings, it's not just about reviewing numbers; it's about understanding the "why" behind the data, which is essential for informed decision-making. With Cascade, you can go beyond the numbers and get the full strategic context every time you review the progress of your strategy. 

Cascade simplifies strategy reviews by:

• Consolidating your data in one place. With Cascade’s 1,000+ integrations with various data sources, you can automate data collection and eliminate the need for manual entry. This ensures information presented during strategy meetings is accurate and up-to-date.
• Using real-time dashboards . Cascade consolidates diverse business metrics into real-time dashboards, giving you a comprehensive view of the organization’s performance. These dashboards provide an instant visualization of key business metrics, making it easier for teams to assess progress and identify trends at a glance.
• Offering pre-built report templates. Building reports for frequent strategic meetings can be time-consuming. Cascade provides pre-built templates that simplify the reporting process, saving you time and ensuring report consistency. 
• Adding strategic context. Cascade’s reports include actionable narratives that can be tailor-made and ready for regular reviews at any time. These narratives reflect the organization’s progress and can be easily presented or shared with stakeholders. 

Support your organization’s resilience by doing frequent bite-sized strategic reviews. Let Cascade handle the grunt work so you can focus on the execution. 

Sign up today for free or book a 1:1 product tour with Cascade’s strategy expert.

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Conducting A Strategic Review: An Elite Consultant's Ultimate Guide

Article Snapshot

​ This piece of content is written by one of Expert360's top consultants. Andrew Hone is a Director at Zenith Strategy Associates (www.zenithstrategy.com), a boutique advisory business with a primary focus on helping organisations with strategy development and implementation.

He was formerly a Partner at L.E.K. and a Principal with Bain & Company and has more than 20 years’ experience as a strategy consultant. Andrew partners with Expert360 to undertake strategic reviews for clients. By combining his expertise conducting strategic reviews with our network of experts, we can provide a team that is tailored to reflect your specific project.  Start your journey by  hiring strategy experts here , or  apply to become an Expert360 consultant .

What Is A Strategic Review?

A strategic review is a structured process to identify new value-creating opportunities within a business. This could be about improving the performance of an existing division or taking advantage of a new market adjacency opportunity.

Many companies undertake strategic reviews on an annual basis as part of their strategic planning process. Other businesses will undertake them on a more ad hoc basis when presented with a specific opportunity or problem within the business.

A change of ownership or appointment of a new CEO can often trigger the need for a strategic review of the business as a way to clarify the key areas of opportunity and challenges within the existing portfolio.  

Whatever its origins, a strategic review should be a clear fact-based analysis of the business opportunity or issue. It provides an opportunity to step back from day-to-day operations to assess the strategic foundations on which a business is built.

The outcome of a strategic review should be a clear set of strategic recommendations and a future roadmap for the business that charts its course and enables increased and sustained performance now and for the future.    

The Benefits Of A Strategic Review

When conducted well, a strategic review can deliver significant benefits to a business. In addition to the direct financial benefits of improving performance and targeting new growth opportunities, the process itself can improve alignment between employees, senior management teams and other key stakeholders, helping to drive a high-performance culture and clarity on the future direction of the business.  

Scoping A Strategic Review

The scope of a strategic review should be tailored to the specific opportunity or issue to be investigated.

Delivering A Successful Strategic Review

Start with the answer  .

Strategic reviews are often undertaken under considerable pressure to get to an answer rapidly. Every day needs to count. You can’t afford to spend time on research or analysis that doesn’t make the final cut.

The leading strategy firms, therefore, adopt a hypothesis-led approach to strategy formulation (e.g. McKinsey’s Decision Tree or Bain’s Answer First approaches).  

By the end of day two of the project, you should have completed preliminary interviews with the relevant stakeholders and have a good understanding of the existing available data. This is a good time to be mapping out the potential answer and logic structure that will underpin the remaining activities.

A good structure will be logical, cover all the relevant factors that underpin the recommendation, and avoid duplication of analysis (mutually exclusive and collectively exhaustive).  

Having defined the logic structure, you can then identify where the gaps are based on your current state of knowledge, and therefore where additional analysis is needed to test an assertion or element of the recommendation.

This then becomes the basis of a focused work plan for the remainder of the project.   

When operating under a severe time constraint, it is critical to be 80/20 in undertaking the new analysis.

Feedback from customers can be key, for example when considering a market adjacency opportunity or a turnaround of an existing business. A four-week timeframe is not long enough to undertake a major program of primary research.

However, a short focused online survey or series of telephone interviews with key customers can nonetheless achieve a lot in a short space of time and help to bring the recommendations to life. An 80/20 mindset is particularly important when it comes to financial modelling. Financial models are typically used in a strategy to illustrate the incremental financial impact of a recommended course of action over a base case.

Strategic financial modelling requires a different approach to the detailed budgeting and other financial analyses that are typically performed within an organisation.  

The model should be stripped back to the smallest set of core assumptions that enable alternative strategic scenarios to be assessed and compared to an underlying base case. A detailed analysis of working capital or tax liabilities is rarely necessary at this level of analysis.  

Allocate Dedicated Project Resources For The Review  

​Some or all of these roles may be company resources allocated to the review. The core team structure involves a project lead, who would typically be full-time, plus potentially one or more supporting analysts/modellers depending on the scale and complexity of the review. A project sponsor is needed to oversee the review.  

The project sponsor should be a member of the senior management team who can provide guidance and review during the project, and resolve any internal roadblocks to the analysis. If the analyst/modeller is an external resource, it is also useful to have an allocated internal resource with a good understanding of the company’s operational and financial data.

In addition, where the review involves a new market or product opportunity, advisers with expertise in the relevant area can add significant value based on their experience.  

Allow enough time to produce a good report  

You should not underestimate the time required to distil complex strategic analysis into a clearly presented and logically structured report. It’s therefore good practice to start planning well in advance of the final week.

I try to have an initial draft outline of the report developed by the end of week 1. Having the end output in mind early on also helps to maintain an 80/20 focus across the project team on the key analysis that is required.  

Build in time to think about the implementation  

A strategic review is a waste of time unless it is accompanied by a clear call to action and plan of attack. As well as making clear and logical recommendations, it must also set out how those recommendations would be implemented. 

Within a four week timeframe, it’s not going to be possible to set out a detailed implementation plan. Nonetheless, a high-level view of the implementation roadmap detailing the key initiatives to be implemented and expected timeframes helps to bring the strategy to life and can form the basis of a more detailed program plan.

Remember, the right talent is critical to success. At Expert360 we connect the best talent with the right project.

Summary: The Ultimate Guide To A Four Week Review

Conducting a strategic review requires the coordination of a range of analytical activities, financial modelling, stakeholder management and report development (see below for an illustrative schedule for a four-week review). 

The principles outlined above are vital when attempting to complete a strategic review in a four-week timeframe.

However, a disciplined approach underpinned by a clear logical framework and a pragmatic analytical approach can significantly increase the success of the process, irrespective of how long you have to complete the work.

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Andrew is an experienced strategy consultant with extensive international experience across Australia, the UK and Europe.

How to make a business plan

Table of Contents

How to make a good business plan: step-by-step guide.

A business plan is a strategic roadmap used to navigate the challenging journey of entrepreneurship. It's the foundation upon which you build a successful business.

A well-crafted business plan can help you define your vision, clarify your goals, and identify potential problems before they arise.

But where do you start? How do you create a business plan that sets you up for success?

This article will explore the step-by-step process of creating a comprehensive business plan.

What is a business plan?

A business plan is a formal document that outlines a business's objectives, strategies, and operational procedures. It typically includes the following information about a company:

Products or services

Target market

Competitors

Marketing and sales strategies

Financial plan

Management team

A business plan serves as a roadmap for a company's success and provides a blueprint for its growth and development. It helps entrepreneurs and business owners organize their ideas, evaluate the feasibility, and identify potential challenges and opportunities.

As well as serving as a guide for business owners, a business plan can attract investors and secure funding. It demonstrates the company's understanding of the market, its ability to generate revenue and profits, and its strategy for managing risks and achieving success.

Business plan vs. business model canvas

A business plan may seem similar to a business model canvas, but each document serves a different purpose.

A business model canvas is a high-level overview that helps entrepreneurs and business owners quickly test and iterate their ideas. It is often a one-page document that briefly outlines the following:

Key partnerships

Key activities

Key propositions

Customer relationships

Customer segments

Key resources

Cost structure

Revenue streams

On the other hand, a Business Plan Template provides a more in-depth analysis of a company's strategy and operations. It is typically a lengthy document and requires significant time and effort to develop.

A business model shouldn’t replace a business plan, and vice versa. Business owners should lay the foundations and visually capture the most important information with a Business Model Canvas Template . Because this is a fast and efficient way to communicate a business idea, a business model canvas is a good starting point before developing a more comprehensive business plan.

A business plan can aim to secure funding from investors or lenders, while a business model canvas communicates a business idea to potential customers or partners.

Why is a business plan important?

A business plan is crucial for any entrepreneur or business owner wanting to increase their chances of success.

Here are some of the many benefits of having a thorough business plan.

Helps to define the business goals and objectives

A business plan encourages you to think critically about your goals and objectives. Doing so lets you clearly understand what you want to achieve and how you plan to get there.

A well-defined set of goals, objectives, and key results also provides a sense of direction and purpose, which helps keep business owners focused and motivated.

Guides decision-making

A business plan requires you to consider different scenarios and potential problems that may arise in your business. This awareness allows you to devise strategies to deal with these issues and avoid pitfalls.

With a clear plan, entrepreneurs can make informed decisions aligning with their overall business goals and objectives. This helps reduce the risk of making costly mistakes and ensures they make decisions with long-term success in mind.

Attracts investors and secures funding

Investors and lenders often require a business plan before considering investing in your business. A document that outlines the company's goals, objectives, and financial forecasts can help instill confidence in potential investors and lenders.

A well-written business plan demonstrates that you have thoroughly thought through your business idea and have a solid plan for success.

Identifies potential challenges and risks

A business plan requires entrepreneurs to consider potential challenges and risks that could impact their business. For example:

Is there enough demand for my product or service?

Will I have enough capital to start my business?

Is the market oversaturated with too many competitors?

What will happen if my marketing strategy is ineffective?

By identifying these potential challenges, entrepreneurs can develop strategies to mitigate risks and overcome challenges. This can reduce the likelihood of costly mistakes and ensure the business is well-positioned to take on any challenges.

Provides a basis for measuring success

A business plan serves as a framework for measuring success by providing clear goals and financial projections . Entrepreneurs can regularly refer to the original business plan as a benchmark to measure progress. By comparing the current business position to initial forecasts, business owners can answer questions such as:

Are we where we want to be at this point?

Did we achieve our goals?

If not, why not, and what do we need to do?

After assessing whether the business is meeting its objectives or falling short, business owners can adjust their strategies as needed.

How to make a business plan step by step

The steps below will guide you through the process of creating a business plan and what key components you need to include.

1. Create an executive summary

Start with a brief overview of your entire plan. The executive summary should cover your business plan's main points and key takeaways.

Keep your executive summary concise and clear with the Executive Summary Template . The simple design helps readers understand the crux of your business plan without reading the entire document.

2. Write your company description

Provide a detailed explanation of your company. Include information on what your company does, the mission statement, and your vision for the future.

Provide additional background information on the history of your company, the founders, and any notable achievements or milestones.

3. Conduct a market analysis

Conduct an in-depth analysis of your industry, competitors, and target market. This is best done with a SWOT analysis to identify your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Next, identify your target market's needs, demographics, and behaviors.

Use the Competitive Analysis Template to brainstorm answers to simple questions like:

What does the current market look like?

Who are your competitors?

