What’s Wrong with Business Plans – the truth you won’t hear from Consultants

Do you have a Business Plan? Congratulations, but you are in a small minority. And if you have a plan, do you actually use it? And have you looked at it in the last few months? If the answer to this question is yes to these questions, then you need to read no further. However, most business owners who actually go to the trouble to write a business plan have left it languishing on their bottom shelf, gathering dust! This is the dirty little secret of business consultants.

Most business consultants are only interested in selling
their time or their ‘Business Plan in a Box’ but know that
for a business plan to be useful, it has to be part of a
Business Management System. But this is a much harder
proposition for the consultant to sell, particularly to
small business owners who are just looking for a quick fix.
So most consultants just sell a quick fix solution-  a
business plan that they know will, within months, end up on
the bottom shelf. Once owners have prepared their “fill in
the blanks” plan, they expect it to transform their
business overnight just by its mere existence. And because
this does not happen, they never look at it again.

Business Plans do work, but you have to make them work. It
is not a one-off exercise. If you buy a ‘Business Plan in a
Box’, you need to understand that you are responsible for
maintaining the plan. You also need to satisfy yourself
that the product you buy is not just a fill in the blanks
product. These plans always end up on the bottom shelf.
They don’t show you how to do your strategic analysis
(which is never a fill in the blanks exercise- no matter
what someone tells you).

Business Planning is a real soul searching exercise for the
business owner. You have to be brutally honest with
yourself. Even if you prepare your plan yourself (without a
coach), get someone else involved to keep you honest!
Looking at examples of what others have done can help, but
your business will have different strengths and weaknesses
and will operate in a different marketplace. And lastly,
make sure any off-the-shelf product you choose will show
you how to implement your plan into your business.

When you use a consultant, insist that they show you how
the plan should be implemented into your business process.
And have the consultant give you at least one review of
your performance against your plan six months after the
plan has been delivered. While this will cost you extra,
this will ensure that your plan does not end up on the
bottom shelf- because you know you will be held to account!

Business Planning is not an easy process. It takes time and
commitment. You don’t just do it once. This is not what
business owners want to hear, and what most consultants
won’t tell you, because it might cost them a sale. But the
rewards from a well implemented business plan are worth
many times your investment.

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Dr Greg Chapman provides information and support to small
business owner through the Australian Business Coaching
Club. Visit the Club at
http://www.AustralianBusinessCoachingClub.com.au or The
Australian Small Business Blog at
http://www.AustralianSmallBusiness.net.au for Free business
information.