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Existing Companies Need Planning Too

(Author’s note: This is a special labor-of-love article for me. As I write this additional note, months after this article was first published, I have become steadily more concerned about the negative impact of that myth of the start-up business plan in the second paragraph here. There’s a huge loss, because of that myth, for [...]

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Business Ratios Give You Type-of-Business Comparisons

The illustration below shows a Business Ratios table. It includes dozens of standard business ratios calculated from business plan financials, and used and expected by bankers, financial analysts, and investors. It also includes a column of statistical indicators for the specific type of business. This industry information is classified and categorized by Standard Industrial Classification [...]

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Plan vs. Actual, Part 3: Understanding Variance Analysis

Understanding variance analysis
Many businesses, especially the small, entrepreneurial kind, ignore or forget the other half of the budgeting. Budgets are too often proposed, discussed, accepted, and forgotten. Variance analysis looks after-the-fact at what caused a difference between plan vs. actual. Good management looks at what that difference means to the business. Business Plan Pro Premier [...]

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Plan vs. Actual, Part 2: Cash Flow and Profit and Loss

Catching trends as they develop
A Plan vs. Actual Cash Flow table for the same sample plan shown in Part 1 of this series would show the variance in cash flow and cash balance and how much can change, in the real world, despite good planning. A company needs to adjust to change by keeping its [...]

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Plan vs. Actual, Part 1: Implement Your Plan and Keep It Alive

As you review implementation results with the people responsible, you will often find the need to set new goals and make course corrections. Keep track of the original plan and manage changes carefully. Although changes should be made only with good reason, don’t be afraid to update your plan and keep it alive. Business Plan [...]

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