What are they offering?

What will give you a competitive advantage?

Who is your target market?

What are they looking for and why?

How will your product or service satisfy a need?

These questions should give you valuable insights into the current market and where your business stands.

4. Describe your products and services

Provide detailed information about your products and services. This includes pricing information, product features, and any unique selling points.

Use the Product/Market Fit Template to explain how your products meet the needs of your target market. Describe what sets them apart from the competition.

5. Design a marketing and sales strategy

Outline how you plan to promote and sell your products. Your marketing strategy and sales strategy should include information about your:

Pricing strategy

Advertising and promotional tactics

Sales channels

The Go to Market Strategy Template is a great way to visually map how you plan to launch your product or service in a new or existing market.

6. Determine budget and financial projections

Document detailed information on your business’ finances. Describe the current financial position of the company and how you expect the finances to play out.

Some details to include in this section are:

Startup costs

Revenue projections

Profit and loss statement

Funding you have received or plan to receive

Strategy for raising funds

7. Set the organization and management structure

Define how your company is structured and who will be responsible for each aspect of the business. Use the Business Organizational Chart Template to visually map the company’s teams, roles, and hierarchy.

As well as the organization and management structure, discuss the legal structure of your business. Clarify whether your business is a corporation, partnership, sole proprietorship, or LLC.

8. Make an action plan

At this point in your business plan, you’ve described what you’re aiming for. But how are you going to get there? The Action Plan Template describes the following steps to move your business plan forward. Outline the next steps you plan to take to bring your business plan to fruition.

Types of business plans

Several types of business plans cater to different purposes and stages of a company's lifecycle. Here are some of the most common types of business plans.

Startup business plan

A startup business plan is typically an entrepreneur's first business plan. This document helps entrepreneurs articulate their business idea when starting a new business.

Not sure how to make a business plan for a startup? It’s pretty similar to a regular business plan, except the primary purpose of a startup business plan is to convince investors to provide funding for the business. A startup business plan also outlines the potential target market, product/service offering, marketing plan, and financial projections.

Strategic business plan

A strategic business plan is a long-term plan that outlines a company's overall strategy, objectives, and tactics. This type of strategic plan focuses on the big picture and helps business owners set goals and priorities and measure progress.

The primary purpose of a strategic business plan is to provide direction and guidance to the company's management team and stakeholders. The plan typically covers a period of three to five years.

Operational business plan

An operational business plan is a detailed document that outlines the day-to-day operations of a business. It focuses on the specific activities and processes required to run the business, such as:

Organizational structure

Staffing plan

Production plan

Quality control

Inventory management

Supply chain

The primary purpose of an operational business plan is to ensure that the business runs efficiently and effectively. It helps business owners manage their resources, track their performance, and identify areas for improvement.

Growth-business plan

A growth-business plan is a strategic plan that outlines how a company plans to expand its business. It helps business owners identify new market opportunities and increase revenue and profitability. The primary purpose of a growth-business plan is to provide a roadmap for the company's expansion and growth.

The 3 Horizons of Growth Template is a great tool to identify new areas of growth. This framework categorizes growth opportunities into three categories: Horizon 1 (core business), Horizon 2 (emerging business), and Horizon 3 (potential business).

One-page business plan

A one-page business plan is a condensed version of a full business plan that focuses on the most critical aspects of a business. It’s a great tool for entrepreneurs who want to quickly communicate their business idea to potential investors, partners, or employees.

A one-page business plan typically includes sections such as business concept, value proposition, revenue streams, and cost structure.

Best practices for how to make a good business plan

Here are some additional tips for creating a business plan:

Use a template

A template can help you organize your thoughts and effectively communicate your business ideas and strategies. Starting with a template can also save you time and effort when formatting your plan.

Miro’s extensive library of customizable templates includes all the necessary sections for a comprehensive business plan. With our templates, you can confidently present your business plans to stakeholders and investors.

Be practical

Avoid overestimating revenue projections or underestimating expenses. Your business plan should be grounded in practical realities like your budget, resources, and capabilities.

Be specific

Provide as much detail as possible in your business plan. A specific plan is easier to execute because it provides clear guidance on what needs to be done and how. Without specific details, your plan may be too broad or vague, making it difficult to know where to start or how to measure success.

Be thorough with your research

Conduct thorough research to fully understand the market, your competitors, and your target audience . By conducting thorough research, you can identify potential risks and challenges your business may face and develop strategies to mitigate them.

Get input from others

It can be easy to become overly focused on your vision and ideas, leading to tunnel vision and a lack of objectivity. By seeking input from others, you can identify potential opportunities you may have overlooked.

Review and revise regularly

A business plan is a living document. You should update it regularly to reflect market, industry, and business changes. Set aside time for regular reviews and revisions to ensure your plan remains relevant and effective.

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Quick Guide to Doing a Strategic Business Review

Chris Leadley

[email protected]

A Strategic Business Review is an audit, or health check, of a company’s current financial and operational position.

The aim of a business review is to find areas in the business that need to be corrected and then work out ways to do it.

By carrying out your own business review you can look into areas that are concerning you and develop real, workable solutions to the problems before it’s too late.

It is part of working on your business rather than in it.

Gain valuable insight into your business with a business review

Identifying, understanding, and solving problems in your business is critical in delivering sustained growth and profitability.

A systematic analysis of the key areas of your business can help to highlight performance issues, helping you to understand what your problems are and why it is important to fix them in order to drive the success of your business.

What areas need to be covered by a business review?

A thorough analysis of the following key aspects of your business should be undertaken:

The review should also examine other critical issues that may affect your business, including:

• Competition
• Market dynamics
• Creditor and stakeholder expectations and objectives
• Legislation affecting the business and industry in general
• Lender considerations

Identifying and understanding the issues in your business is the first step in its transformation. The next step is creating the step-by-step plan, process and action solution needed to solve those issues.

The business review plan

Once you have completed the business review you need to create the plan on how you intend to address and fix the issues found in each of the key areas.

Fixes may include updating your marketing plan, developing a cashflow forecast, or applying for finance to invest in new equipment.

The plan should detail how the fixes will be applied, who will manage them, the resources required, and when they will be done by.

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If you want some help to carry out a business review get in touch today. Email [email protected] or call us on 0800 975 0380

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Business Plan Review

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A business plan review is an in-depth examination of your business plan and its viability. It can be conducted by a single expert, a panel of experts, or you and your colleagues.

What Is a Business Plan?

A business plan is essential for any company wishing to start or expand its operations. It provides a framework for decision-making and helps to make sure that all sections of the organization are working together towards common goals. A good business plan can also help attract investors or obtain loans from banks or other lending institutions.

The main purpose of a business plan is to provide investors with information about the opportunities and challenges facing your company so they can make informed decisions about whether or not they want to invest in it. If they decide to invest, they'll know how much money they are likely to make and what risks might arise during their investment term (usually between five years and ten years).

Of course, not all startups need a full-blown business plan — but if you seek outside funding or investment, it's best to start developing yours as early as possible. And even if you don't seek outside funding, it's still smart to develop a comprehensive plan for your business to clearly define what success looks like and how you'll get there.

What Is a Business Plan Review?

A business plan review should be conducted before you begin your venture, at least once during its life cycle (preferably after you have experienced some success), and when it comes time for you to close up shop. The objective is to identify strengths and weaknesses in your plan so that you can take steps toward improving those areas.

The purpose of a business plan review is not to evaluate the likelihood of success for a given project or company but rather to determine whether the project has been adequately researched and whether the information presented is accurate and comprehensive enough for investors or other stakeholders to make an informed decision about investing in it.

Why Should You Have Your Business Plan Reviewed?

Your business plan is a living document. Over time, it will change as you grow and learn more about your business, market and competition.

But even when the plan isn't changing, it's important to review it regularly to ensure that you're still on track. Here are seven reasons why:

A good review will give you an unbiased look at your plan, highlighting areas where more information is required or gaps in your thinking. This can help ensure that your plan contains everything it needs to, which makes it easier to manage and gives investors confidence in your business.

A business plan is a blueprint for reaching your long-term goals. But a good review will help you see how well your current strategy aligns with those goals and whether there are any holes in the plan. If there are gaps, the reviewer can help you identify what needs to be changed and where resources must be allocated to achieve those goals.

Having someone look over your plan from an objective point of view can help you see potential problems before they become major issues. You might find that something is missing from your strategy or that too many steps are involved in achieving your goals. It could also reveal other important information that will help improve the overall quality of your plan.

Business plans don't just cover what's happened so far — they also forecast what's going to happen next year, six months from now and beyond. So if things change along the way, they may not be reflected in the plan written today. A review can help keep your focus on where you want to go in the future by reviewing your progress each month and adjusting accordingly if needed.

A good consultant will give you constructive feedback about areas where your business plan falls short. This is invaluable when it comes time to revise your plan to more accurately reflect the reality of what's happening in your company, whether due to external factors or internal mistakes. A comprehensive review will also show you where there are holes in your strategy and suggest how they can be filled to strengthen your company's position in its marketplace.

Looking at how your business has performed over time, you can identify areas of concern before they become serious problems.

For example, if sales are declining or profits are shrinking, these trends might be due to temporary factors that can be corrected with better marketing or product development. If sales continue to fall despite these efforts, however, there could be deeper-rooted problems that need addressing.

A good business plan will give you an idea of what your company can accomplish in the short term and over time.

A good business plan also helps potential investors understand what your business is about and why it has the potential for success. This means that if they invest in your company, they can be more confident that they're making a smart choice that will make them money.

• Business Strategy: Planning a company's strategic direction and goals. The business strategy consists of setting a business's vision and mission, identifying its strengths and weaknesses, and evaluating growth opportunities.
• Business Forecast: A business forecast predicts how well the company's revenue and expenses will fare for the next few years. It typically includes financial statements for the current year, estimates for the following year, and projections for two or three subsequent years.
• Bank-Ready Business Plan: A business plan that has been carefully prepared to meet all criteria set by banks when applying for a loan. The bank will want financial projections showing how your business can repay the loan and reasonable evidence that you have identified all costs associated with starting and operating your new business.

Hire the best lawyers for a business plan review through Contracts Counsel where you can find many qualified and vetted lawyers to help you go over your business plan.

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How to Run a Productive Monthly Business Plan Review Meeting

Noah Parsons

5 min. read

Updated April 2, 2024

Most people think that meetings are a waste of time. They’re right.

Too many meetings are run poorly, have no real objective, and waste employees’ time—which kills productivity.

There’s tons of advice and information on how to run better meetings and cut down on useless meetings that are making your organization move slower. I absolutely encourage you to  be ruthless in your pursuit of fewer and more efficient meetings .

But, here at Palo Alto Software, we’ve found one meeting that is simply indispensable. It only takes an hour each month, keeps the management team up to speed on everything that’s going on in the company, and helps us plan and manage in a lean and effective way.

This meeting is our monthly plan review meeting. The meeting has been a fixture of our management strategy for years and is simply one of the most effective ways for us to continue to grow the company and adjust our course as necessary.

For us, business planning isn’t just a one-time or annual event. Instead, it’s an ongoing process where we are constantly reviewing our process and adjusting course as necessary while ensuring that we’re  staying on track toward our larger goals .

We treat planning not as a document, but as a management tool  that helps guide decisions and strategy.

Here’s a quick overview of how we structure our monthly plan review meetings and what’s worked for us over the years.

1. Let’s do the numbers

We always start with the numbers first . How did we do last month compared to our forecast? How did we do compared to the same month last year? What does our year-to-date performance look like?

We always spend time drilling into the numbers, beyond the top-line revenue and expenses, to better understand the drivers behind our performance. Did all product lines perform well? Or did some underperform? Did we spend as planned, or were there some areas that we overspent in?

