Summary

As businesses grow and evolve, the plan that guides them needs to keep pace with the changing company. Too often, a business plan languishes on a shelf, unrevised, to be trotted out and tarted up when money is being sought. This book focuses on existing small businesses and looks specifically at the ethics of organization that guide their development. Entrepreneurs or small business owners will find the following four tools very helpful: a three-dimensional matrix that clarifies which sections of the business plan should be emphasized at the three main stages of the business life cycle development in various industries; examples of 'live' business plans in these industries, developed and used by small business owners today; commentaries on these plans by functional specialists and industry experts who evaluate the plans in the context of the business; an extensive set of resources and references, electronic, hard copy, and human, to assist the small business owner in business plan development.