Most importantly, we review our cash position and  cash flow . Did we collect money as planned? What is our cash flow forecast for the next few months?

While financial reports can be reviewed outside of a meeting, reviewing them together as a team encourages questions and discussion around our revenue and spending.

• 2. Are we there yet?

Once we review our financial performance, we review our “ major milestones ”—the big tasks we had hoped to get done in the past month and our plans for the next month.

We discuss how various teams might be working with each other on different projects and talk about the specific milestones that we have planned. Are these still the tactics that we want to work on that will help achieve our goals? Do we need to shift priorities? Is there new learning and information that would have us change our schedule?

By reviewing major initiatives on a monthly basis, we can stay agile  and make changes as needed. As we learn more about our customers and our market, we might shift strategies and develop new milestones.

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• 3. Long-range goals and strategy

Next, we review our long-range strategic goals. While this doesn’t change too often in our situation as an established company, new startups might shift their strategy frequently as they search for a business model that works.

For those early-stage startups, this step of the meeting may be the most important step and take the longest. For more established companies, this part of the meeting might typically only take a few minutes.

Instead of delving deep into a 40-page business plan document to review our strategy, we review our lean plan, or our one-page business plan. It covers our company identity, the core problem we solve for our customers, our solution, competition, and  sales and marketing strategy . It’s  all on one page so it’s easy to read, review, and change quickly .

• 4. Issues to process

Finally, anyone on the team can bring forward any issues that they want to discuss. This could include new opportunities to consider, prioritization of product features, potential partnerships, or internal HR issues.

Everything is fair game and we try to come up with resolutions and next steps for any issue that’s brought up.

We’ve found that this type of open-ended discussion really helps generate new ideas and brings different perspectives from managers of different teams.

I believe that all companies would benefit from a monthly review of their business. These types of meetings keep everyone on the same page, help share information about progress, and turn planning into a tool that helps teams make informed decisions.

To make a monthly strategy meeting successful, you also need to follow a few guidelines:

1. put the meeting on the calendar.

It’s important to make it a formal event that’s on the schedule. It can’t be optional and it has to be at a regular time so that everyone always knows when the meeting is.

For us, we started out with the meeting on the 3rd Thursday of every month. As our bookkeeping and accounting processes have become more efficient, we’ve been able to move our meeting to the 2nd Friday of the month.

2. Follow a repeatable agenda

While different topics will come up for discussion, it’s important that your plan review meeting has a repeatable agenda.

That means making sure that you have your numbers ready for review and that your team has updates on their goals.

3. Be prepared to change the plan

These plan review meetings aren’t just about staying the course and blindly following the plan. Instead, they are about adjusting the plan. Perhaps you’ll discover that you should be investing more in marketing, or that you’re going to be able to expand and hire faster than you originally planned.

The plan review meeting is about making adjustments to your goals and strategies based on what you’ve discovered in the past month.

See why 1.2 million entrepreneurs have written their business plans with LivePlan

Noah is the COO at Palo Alto Software, makers of the online business plan app LivePlan. He started his career at Yahoo! and then helped start the user review site Epinions.com. From there he started a software distribution business in the UK before coming to Palo Alto Software to run the marketing and product teams.

Table of Contents

• 1. Let’s do the numbers

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How to Write Critical Reviews

When you are asked to write a critical review of a book or article, you will need to identify, summarize, and evaluate the ideas and information the author has presented. In other words, you will be examining another person’s thoughts on a topic from your point of view.

Your stand must go beyond your “gut reaction” to the work and be based on your knowledge (readings, lecture, experience) of the topic as well as on factors such as criteria stated in your assignment or discussed by you and your instructor.

Make your stand clear at the beginning of your review, in your evaluations of specific parts, and in your concluding commentary.

Remember that your goal should be to make a few key points about the book or article, not to discuss everything the author writes.

Understanding the Assignment

To write a good critical review, you will have to engage in the mental processes of analyzing (taking apart) the work–deciding what its major components are and determining how these parts (i.e., paragraphs, sections, or chapters) contribute to the work as a whole.

Analyzing the work will help you focus on how and why the author makes certain points and prevent you from merely summarizing what the author says. Assuming the role of an analytical reader will also help you to determine whether or not the author fulfills the stated purpose of the book or article and enhances your understanding or knowledge of a particular topic.

Be sure to read your assignment thoroughly before you read the article or book. Your instructor may have included specific guidelines for you to follow. Keeping these guidelines in mind as you read the article or book can really help you write your paper!

Also, note where the work connects with what you’ve studied in the course. You can make the most efficient use of your reading and notetaking time if you are an active reader; that is, keep relevant questions in mind and jot down page numbers as well as your responses to ideas that appear to be significant as you read.

Please note: The length of your introduction and overview, the number of points you choose to review, and the length of your conclusion should be proportionate to the page limit stated in your assignment and should reflect the complexity of the material being reviewed as well as the expectations of your reader.

Write the introduction

Below are a few guidelines to help you write the introduction to your critical review.

Introduce your review appropriately

Begin your review with an introduction appropriate to your assignment.

If your assignment asks you to review only one book and not to use outside sources, your introduction will focus on identifying the author, the title, the main topic or issue presented in the book, and the author’s purpose in writing the book.

If your assignment asks you to review the book as it relates to issues or themes discussed in the course, or to review two or more books on the same topic, your introduction must also encompass those expectations.

Explain relationships

For example, before you can review two books on a topic, you must explain to your reader in your introduction how they are related to one another.

Within this shared context (or under this “umbrella”) you can then review comparable aspects of both books, pointing out where the authors agree and differ.

In other words, the more complicated your assignment is, the more your introduction must accomplish.

Finally, the introduction to a book review is always the place for you to establish your position as the reviewer (your thesis about the author’s thesis).

As you write, consider the following questions:

• Is the book a memoir, a treatise, a collection of facts, an extended argument, etc.? Is the article a documentary, a write-up of primary research, a position paper, etc.?
• Who is the author? What does the preface or foreword tell you about the author’s purpose, background, and credentials? What is the author’s approach to the topic (as a journalist? a historian? a researcher?)?
• What is the main topic or problem addressed? How does the work relate to a discipline, to a profession, to a particular audience, or to other works on the topic?
• What is your critical evaluation of the work (your thesis)? Why have you taken that position? What criteria are you basing your position on?

Provide an overview

In your introduction, you will also want to provide an overview. An overview supplies your reader with certain general information not appropriate for including in the introduction but necessary to understanding the body of the review.

Generally, an overview describes your book’s division into chapters, sections, or points of discussion. An overview may also include background information about the topic, about your stand, or about the criteria you will use for evaluation.

The overview and the introduction work together to provide a comprehensive beginning for (a “springboard” into) your review.

• What are the author’s basic premises? What issues are raised, or what themes emerge? What situation (i.e., racism on college campuses) provides a basis for the author’s assertions?
• How informed is my reader? What background information is relevant to the entire book and should be placed here rather than in a body paragraph?

Write the body

The body is the center of your paper, where you draw out your main arguments. Below are some guidelines to help you write it.

Organize using a logical plan

Organize the body of your review according to a logical plan. Here are two options:

• First, summarize, in a series of paragraphs, those major points from the book that you plan to discuss; incorporating each major point into a topic sentence for a paragraph is an effective organizational strategy. Second, discuss and evaluate these points in a following group of paragraphs. (There are two dangers lurking in this pattern–you may allot too many paragraphs to summary and too few to evaluation, or you may re-summarize too many points from the book in your evaluation section.)
• Alternatively, you can summarize and evaluate the major points you have chosen from the book in a point-by-point schema. That means you will discuss and evaluate point one within the same paragraph (or in several if the point is significant and warrants extended discussion) before you summarize and evaluate point two, point three, etc., moving in a logical sequence from point to point to point. Here again, it is effective to use the topic sentence of each paragraph to identify the point from the book that you plan to summarize or evaluate.

Questions to keep in mind as you write

With either organizational pattern, consider the following questions:

• What are the author’s most important points? How do these relate to one another? (Make relationships clear by using transitions: “In contrast,” an equally strong argument,” “moreover,” “a final conclusion,” etc.).
• What types of evidence or information does the author present to support his or her points? Is this evidence convincing, controversial, factual, one-sided, etc.? (Consider the use of primary historical material, case studies, narratives, recent scientific findings, statistics.)
• Where does the author do a good job of conveying factual material as well as personal perspective? Where does the author fail to do so? If solutions to a problem are offered, are they believable, misguided, or promising?
• Which parts of the work (particular arguments, descriptions, chapters, etc.) are most effective and which parts are least effective? Why?
• Where (if at all) does the author convey personal prejudice, support illogical relationships, or present evidence out of its appropriate context?

Keep your opinions distinct and cite your sources

Remember, as you discuss the author’s major points, be sure to distinguish consistently between the author’s opinions and your own.

Keep the summary portions of your discussion concise, remembering that your task as a reviewer is to re-see the author’s work, not to re-tell it.

And, importantly, if you refer to ideas from other books and articles or from lecture and course materials, always document your sources, or else you might wander into the realm of plagiarism.

Include only that material which has relevance for your review and use direct quotations sparingly. The Writing Center has other handouts to help you paraphrase text and introduce quotations.

Write the conclusion

You will want to use the conclusion to state your overall critical evaluation.

You have already discussed the major points the author makes, examined how the author supports arguments, and evaluated the quality or effectiveness of specific aspects of the book or article.

Now you must make an evaluation of the work as a whole, determining such things as whether or not the author achieves the stated or implied purpose and if the work makes a significant contribution to an existing body of knowledge.

Consider the following questions:

• Is the work appropriately subjective or objective according to the author’s purpose?
• How well does the work maintain its stated or implied focus? Does the author present extraneous material? Does the author exclude or ignore relevant information?
• How well has the author achieved the overall purpose of the book or article? What contribution does the work make to an existing body of knowledge or to a specific group of readers? Can you justify the use of this work in a particular course?
• What is the most important final comment you wish to make about the book or article? Do you have any suggestions for the direction of future research in the area? What has reading this work done for you or demonstrated to you?

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Strategic Review Process: Benefits and How to conduct?

The Strategic Review process that most of the organization do on a regular basis in order to help it achieve its goals and maintain control of the business environment.

This process is very helpful for organizations to identify areas for improvement and create strategies for achieving organizational goals.

What is Strategic Review?

The Strategic Review is a process that is used to identify and prioritize the most important business objectives. It takes place in an organization at least annually to ensure that the organization has a clear understanding of its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.

A lot of businesses, large and small, are using this as part of their strategic planning process. It is very helpful for organizations to establish strategies for addressing the most critical issues facing them today and in the future.

Strategic Reviews can be time-consuming and hard to create. But it provides valuable insights into how an organization should allocate its resources to achieve maximum results. In addition, It also helps organizations identify areas for improvement and create strategies to achieve organizational goals.

Why it is Important:

The Strategic Review Process is an important part of any organization’s strategic planning process. It looks at the current state of a company and creates a plan for what needs to happen in order to achieve the goals. These are use while creating the Strategic Review.

It helps organizations stay relevant and competitive by taking stock including;

• Current market conditions
• Exploring opportunities for growth
• Determining risks in the environment
• Understanding how relevant needs are

This also assesses where you should allocate resources in order to maximize success across all areas.

Strategic reviews are unique because you can do them either annually or continuously throughout an organization. It depends on how often an organization wants to review its progress and evaluate whether there are ways that it can improve.

Steps to conduct a Strategic Review:

The strategic review allows organizations to take stock of the current state of their company. And then create a plan for what needs to happen in order to achieve goals set out while creating Strategic Review.

The steps involved with conducting a Strategic Review include:

Determine the purpose of review:

It will be great if you conduct a strategic review once a year. The Strategic Review process is meant to show the company where they are, and it can also help them choose their direction for two years in advance.

Create goals: What needs to happen before moving forward? Strategic Plans need clear objectives that everyone agrees on as well as attainable goals that will take into account the current state of the company.

During this process, you should focus on high priority Strategic Focus areas that are related to Strategic Goals and objectives, not just every area in the business.

Review the current performance:

Strategic Reviews should be conducted and managed by Strategic Management. Strategic Managers will assess their organization’s current position or status within the industry, as well as future projections.

You should determine how their company has been performing up to this point, including both strengths and weaknesses of existing strategies. This information will be helpful in determining the Strategic Management’s next steps.

Improve the areas of improvement:

Next, you’ve to identify the areas where you need changes, as well as any necessary resources required to achieve these goals. You should determine what changes need to be made, and where your company’s Strategic Capabilities will come into play.

Strategic Capabilities are areas where your company has a Strategic Advantage over others in the industry. This is an opportunity for you to reflect on their company and plan ahead for success!

Communicate with your team:

Strategic Reviews should be conducted and managed by Strategic Managers. They will assess their organization’s current position or status within the industry, as well as future projections. Strategic Managers will communicate their Strategic Perspective to the rest of the organization.

You have to communicate with everyone involved in order to get a clear picture of your company’s. It will help you to determine the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities for improvement.

Create Strategic Direction:

You should need to conduct Strategic Review to determine what needs to change , and then create an action plan that clearly defines how all of this will happen. It can work with its team members who have specific expertise.

Once you’ve set goals, identified areas for improvement and created a plan of action- it’s time to take the next step! Creating an actionable Strategic Plan allows your company to move forward with confidence in its ability to succeed. This is the perfect way to improve every aspect of business performance.

Create a plan for implementation:

Strategic Plans should be reviewed and updated as needed. You can create a Strategic Plan that is flexible enough to adapt to any changes or obstacles that may appear.

Once you’ve determined the Strategic Direction for your company, it’s time to implement what needs changing! Creating an actionable plan allows your company to move forward with confidence in its ability to succeed.

Benefits of Doing a Strategic Review:

There are many Strategic Benefits that arise from conducting Strategic Reviews. Whether you’re just getting started or a veteran in the field of business, Strategic Review can help your company grow and succeed!

Here are some benefits of Strategic Review;

Strategic Reviews take a look at every aspect of your company, including its Strategic Capabilities and Strategic Goals.

It can identify opportunities for improvement in all areas of business performance. This allows companies to improve each department from top to bottom.

A Strategic Review shows you where your strengths are as well as any obstacles that may stand in the way of Strategic Goals.

It shows where your company has been successful in the past. It allows you to take these strengths into account when planning ahead for future success!

Conclusion:

The Strategic Review process is a strategic advantage for any company, no matter the size or industry. It allows companies to identify opportunities for improvement in all areas of business performance.

Strategic reviews are important because they allow each area of business performance to improve from top to bottom. You should have to conduct and manage by Strategic Managers.

It’s time to start planning ahead- Strategic Success starts with Strategic Reviews! Make sure you conduct your own Strategic Review before it’s too late!

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Review your business performance

Once your business is established and running well, you may be inclined to let things continue to run as they are.

However, it's actually time to plan again. After the crucial early stages, you should regularly review your progress, identify how you can make the most of the market position you've established and decide where to take your business next. You will need to revisit and update your business plan with your new strategy in mind and make sure you introduce the developments you've noted.

This guide takes you through this essential process, detailing the stages you should go through to assess how well your business is performing, highlighting your strengths and areas that could be improved and suggesting the actions you need to take to implement the improvements that you've identified.

Why it's vital to review the progress of your business

Assess your core activities, assess your business efficiency, review your financial position, conduct a competitor analysis, conduct a customer and market analysis, use your review to redefine your business goals, models for your strategic analysis, breaking down your strategic review.

It's easy to focus only on the day-to-day running of your business, especially in the early stages. But once you're up and running, it can pay dividends to think about longer-term and more strategic planning. This is especially true as you take on more staff, create departments within the business, appoint managers or directors and become distanced from the everyday running of the business.

Reviewing your progress will be particularly useful if you feel:

• uncertain about how well the business is performing
• unsure if you're getting the most out of the business or making the most of market opportunities
• your business plan may be out of date, e.g. you haven't updated it since you started trading
• your business is moving in a direction different to the one you had planned
• the business may be becoming unwieldy or unresponsive to market demands

It is also useful if you have decided that your company is ready to move on to another level.

Setting the direction

A clear business strategy will help to answer any concerns and show practical ways forward.

Questions you might want to ask include:

• What's my direction? To answer this you need to look at where you are now, where you want to go over the next three to five years and how you intend to get there.
• What are my markets - now and in the future? Which markets should I compete in, how will they change and what does the business need in order to be involved in these sectors?
• How do I gain market advantage? How can the business perform better than the competition in my chosen markets?
• What resources do I require to succeed? What skills, assets, finance, relationships, technical competence and facilities do I need to compete? Have these changed since I started?
• What business environment am I competing in? What external factors may affect the business' ability to compete?
• How am I measuring success? Remember, measures of performance may change as your business matures.

It's doubtful whether you will be able to answer these questions on your own - involving your professional advisers, your fellow directors and your senior staff will all help to make your review more effective.

A good starting point for your review is to evaluate what you actually do - your core activities, the products that you make, or services that you provide. Ask yourself what makes them successful, how they could be improved and whether you could launch new or complementary products or services.

Key questions about your products or services

It's useful to address these questions:

• How effectively are you matching your goods and services to your customers' needs? If you're not quite sure what those needs are, you could carry out further market or customer analysis. See the page in this guide on how to conduct a customer and market analysis.
• Which of your products and services are succeeding? Which aren't performing as planned? Decide which products and services offer both a high percentage of sales and high profit margins.
• What's really behind the problems of a product or service? Consider areas such as pricing, marketing, sales and after-sales service, design, packaging and systems during your review. Look for "quick wins" that give you the breathing space to make more fundamental improvements.
• Are you reviewing costs frequently? Are you keeping a close enough eye on your direct costs, your overheads and your assets? Are there different ways of doing things or new materials you could use that would lower your costs? Consider ways in which you can negotiate better deals with your suppliers.

Answering these questions will give you the basis on which to improve performance and profitability.

Many new businesses work in a short-term, reactive way. This offers flexibility - but can cost time and money as you move from getting the business going to concentrating on growing and developing it.

The best option is to balance your ability to respond rapidly with a clear overall strategy. This will help you decide whether the actions you take are appropriate or not.

At this stage you should ask yourself if there are any internal factors holding the business back, and if so, what can you do about them?

Consider the various aspects of your business in turn.

• What are your long-term commitments to the property?
• What are the advantages and disadvantages of your current location?
• Do you have room to grow, or the flexibility to cut back if necessary?
• If you move premises, what will be the cost? Will there be long-term cost savings and improvements in efficiency?
• If you manufacture products, how modern is your equipment?
• What is the capacity of your current facility compared to existing and forecast demand?
• How will you fund any improvements?
• How do you compare with your competition?

Information technology

• What management information and other IT systems do you have in place?
• Will these systems cater for any proposed expansion?
• Will they really make a difference to the quality of product or service your business provides? If they don't, can you change them to make sure they do?
• Do you make best use of technology such as wireless networking and mobile telephony to allow for more flexible working?

People and skills

• Do you have the right people to achieve your objectives?
• Do they know what is expected of them?
• Do you operate a training and development plan?
• Do you pay as well as the competition?
• Do you suffer from high staff turnover? Are staff motivated and satisfied?

Professional skills

• Do you have the right management team in place for growth?
• Do you have the skills available that you need in areas such as human resources, sales and IT?
• Do your staff need new or improved skills or to be retrained?

Businesses often fail because of poor financial management or a lack of planning. Often the business plan that was used to help raise finance is put on a shelf to gather dust.

When it comes to your business' success, therefore, developing and implementing sound financial and management systems (or paying someone to do it for you) is vital.

Updating your original business plan is a good place to start.

When reviewing your finances, you might want to consider the following:

• Cash flow - this is the balance of all of the money flowing in and out of your business. Make sure that your forecast is regularly reviewed and updated.
• Working capital - have your requirements changed? If so, explain the reasons for any movement. Compare this to the industry norm. If necessary, take steps to source additional capital.
• Cost base - keep your costs under constant review. Make sure that your costs are covered in your sale price - but don't expect your customers to pay for any business inefficiencies.
• Borrowing - what is the position of any lines of credit or loans? Are there more appropriate or cheaper forms of finance you could use?
• Growth - do you have plans in place to adapt your financing to accommodate your business' changing needs and growth?

Now that you have been running your business for a while, you will probably have a clearer idea of your competitors. Gathering more information may cost time, money and effort, but there are many benefits to knowing more about what your competition is doing.

What you need to know

The type of competitor information that will be really useful to you depends on the type of business you are and the market you're operating in. Questions to ask about your competitors include:

• who they are
• what they offer
• how they price their products
• what the profile and numbers of their customers are compared to yours
• what their competitive advantages and disadvantages are compared to yours
• what their reaction to your entry into the market or any product or price changes might be

You will probably find it useful to do a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) analysis. This will show you how you are doing in relation to the market in general and specifically your closest competitors. See the page in this guide on models for your strategic analysis.

How to find out more

There are three main ways to find out more about your competitors:

• What they say about themselves - sales literature, advertisements, press releases, shared suppliers, exhibitions, websites, competitor visits, company accounts.
• What other people say about them - your sales people, customers, local directories, the Internet, newspapers, analysts' reports, market research companies.
• Commissioned market research - if you need more detailed information, you might want to commission specific market research.

When you started your business, you probably devised a marketing plan as part of your overall business plan. This would have defined the market in which you intended to sell and targeted the nature and geographical distribution of your customers.

From that strategy you would have been able to produce a marketing plan to help you meet your objectives. When you're reviewing your business' performance, you'll need to assess your customer base and market positioning as a key part of the process. You should update your marketing plan at least as often as your business plan.

Revisiting your markets

A business review offers you the opportunity to stand back from the activity outlined in your plan and look again at factors such as:

• changes in your market
• new and emerging services
• changes in your customers' needs
• external factors such as the economy, imports and new technology
• changes in competitive activity

Asking your customers for feedback on your business' performance will help to identify where improvements can be made to your products or services, your staffing levels or your business procedures.

At the same time, it is important to remember that while reviews of this kind can be very effective - they can give your business the flexibility it needs to beat off stiff competition at short notice - it is important to think through the implications of any changes. In the new phase of your business you'll need to plan your finances and resourcing carefully at all times.

To remain successful it's vital that you regularly set time aside to ask the following key strategic questions:

• Where is the business now?
• Where is it going?
• How is it going to get there?

Often businesses are able to work out where they want to go but don't draw up a roadmap of how to get there. If this happens, a business will lack the direction needed to turn even carefully laid plans into reality.

At the end of any review process, therefore, it's vital that work plans are prepared to put the new ideas into place and that a timetable is set. Regularly reviewing how the new plan is working and allowing for any teething problems or necessary adjustments is important too. Today's business environment is exceptionally dynamic and it is likely that you will need regular reviews, updates and revisions to your business plan in order to maintain business success.

Continuous improvement

In addition, a simple planning cycle can greatly enhance your ability to make changes in your business routine if necessary. Good planning helps you anticipate problems and adapt to change more easily.

Expert input

You may find at this stage in your business' development that you need external skills to help you with the changes you have to make. In this case you might consider:

• employing skilled consultants in areas where you cannot afford to develop inhouse skills
• appointing an experienced non-executive director who can provide a regular, impartial assessment of what you are doing
• using a management consultant to help you identify how you can strengthen or change your management structure to grow the business

There are a number of useful business-analysis models that may help you think more strategically about your business.

The SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) is one of the most popular. This involves looking at the strengths and weaknesses of your business' capabilities, and any opportunities and threats to your business. Once you've identified all of these, you can assess how to capitalise on your strengths, minimise the effects of your weaknesses, make the most of any opportunities and reduce the impact of any threats.

Opportunities and threats in the external environment

It's important to remember that opportunities can also be threats - for example, new markets could be dominated by competitors, undermining your position. Equally, threats can also be opportunities -for example, a competitor growing quickly and opening a new market for your product or service could mean that your market expands too.

A SWOT analysis can provide a clear basis for examining your business performance and prospects. It can be used as part of a regular review process or in preparation for raising finance or bringing in consultants for a review.

Once you have collected information on your organisation's internal strengths and weaknesses, and external opportunities and threats, enter this data into a simple table.

Other tools include:

STEEPLE analysis - a technique for understanding the various external influences on a business – Social, Technological, Economic, Environmental, Political, Legal and Ethical.

Scenario planning - a technique that builds various plausible views of possible futures for a business.

Critical success factor analysis - a technique to identify the areas in which a business must succeed in order to achieve its objectives.

The Five Forces - the theory that there are five defined factors that influence the development of markets and businesses - potential entrants, existing competitors, buyers, suppliers and alternative products/services. Using this model you build a strategy to keep ahead of these influences.

As owner-manager of your business or as a member of its management team, you should stand back once in a while and review your business' performance.

The areas you need to look at are:

• Your market performance and direction - how well you are performing through your sales results, which markets to aim for next and how to improve your performance.
• Your products and services - how long your existing products will meet your customers' needs and any plans for renewal.
• Operational matters - your premises, your methods, technologies used, your processes, IT and quality. Are there any internal issues that are holding your business back?
• Financial matters - how your business is financed, levels of retained profit, the sales income generated and your cash flow.
• Your organisation and your people - your structures, people planning issues, training and development.

The five steps above will give you a clear indication of any issues that you need to address quickly in order to maintain your business in its early stages.

If you feel all of the areas above are strong, you can start to plan for the next phase and build a cohesive strategy to develop your business. However, if there are areas that need attention, deal with them now so that you can move forward. There are a variety of growth options for every business - it's important that you settle on the right one for you.

Also, once you've isolated your best route for developing your business, you can boost your chances of success by planning it carefully and monitoring your progress against an updated business plan.

Original document, Review your business performance , © Crown copyright 2009 Source: Business Link UK (now GOV.UK/Business ) Adapted for Québec by Info entrepreneurs

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• What is strategic planning? A 5-step gu ...

What is strategic planning? A 5-step guide

Strategic planning is a process through which business leaders map out their vision for their organization’s growth and how they’re going to get there. In this article, we'll guide you through the strategic planning process, including why it's important, the benefits and best practices, and five steps to get you from beginning to end.

Strategic planning is a process through which business leaders map out their vision for their organization’s growth and how they’re going to get there. The strategic planning process informs your organization’s decisions, growth, and goals.

Strategic planning helps you clearly define your company’s long-term objectives—and maps how your short-term goals and work will help you achieve them. This, in turn, gives you a clear sense of where your organization is going and allows you to ensure your teams are working on projects that make the most impact. Think of it this way—if your goals and objectives are your destination on a map, your strategic plan is your navigation system.

In this article, we walk you through the 5-step strategic planning process and show you how to get started developing your own strategic plan.

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What is strategic planning?

Strategic planning is a business process that helps you define and share the direction your company will take in the next three to five years. During the strategic planning process, stakeholders review and define the organization’s mission and goals, conduct competitive assessments, and identify company goals and objectives. The product of the planning cycle is a strategic plan, which is shared throughout the company.

What is a strategic plan?

A strategic plan is the end result of the strategic planning process. At its most basic, it’s a tool used to define your organization’s goals and what actions you’ll take to achieve them.

Typically, your strategic plan should include: 

Your company’s mission statement

Your organizational goals, including your long-term goals and short-term, yearly objectives

Any plan of action, tactics, or approaches you plan to take to meet those goals

What are the benefits of strategic planning?

Strategic planning can help with goal setting and decision-making by allowing you to map out how your company will move toward your organization’s vision and mission statements in the next three to five years. Let’s circle back to our map metaphor. If you think of your company trajectory as a line on a map, a strategic plan can help you better quantify how you’ll get from point A (where you are now) to point B (where you want to be in a few years).

When you create and share a clear strategic plan with your team, you can:

Build a strong organizational culture by clearly defining and aligning on your organization’s mission, vision, and goals.

Align everyone around a shared purpose and ensure all departments and teams are working toward a common objective.

Proactively set objectives to help you get where you want to go and achieve desired outcomes.

Promote a long-term vision for your company rather than focusing primarily on short-term gains.

Ensure resources are allocated around the most high-impact priorities.

Define long-term goals and set shorter-term goals to support them.

Assess your current situation and identify any opportunities—or threats—allowing your organization to mitigate potential risks.

Create a proactive business culture that enables your organization to respond more swiftly to emerging market changes and opportunities.

What are the 5 steps in strategic planning?

The strategic planning process involves a structured methodology that guides the organization from vision to implementation. The strategic planning process starts with assembling a small, dedicated team of key strategic planners—typically five to 10 members—who will form the strategic planning, or management, committee. This team is responsible for gathering crucial information, guiding the development of the plan, and overseeing strategy execution.

Once you’ve established your management committee, you can get to work on the planning process. 

Step 1: Assess your current business strategy and business environment

Before you can define where you’re going, you first need to define where you are. Understanding the external environment, including market trends and competitive landscape, is crucial in the initial assessment phase of strategic planning.

To do this, your management committee should collect a variety of information from additional stakeholders, like employees and customers. In particular, plan to gather:

Relevant industry and market data to inform any market opportunities, as well as any potential upcoming threats in the near future.

Customer insights to understand what your customers want from your company—like product improvements or additional services.

Employee feedback that needs to be addressed—whether about the product, business practices, or the day-to-day company culture.

Consider different types of strategic planning tools and analytical techniques to gather this information, such as:

A balanced scorecard to help you evaluate four major elements of a business: learning and growth, business processes, customer satisfaction, and financial performance.

A SWOT analysis to help you assess both current and future potential for the business (you’ll return to this analysis periodically during the strategic planning process). 

To fill out each letter in the SWOT acronym, your management committee will answer a series of questions:

What does your organization currently do well?

What separates you from your competitors?

What are your most valuable internal resources?

What tangible assets do you have?

What is your biggest strength? 

Weaknesses:

What does your organization do poorly?

What do you currently lack (whether that’s a product, resource, or process)?

What do your competitors do better than you?

What, if any, limitations are holding your organization back?

What processes or products need improvement? 

Opportunities:

What opportunities does your organization have?

How can you leverage your unique company strengths?

Are there any trends that you can take advantage of?

How can you capitalize on marketing or press opportunities?

Is there an emerging need for your product or service? 

What emerging competitors should you keep an eye on?

Are there any weaknesses that expose your organization to risk?

Have you or could you experience negative press that could reduce market share?

Is there a chance of changing customer attitudes towards your company? 

Step 2: Identify your company’s goals and objectives

To begin strategy development, take into account your current position, which is where you are now. Then, draw inspiration from your vision, mission, and current position to identify and define your goals—these are your final destination. 

To develop your strategy, you’re essentially pulling out your compass and asking, “Where are we going next?” “What’s the ideal future state of this company?” This can help you figure out which path you need to take to get there.

During this phase of the planning process, take inspiration from important company documents, such as:

Your mission statement, to understand how you can continue moving towards your organization’s core purpose.

Your vision statement, to clarify how your strategic plan fits into your long-term vision.

Your company values, to guide you towards what matters most towards your company.

Your competitive advantages, to understand what unique benefit you offer to the market.

Your long-term goals, to track where you want to be in five or 10 years.

Your financial forecast and projection, to understand where you expect your financials to be in the next three years, what your expected cash flow is, and what new opportunities you will likely be able to invest in.

Step 3: Develop your strategic plan and determine performance metrics

Now that you understand where you are and where you want to go, it’s time to put pen to paper. Take your current business position and strategy into account, as well as your organization’s goals and objectives, and build out a strategic plan for the next three to five years. Keep in mind that even though you’re creating a long-term plan, parts of your plan should be created or revisited as the quarters and years go on.

As you build your strategic plan, you should define:

Company priorities for the next three to five years, based on your SWOT analysis and strategy.

Yearly objectives for the first year. You don’t need to define your objectives for every year of the strategic plan. As the years go on, create new yearly objectives that connect back to your overall strategic goals . 

Related key results and KPIs. Some of these should be set by the management committee, and some should be set by specific teams that are closer to the work. Make sure your key results and KPIs are measurable and actionable. These KPIs will help you track progress and ensure you’re moving in the right direction.

Budget for the next year or few years. This should be based on your financial forecast as well as your direction. Do you need to spend aggressively to develop your product? Build your team? Make a dent with marketing? Clarify your most important initiatives and how you’ll budget for those.

A high-level project roadmap . A project roadmap is a tool in project management that helps you visualize the timeline of a complex initiative, but you can also create a very high-level project roadmap for your strategic plan. Outline what you expect to be working on in certain quarters or years to make the plan more actionable and understandable.

Step 4: Implement and share your plan

Now it’s time to put your plan into action. Strategy implementation involves clear communication across your entire organization to make sure everyone knows their responsibilities and how to measure the plan’s success. 

Make sure your team (especially senior leadership) has access to the strategic plan, so they can understand how their work contributes to company priorities and the overall strategy map. We recommend sharing your plan in the same tool you use to manage and track work, so you can more easily connect high-level objectives to daily work. If you don’t already, consider using a work management platform .  

A few tips to make sure your plan will be executed without a hitch: 

Communicate clearly to your entire organization throughout the implementation process, to ensure all team members understand the strategic plan and how to implement it effectively. 

Define what “success” looks like by mapping your strategic plan to key performance indicators.

Ensure that the actions outlined in the strategic plan are integrated into the daily operations of the organization, so that every team member's daily activities are aligned with the broader strategic objectives.

Utilize tools and software—like a work management platform—that can aid in implementing and tracking the progress of your plan.

Regularly monitor and share the progress of the strategic plan with the entire organization, to keep everyone informed and reinforce the importance of the plan.

Establish regular check-ins to monitor the progress of your strategic plan and make adjustments as needed. 

Step 5: Revise and restructure as needed

Once you’ve created and implemented your new strategic framework, the final step of the planning process is to monitor and manage your plan.

Remember, your strategic plan isn’t set in stone. You’ll need to revisit and update the plan if your company changes directions or makes new investments. As new market opportunities and threats come up, you’ll likely want to tweak your strategic plan. Make sure to review your plan regularly—meaning quarterly and annually—to ensure it’s still aligned with your organization’s vision and goals.

Keep in mind that your plan won’t last forever, even if you do update it frequently. A successful strategic plan evolves with your company’s long-term goals. When you’ve achieved most of your strategic goals, or if your strategy has evolved significantly since you first made your plan, it might be time to create a new one.

Build a smarter strategic plan with a work management platform

To turn your company strategy into a plan—and ultimately, impact—make sure you’re proactively connecting company objectives to daily work. When you can clarify this connection, you’re giving your team members the context they need to get their best work done. 

A work management platform plays a pivotal role in this process. It acts as a central hub for your strategic plan, ensuring that every task and project is directly tied to your broader company goals. This alignment is crucial for visibility and coordination, allowing team members to see how their individual efforts contribute to the company’s success. 

By leveraging such a platform, you not only streamline workflow and enhance team productivity but also align every action with your strategic objectives—allowing teams to drive greater impact and helping your company move toward goals more effectively. 

Strategic planning FAQs

Still have questions about strategic planning? We have answers.

Why do I need a strategic plan?

A strategic plan is one of many tools you can use to plan and hit your goals. It helps map out strategic objectives and growth metrics that will help your company be successful.

When should I create a strategic plan?

You should aim to create a strategic plan every three to five years, depending on your organization’s growth speed.

Since the point of a strategic plan is to map out your long-term goals and how you’ll get there, you should create a strategic plan when you’ve met most or all of them. You should also create a strategic plan any time you’re going to make a large pivot in your organization’s mission or enter new markets. 

What is a strategic planning template?

A strategic planning template is a tool organizations can use to map out their strategic plan and track progress. Typically, a strategic planning template houses all the components needed to build out a strategic plan, including your company’s vision and mission statements, information from any competitive analyses or SWOT assessments, and relevant KPIs.

What’s the difference between a strategic plan vs. business plan?

A business plan can help you document your strategy as you’re getting started so every team member is on the same page about your core business priorities and goals. This tool can help you document and share your strategy with key investors or stakeholders as you get your business up and running.

You should create a business plan when you’re: 

Just starting your business

Significantly restructuring your business

If your business is already established, you should create a strategic plan instead of a business plan. Even if you’re working at a relatively young company, your strategic plan can build on your business plan to help you move in the right direction. During the strategic planning process, you’ll draw from a lot of the fundamental business elements you built early on to establish your strategy for the next three to five years.

What’s the difference between a strategic plan vs. mission and vision statements?

Your strategic plan, mission statement, and vision statements are all closely connected. In fact, during the strategic planning process, you will take inspiration from your mission and vision statements in order to build out your strategic plan.

Simply put: 

A mission statement summarizes your company’s purpose.

A vision statement broadly explains how you’ll reach your company’s purpose.

A strategic plan pulls in inspiration from your mission and vision statements and outlines what actions you’re going to take to move in the right direction. 

For example, if your company produces pet safety equipment, here’s how your mission statement, vision statement, and strategic plan might shake out:

Mission statement: “To ensure the safety of the world’s animals.” 

Vision statement: “To create pet safety and tracking products that are effortless to use.” 

Your strategic plan would outline the steps you’re going to take in the next few years to bring your company closer to your mission and vision. For example, you develop a new pet tracking smart collar or improve the microchipping experience for pet owners. 

What’s the difference between a strategic plan vs. company objectives?

Company objectives are broad goals. You should set these on a yearly or quarterly basis (if your organization moves quickly). These objectives give your team a clear sense of what you intend to accomplish for a set period of time. 

Your strategic plan is more forward-thinking than your company goals, and it should cover more than one year of work. Think of it this way: your company objectives will move the needle towards your overall strategy—but your strategic plan should be bigger than company objectives because it spans multiple years.

What’s the difference between a strategic plan vs. a business case?

A business case is a document to help you pitch a significant investment or initiative for your company. When you create a business case, you’re outlining why this investment is a good idea, and how this large-scale project will positively impact the business. 

You might end up building business cases for things on your strategic plan’s roadmap—but your strategic plan should be bigger than that. This tool should encompass multiple years of your roadmap, across your entire company—not just one initiative.

What’s the difference between a strategic plan vs. a project plan?

A strategic plan is a company-wide, multi-year plan of what you want to accomplish in the next three to five years and how you plan to accomplish that. A project plan, on the other hand, outlines how you’re going to accomplish a specific project. This project could be one of many initiatives that contribute to a specific company objective which, in turn, is one of many objectives that contribute to your strategic plan. 

What’s the difference between strategic management vs. strategic planning?

A strategic plan is a tool to define where your organization wants to go and what actions you need to take to achieve those goals. Strategic planning is the process of creating a plan in order to hit your strategic objectives.

Strategic management includes the strategic planning process, but also goes beyond it. In addition to planning how you will achieve your big-picture goals, strategic management also helps you organize your resources and figure out the best action plans for success. 

Related resources

Solve your tech overload with an intelligent transformation

9 steps to craft a successful go-to-market (GTM) strategy

Unmanaged business goals don’t work. Here’s what does.

How Asana uses work management to effectively manage goals

How to Critique a Business Plan

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• Business Planning & Strategy
• Creating a Business Plan
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How to Write a One-Year Profit Projection Letter

How to write a new business pitch, why is an effective business plan introduction important.

• How to Write the Perfect Business Plan
• The Role of Finance in Formulating Business Strategies

Once they have completed a business plan, many entrepreneurs wonder if it is ready to present to potential financing sources. They question whether the plan is as clear as it could be and if they have covered all the important points that investors want to see. They realize that the business plan is their first and perhaps only chance to get the investor’s attention. They want to make it as good as it can possibly be. One approach is to ask experienced business associates to critique the plan and provide suggestions about how it can be improved.

Read the plan through at least twice. Don’t read it with a critical eye the first time. Just try to absorb as much information as you can. The second time through, begin making notes about sections that seem unclear or incomplete.

Think like an investor. As you review the plan, ask yourself whether this business looks like a good investment. Many plans dwell too much on how intriguing the company's technology is and ignore the factor of critical importance to investors: Can we make money? Try to identify aspects of the company’s business model that will allow it to earn higher than average profits. Perhaps it has a labor cost advantage over competitors, for example.

Analyze the benefits of the products or services. The plan should give you a clear idea of the superiority of the company’s products or services compared with those offered by competitors. Make sure you see why the target customers have a compelling need for the company’s products or services. If you don’t, suggest that this section of the plan be strengthened.

Evaluate the management team. Ask yourself whether you believe this team is capable of executing the business strategy outlined in the plan. Does the team look complete? Look for gaps in talent or experience that need to be addressed by bringing additional managers aboard. Determine whether the capabilities of the team match up well with the requirements for success in this industry.

Check the assumptions for the financial projections. Make sure the entrepreneur has provided easy-to-follow logic behind the numbers. You should be able to take the revenue assumptions and duplicate the calculations presented. Entrepreneurs tend to present overly optimistic revenue and profit projections. Look for areas where costs were underestimated or omitted altogether. Determine whether the projected revenue growth, particularly in the first two years, seems realistic.

• Small Business Administration: Write a Business Plan
• Check for grammatical and spelling errors. The entrepreneur is so close to the plan document that it is easy for him to overlook common errors in grammar or spelling. Finding a lot of these can be jarring to investors reading the plan and may even cast doubt about the credibility of the statements made in the document.
• The writing style of the plan is important, not just the content. Make sure the entrepreneur conveyed excitement for the venture and its potential. The plan is partially a sales document. Look for a sense of urgency in the plan—that now is exactly the right time to be entering the market. The opportunity is emerging, and significant.

Brian Hill is the author of four popular business and finance books: "The Making of a Bestseller," "Inside Secrets to Venture Capital," "Attracting Capital from Angels" and his latest book, published in 2013, "The Pocket Small Business Owner's Guide to Business Plans."

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• 1 What Factors Make the Difference Between a Good Business Plan & an Excellent One?
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• 4 How to Counter the Argument From a Potential Investor That Most Small Businesses Fail

• > How to Conduct High-Value Monthly Business Reviews for Continuous Improvement

How to Conduct High-Value Monthly Business Reviews for Continuous Improvement

Posted by Maggie Millard

Dec 13, 2023 5:07:59 PM

Imagine a monthly ritual that doesn't just review performance but revolutionizes it. Monthly business reviews can redefine your approach, elevate critical metrics, and propel your organization toward unparalleled growth. The journey to peak performance starts with a commitment to regular reflection. 

For example, Salesforce implemented a practice of monthly business reviews to assess key performance indicators (KPIs), customer feedback, and strategic initiatives. This disciplined approach contributed to a remarkable 25% increase in customer satisfaction within a year, demonstrating how regular and effective monthly reviews can drive positive outcomes and achieve transformative improvements in customer-centric metrics.

Join us as we explore the untapped potential that awaits your monthly business reviews.

What is a Monthly Business Review?

A monthly business review (MBR) is a structured and recurring process in which an organization assesses its performance, reviews vital metrics, and evaluates progress toward strategic goals every month. This strategic practice involves gathering relevant data, analyzing financial and operational results, and discussing key performance indicators (KPIs) to gain insights into the business's overall health and trajectory. The monthly review serves as a platform for informed decision-making, aligning teams with organizational objectives, and fostering a culture of continuous improvement.

Why is a Monthly Business Review important?

Conducting monthly business reviews offers a range of overarching benefits for organizations, contributing to their strategic focus, management and overall success:

Improves communication and better business conversations

MBRs promote open communication and transparency. By sharing performance data and insights during these reviews, team members build trust and ensure everyone shares the same understanding of organizational goals.

MBRs help align various departments and teams with the organization's strategic goals . By consistently reviewing progress toward key objectives, teams can ensure their efforts are directed toward overarching strategic priorities.

MBRs provide greater insight into resource utilization and efficiency. Organizations can optimize resource allocation by identifying areas of overallocation or underutilization, ensuring that resources are deployed where they can have the most significant impact.

Engage individuals to take responsibility

MBRs foster a culture of accountability by linking individual and team performance to organizational goals. This engagement is crucial for creating a sense of ownership and responsibility among employees.

MBRs provide a foundation for continuous improvement through regular performance review and data analysis. Organizations can identify areas for enhancement, implement targeted initiatives, and track the impact of these efforts over time.

Regular reviews enable the early identification of issues and bottlenecks. This proactive approach allows organizations to address challenges before they escalate, minimizing the impact on overall performance.

A scheduled time to learn and react

MBRs provide a regular real-time assessment of the organization's performance. This allows for timely responses making adjustments to emerging challenges and capitalization of opportunities, enhancing the organization's agility.

Reviewing key metrics and performance indicators in MBRs regularly ensures that decisions are based on up-to-date and relevant information. This informed decision-making is crucial for effective and responsive management.

Adaptability is crucial to success in dynamic business environments. MBRs facilitate adaptability by allowing organizations to reassess their strategies, pivot if necessary, and respond effectively to changes in the internal and external landscape.

Reviewing customer-related metrics regularly ensures established companies have a consistent focus on customer satisfaction and loyalty. This customer-centric approach is vital for sustaining and growing a loyal customer base.

How to conduct your Monthly Business Review 

Conducting effective business reviews on a monthly basis requires a systematic and structured approach. Here's a step-by-step guide on how an organization should conduct MBRs:

Set an Agenda and Establish Meeting Guidelines

Develop a structured agenda and use monthly business review templates for the MBR meeting. The agenda should include sections for reviewing financial performance, operational metrics, progress toward strategic goals, and other pertinent topics. This agenda helps maintain focus and ensures that all relevant aspects are covered.

Invite key stakeholders to participate in the MBRs. Attendees may include department heads, select leaders, executives, and other individuals responsible for meeting the core team's responsibilities or for contributing to strategic objectives. Ensure representation from different functional areas.

Questions to ask in a Business Review

During a Monthly Business Review (MBR), leaders should ask a range of questions to gain insights into the organization's performance, progress toward strategic objectives, and areas for improvement. Here are some key questions leaders may consider asking:

Financial Perspective:

• How did we perform against our financial targets this month?
• Are there any significant variances in financial performance, including revenue, expenses, or profitability, that need attention?
• What impact did our financial performance have on overall organizational health?

Customer Perspective:

• How is customer satisfaction trending, and what feedback have we received?
• Have there been any changes in customer needs or preferences that we should address?
• What initiatives are in place to enhance the customer experience, and how effective are they?

Internal Processes Perspective:

• What improvements have been made in our key internal processes?
• Are there bottlenecks or inefficiencies that need to be addressed?
• How well are we meeting our operational targets, and what adjustments are necessary?

Learning and Growth Perspective:

• What initiatives have been implemented to foster employee development and engagement?
• Are there skills gaps or training needs that require attention?
• How does the organizational culture contribute to learning and growth?

Strategic Initiatives:

• What progress have we made on our strategic initiatives and projects?
• Are there any roadblocks or challenges hindering the execution of strategic plans?
• Are our strategic initiatives still aligned with current market conditions and organizational goals?

Risk and Opportunities:

• What potential risks could impact our performance, and how are we mitigating them?
• Are there emerging opportunities that we should capitalize on?
• How well are we adapting to changes in the external business environment?

Employee Engagement:

• How satisfied are employees with their work environment and roles?
• Are there any concerns or feedback from employees that need to be addressed?
• What initiatives are in place to promote employee well-being and professional development?

Continuous Improvement:

• What lessons have we learned from our experiences this month?
• What specific actions will we take to improve performance in the next month?
• How can we enhance our Monthly Business Review process for better outcomes?

Long-Term Strategy:

• How does our performance this month contribute to our long-term strategic goals?
• Are there adjustments needed in our long-term strategy based on current performance?
• What investments or changes should we consider for sustained success?

Review your financial statements

Financial statements, including the income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statement, offer a comprehensive view of the company or organization's economic performance. The leadership team can assess revenue generation, profitability, and overall financial stability.

Financial reports provide solid information that aids leaders in making data-driven decisions. Financial statements provide the necessary information for effective decision-making, whether it's resource allocation, investment decisions, or cost-cutting measures.

Using financial statements during an MBR also enables comparing budgeted and actual performance for specific accounts. This analysis helps leaders identify any variances, track and understand the reasons behind them, and make informed decisions to align future activities with budgetary goals.

Reevaluate your milestones 

Clearly articulate the objectives of the MBR process. Identify the key performance indicators and metrics that align with the organization's strategic goals. These metrics should be measurable, relevant, and tied to overall performance.

Relevant data and performance metrics should be collected before the MBR. This data may include financial metrics, operational metrics, customer feedback, and progress on strategic initiatives. Use this information to conduct a thorough performance analysis.

Review your long-term goals and strategy 

Assess progress on strategic initiatives and projects. Discuss any challenges or roadblocks encountered and identify solutions. Ensure the initiatives align with the organization's key objectives and long-term strategic goals.

Provide time to discuss any company issues 

Encourage open-ended discussion during the MBR. Allow participants to share insights, raise concerns, and propose solutions. Foster a collaborative environment where different perspectives are considered.

Use the MBR to identify potential solutions for areas for improvement . Analyze performance gaps and discuss actionable steps to address deficiencies. This proactive approach contributes to continuous improvement.

Set a consistent schedule for the MBRs. A predictable cadence ensures that teams are prepared for reviews and that the organization can adapt quickly to changing circumstances.

By following these steps, organizations can conduct purposeful, collaborative monthly business reviews, contributing to continuous improvement and strategic alignment. Regular and well-executed MBRs are crucial for enhancing organizational performance and for team adaptability, making sure everybody is on the same page.

The monthly business review emerges as a linchpin in the fabric of strategic management, offering organizations an invaluable opportunity to navigate the complex business terrain with precision and foresight. By delving into financial statements, key performance indicators, and strategic initiatives, the leadership team gains a panoramic view of their organization's health, enabling them to make informed decisions, adapt to changing landscapes, and foster a culture of continuous improvement. The importance and value of the monthly business review extends beyond the boardroom, reaching into every facet of the organization, from promoting accountability and transparency to aligning teams with overarching strategic goals. As businesses navigate the dynamic currents of today's global landscape, the monthly business review stands as a compass, guiding them toward sustainable success and resilience in the face of evolving challenges.

How KaiNexus can help 

KaiNexus provides a centralized platform for managing improvement initiatives. It allows organizations to gather and consolidate relevant data, including progress updates, KPIs, and the status of ongoing projects, for monthly business reviews.

KaiNexus facilitates collaboration among teams by providing a platform for communication and feedback. Enhanced collaboration ensures that relevant stakeholders are engaged and actual performance is aligned with organizational goals, which benefits the monthly business review.

KaiNexus offers customizable dashboards , helping organizations tailor data presentations to their needs. These dashboards are instrumental in conveying relevant information during monthly business reviews.

In addition to these helpful features for customers, the KaiNexus blog and website offer valuable tips and tools for anyone looking to optimize business performance and achieve operational excellence. You can subscribe to this valuable content for free.

Topics: Leadership , Improvement Process , Improvement Methodology

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How to Write a Great Business Plan (Harvard Business Review Classics)

By: William A. Sahlman

Judging by all the hoopla surrounding business plans, you'd think the only things standing between would-be entrepreneurs and spectacular success are glossy five-color charts, bundles of…

• Length: 72 page(s)
• Publication Date: Mar 1, 2008
• Discipline: Entrepreneurship
• Product #: 2142-PBK-ENG

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Judging by all the hoopla surrounding business plans, you'd think the only things standing between would-be entrepreneurs and spectacular success are glossy five-color charts, bundles of meticulous-looking spreadsheets, and decades of month-by-month financial projections. Yet nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, often the more elaborately crafted a business plan, the more likely the venture is to flop. Why? Most plans waste too much ink on numbers and devote too little to information that really matters to investors. The result? Investors discount them. In "How to Write a Great Business Plan," William A. Sahlman shows how to avoid this all-too-common mistake by ensuring that your plan assesses the factors critical to every new venture; the people--the individuals launching and leading the venture and outside parties providing key services or important resources; the opportunity--what the business will sell and to whom, and whether the venture can grow and how fast; the context--the regulatory environment, interest rates, demographic trends, and other forces shaping the venture's fate; and risk and reward--what can go wrong and right, and how the entrepreneurial team will respond. Timely in this age of innovation, "How to Write a Great Business Plan" helps you give your new venture the best possible chances for success. Since 1922, "Harvard Business Review" has been a leading source of breakthrough management ideas-many of which still speak to and influence us today. The Harvard Business Review Classics series now offers readers the opportunity to make these seminal pieces a part of your permanent management library. Each highly readable volume contains a groundbreaking idea that continues to shape best practices and inspire countless managers around the world-and will have a direct impact on you today and for years to come.

Mar 1, 2008

Discipline:

Entrepreneurship

Harvard Business Press Books

2142-PBK-ENG

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NIGHTMARE SUPPLY CHAIN ATTACK SCENARIO —

What we know about the xz utils backdoor that almost infected the world, malicious updates made to a ubiquitous tool were a few weeks away from going mainstream..

Dan Goodin - Apr 1, 2024 6:55 am UTC

On Friday, a lone Microsoft developer rocked the world when he revealed a backdoor had been intentionally planted in xz Utils, an open source data compression utility available on almost all installations of Linux and other Unix-like operating systems. The person or people behind this project likely spent years on it. They were likely very close to seeing the backdoor update merged into Debian and Red Hat, the two biggest distributions of Linux, when an eagle-eyed software developer spotted something fishy.

Further Reading

Researchers have spent the weekend gathering clues. Here's what we know so far.

What is xz Utils?

xz Utils is nearly ubiquitous in Linux. It provides lossless data compression on virtually all Unix-like operating systems, including Linux. xz Utils provides critical functions for compressing and decompressing data during all kinds of operations. xz Utils also supports the legacy .lzma format, making this component even more crucial.

What happened?

Andres Freund, a developer and engineer working on Microsoft’s PostgreSQL offerings, was recently troubleshooting performance problems a Debian system was experiencing with SSH, the most widely used protocol for remotely logging in to devices over the Internet. Specifically, SSH logins were consuming too many CPU cycles and were generating errors with valgrind , a utility for monitoring computer memory.

Through sheer luck and Freund’s careful eye, he eventually discovered the problems were the result of updates that had been made to xz Utils. On Friday, Freund took to the Open Source Security List to disclose the updates were the result of someone intentionally planting a backdoor in the compression software.

It's hard to overstate the complexity of the social engineering and the inner workings of the backdoor. Thomas Roccia, a researcher at Microsoft, published a graphic on Mastodon that helps visualize the sprawling extent of the nearly successful endeavor to spread a backdoor with a reach that would have dwarfed the SolarWinds event from 2020.

What does the backdoor do?

Malicious code added to xz Utils versions 5.6.0 and 5.6.1 modified the way the software functions. The backdoor manipulated sshd, the executable file used to make remote SSH connections. Anyone in possession of a predetermined encryption key could stash any code of their choice in an SSH login certificate, upload it, and execute it on the backdoored device. No one has actually seen code uploaded, so it's not known what code the attacker planned to run. In theory, the code could allow for just about anything, including stealing encryption keys or installing malware.

Wait, how can a compression utility manipulate a process as security sensitive as SSH?

Any library can tamper with the inner workings of any executable it is linked against. Often, the developer of the executable will establish a link to a library that's needed for it to work properly. OpenSSH, the most popular sshd implementation, doesn’t link the liblzma library, but Debian and many other Linux distributions add a patch to link sshd to systemd , a program that loads a variety of services during the system bootup. Systemd, in turn, links to liblzma, and this allows xz Utils to exert control over sshd.

How did this backdoor come to be?

It would appear that this backdoor was years in the making. In 2021, someone with the username JiaT75 made their first known commit to an open source project. In retrospect, the change to the libarchive project is suspicious, because it replaced the safe_fprint funcion with a variant that has long been recognized as less secure. No one noticed at the time.

The following year, JiaT75 submitted a patch over the xz Utils mailing list, and, almost immediately, a never-before-seen participant named Jigar Kumar joined the discussion and argued that Lasse Collin, the longtime maintainer of xz Utils, hadn’t been updating the software often or fast enough. Kumar, with the support of Dennis Ens and several other people who had never had a presence on the list, pressured Collin to bring on an additional developer to maintain the project.

In January 2023, JiaT75 made their first commit to xz Utils. In the months following, JiaT75, who used the name Jia Tan, became increasingly involved in xz Utils affairs. For instance, Tan replaced Collins' contact information with their own on oss-fuzz, a project that scans open source software for vulnerabilities that can be exploited. Tan also requested that oss-fuzz disable the ifunc function during testing, a change that prevented it from detecting the malicious changes Tan would soon make to xz Utils.

In February of this year, Tan issued commits for versions 5.6.0 and 5.6.1 of xz Utils. The updates implemented the backdoor. In the following weeks, Tan or others appealed to developers of Ubuntu, Red Hat, and Debian to merge the updates into their OSes. Eventually, one of the two updates made its way into the following releases, according to security firm Tenable:

There’s more about Tan and the timeline here .

reader comments

Promoted comments.

It should be noted that the attack only works because Debian and Redhat added functionality to sshd that is not present in it as distributed by its developers. The extra functionality adds systemd interaction, which requires libsystemd which requires liblzma, a component of the (compromised) xz package. One should be wary of distributions adding functionality. Often it increases the attack surface, not only because of the modifications/additions themselves, but also by adding dependencies.

So a prime reason this became potentially exploitable is libsystemd in OpenSSH. Need I say more.

The prime reason is a very well funded and capable attacker looked for a way in. if not xz or systemd then they would have attacked via the next candidate weak point.

"This developer persona has touched dozens of other pieces of open-source software in the past few years.". Well, I guess the Opensource community have some codes to review. Maybe the xz incident is only the tips of the iceberg.

Channel Ars Technica

An employment lawyer explains the 3 things you should do the moment you're put on a PIP

• Craig Levey is an employment law attorney of over 12 years.
• He says that PIPs are often used by companies to "paper the file"  once they've already decided to fire the employee. 
• If put on a PIP, you should read it carefully, consider if it's reasonable, and decide how to respond.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Craig Levey, an employment law attorney and partner at Bennett & Belfort, P.C., a law firm based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The following has been edited for length and clarity.

In my experience as an employment law attorney of 12 years, performance-improvement plans, or PIPs, result in termination in most cases. While there are circumstances where an employee survives the PIP and keeps working there, those situations are rare.

Many companies use PIPs to paper the file; they document the areas in which this employee is deficient, and then once the PIP is over — or sometimes even sooner — they terminate the employee and say, "As we outlined in the PIP, things weren't going well in certain areas. We don't feel like you've improved, so we're going to part ways with you."

PIPs are a tool for companies to prevent litigation, too, because then they can argue that they didn't terminate the employee because of discrimination, retaliation, or sexual harassment but rather because of performance.

When an employee receives a PIP , there are three steps that I suggest that they follow.

1. Read the PIP very carefully

Many people are so shocked that they receive a PIP that they don't actually take the time to take a deep breath, sit down, and read it.

You want to fully understand the language that's in the PIP and what the expectations are. If you need clarification because there's not enough information, you should go back and ask your company your questions and see if they offer support, such as one-on-one meetings with your supervisor.

2. Decide if the PIP is reasonable

Once you've read the PIP, ask yourself, is this PIP designed for me to fail, or is it reasonable?

A good PIP should be very clear about the areas where the employee is supposedly deficient. In a reasonable timeframe, it should spell out how that employee will get better and offer support such as regular meetings with their supervisor.

A bad PIP is very short and doesn't articulate the areas in which the employee needs to get better, so the employee is left confused and doesn't know what is being asked of them. There either isn't a timeframe given, or the timeframe is unreasonable, and no support is offered to help the employee improve.

Related stories

After receiving a bad PIP, the employee walks away confused or feeling unreasonable. Typically, when an employee receives a bad PIP, it means the company doesn't want them to improve. It's just a tool to pave the way for the termination.

3. Decide whether to respond

If, after reading your PIP, you feel it's actually pretty reasonable and you can satisfy the requirements in the time allotted, you don't need to respond. Just move on and focus on working on what's needed and satisfying the requirements laid out.

But sometimes, there are unfair PIPs with requirements that even the best employee in the world could never satisfy. If the PIP is unrealistic or unreasonable, then you need to respond.

If you decide to respond, email your supervisor or HR and spell out why it is unreasonable. Perhaps the timeframe is not long enough, or the expectations are unattainable, or the company isn't offering any support.

By spelling out the ways the PIP is unreasonable, it can protect your interests a bit in the event that you are later terminated.

Is the PIP retaliatory?

You should also think about whether the PIP is retaliatory. A lot of companies will issue a PIP in retaliation for the employee complaining about something illegal going on in the workplace or taking leave for disabilities or pregnancy, which is protected under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) .

Leave is there for a reason. If you have a disability, if you have mental health issues, or if you're pregnant, then you need to use your leave options because that's precisely what they're there for.

Unfortunately, I see all the time that companies perceive employees who take leave to be a burden. Companies don't like when they have somebody out of work and they have to satisfy those duties, either by hiring somebody to fill in or asking somebody else to take on those duties.

This happens far too often across the US. When you look at other countries around the world — how they value leave and how much time off they give people — there's more emphasis on quality of life rather than the American way, which is focused on the "grind." American companies put so much more emphasis on the bottom line and making money and less on employee well-being.

If you believe your PIP is due to your company retaliating against you, then you can respond in writing; articulate what you believe the PIP is in retaliation for, and spell out the illegal conduct. Keep a copy of that email so that in the event that you do get terminated in the future, you're preserving the record for purposes of litigation.

When I'm speaking with clients, I look at the full picture because, in many cases, I see a situation where an employee was a strong performer for many years and received good performance evaluations, but then they complained about something illegal or took protected medical leave and all of a sudden they received the PIP.

To me, that doesn't add up. You don't just suddenly become a bad performer when you have a documented history of strong performance reviews.

It's better for companies to work with employees rather than use PIPs

My philosophy is that it's better for supervisors to sit down, talk to the employee, and sort of nip issues in the bud as soon as they recognize potential areas of deficiencies and deal with them right away rather than letting things fester.

Most companies have already decided to terminate the employee by the time they get to a PIP. If I were running a business, I wouldn't issue a PIP. I would just sit down with the employee once or twice and genuinely explain how I wanted them to get better. You can still have a paper trail by sending a follow-up email outlining what was discussed and areas for improvement.

The mindset around PIPs should change. Companies should want their employees to improve, and they should deal with problems early on rather than just issuing PIPs at the end of the employment and then terminating.

If companies are issuing PIPs , they should be implemented or issued only once the supervisors have already spoken to the employees about these issues. PIPs should be genuine, clear, and articulate what they want the employee to improve upon. They should give employees the opportunity to improve. I don't think companies should use PIPs for the sake of trying to protect themselves from potential future issues.

If you've been put on a PIP or put someone on a PIP and would like to share your story, email Jane Zhang at [email protected] .

Watch: Jill Kramer, CMO of Accenture, says disability inclusion should be baked into creative briefs

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Onboarding New Employees — Without Overwhelming Them

• Julia Phelan

Give people the space and time they need to thrive in their new job.

A great onboarding experience can keep new hires engaged and committed, and increase their learning and preparedness for their new role. In trying to ensure new employees feel supported and properly prepared, some organizations flood new hires with far too much information. Even if managers have the best intentions, bombarding new hires with tasks  — such as asking them to read every single page of the employee manual or requiring them to get set-up on Slack, email, Box, and all the other platforms all at once — will backfire. Three strategies can help organizations mitigate this overload and ensure employees have the space, time, and mental resources available to learn and thrive in their new job.

We know that effectively onboarding new employees has huge value. A good onboarding process — with clear information on job requirements, organizational norms, and performance expectations — not only enhances employee productivity but helps increase loyalty and engagement, and decrease s turnover .

• JP Julia Phelan , Ph.D. is a learning design consultant and expert in applying learning science principles to create effective learning experiences. She works with organizations to help build a strong workplace learning culture by improving training design, implementation, and outcomes. She is the co-founder of To Eleven , and a former UCLA education research scientist. Connect with her on LinkedIn .

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Charles Schwab 401(k) Review: Is It Worth It?

O fficially called the Schwab Individual 401(k) plan or I401(k), this retirement savings account allows you to potentially make far higher contributions than you could with an individual retirement account (IRA) – and still receive similar tax benefits.

As a self-directed account, a Schwab 401(k) lets you choose from a variety of investments including commission-free stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs), as well as no transaction-fee mutual funds and more.

How does the Schwab Individual 401(k) plan work?

The Schwab Individual 401(k) plan is a type of Solo 401(k), as defined by the IRS. These accounts are designed for self-employed individuals that have no full-time employees other than their spouse.

With a Schwab Individual 401(k) plan, you may contribute as the employee and as your own employer. This is why Individual 401(k) contribution limits can be substantially higher than their counterparts.

In 2024, you could potentially contribute a maximum of $69,000 to a Schwab I401(k). Those aged 50 and over could make catch-up contributions of up to $7,500 for a total of $76,500.

Schwab Individual 401(k) contribution limit rules

When it comes to Individual 401(k) contribution limits, it helps to separate the limits that apply to you as an employee and yourself as the employer.

As an employee in 2024, you can contribute the lesser of $23,000 or 100% of compensation. Those 50 or older can make catch-up contributions of $7,500 for a total of $30,500.

And as your own employer, you can make what’s called an additional profit-sharing contribution of up to 25% of your compensation or net self-employment income. Your net self employment income is your net profit minus half your self-employment tax and the plan contributions you made for yourself.

But keep in mind that for 2024, the cap on compensation that can be used to determine your maximum is $345,000.

Still, the Schwab 401(k) can be lucrative if you're a business owner and your spouse is your only employee. Your spouse can be a participant to the plan and contribute up to the employee contribution limits listed above. And as the employer, you can then make a profit-sharing contribution to your spouse’s account of up to 25% of their compensation.

As a family, you and your spouse could essentially double the $69,000 individual 401(k) contribution maximum.

Schwab 401(k) tax rules

Schwab Individual 401(k) tax rules depend on the type of account you open: traditional Individual 401(k) or Roth Individual 401(k).

When you contribute to a traditional I401(k), your contributions are tax deductible. So investing in a Schwab 401(k) can reduce your federal tax bills for the year you contributed. However, you’d owe ordinary income tax on qualified withdrawals. If you make withdrawals before age 59.5, you’d owe regular income tax on the withdrawal and a 10% penalty.

With a Roth Individual 401(k) plan, your contributions aren’t tax deductible. But the earnings portions of qualified withdrawals are tax free as long as you make these after reaching age 59.5 and you’ve had the account for at least five years. If you make withdrawals before reaching age 59.5, you’d owe taxes on the earnings portion of the withdrawals and a 10% penalty.

Schwab 401(k): The verdict

The Schwab Individual 401(k) plan stands out for its potential for higher contribution limits than other retirement accounts like IRAs or workplace retirement plans. As an employee and your own employer, you could potentially contribute a maximum of $69,000 to your retirement nest egg, while enjoying tax deductions.

And if you employ your spouse, you can both join the plan and essentially double that contribution maximum.

But as with all individual 401(k)s or solo 401(k)s, it has strict eligibility requirements. To invest in a Schwab Individual 401k(k) plan, you need to be self-employed with no employees – your spouse is the only exception.

Sole proprietors, C corporations, S corporations, partnerships, and limited-liability companies (LLCs) can open a Schwab Individual 401(k) as long as these eligibility requirements are met.

Plus, the Schwab 401(k) can deliver a hefty boost to your retirement savings. And you can choose from a traditional I401(k) or Roth I401(k). But overall, these plans can be complex.

Nonetheless, these aren’t your only retirement plan options if you’re self-employed. Schwab also offers a traditional IRA and a Roth IRA, which you can open with no maintenance fee and no minimum investment requirement. Both offer similar tax benefits to their I401(k) counterparts.

You can explore to see if a Schwab Roth IRA with eligible tax-free withdraws is right for you .

Additionally, you can learn about Schwab Intelligent Portfolios , a robo-advisor option that may be best for hands-off investors who rather let advanced computer systems and investment professionals handle their retirement savings. This robo-advisor option is available as a traditional and Roth IRA.

But those who want personalized guidance on every aspect of their financial lives and not just retirement can weigh the benefits of Schwab Advisor Services .

Regardless of account type however, Schwab clients can benefit from access to commission-free stock, ETF and options trading as well as award-winning research tools and market data from experts.

Schwab is a well-established financial services firm that has been around since the ‘70s. If you’re interested, you can learn more about the founder Charles Schwab.

How to open a Schwab Individual 401(k) plan

To open a Schwab Individual 401(k) plan, you need to fill out some paperwork. These forms can be found on the official webpage of the Schwab Individual 401(k) plan. After you visit the site, click on the relevant links and follow these steps.

• Complete and sign the Adoption Agreement & the Trustee and Custodial Agreement. Return signed copy to Schwab.

3. Complete account application and return to Schwab (You’d need to complete separate applications if you want both a traditional and Roth option).

4. Distribute the pricing guide to all participants (Your spouse would be the only participant in this case).

If you want to learn more about Schwab, check out our regularly-updated list of Charles Schwab guides, news and coverage .

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