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Lesson 7 of 7Developing and Completing the Venture Plan
Unit 4 · Lesson 7 of 7

Completing and Presenting the Venture Plan

The venture plan opens with an overview (executive summary, mission, vision and goals), is revised so every part agrees, is produced with suitable technology, and is presented clearly to lenders or a panel.

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Key things to remember

  1. 1The overview opens the plan: executive summary, mission statement, vision statement and goals.
  2. 2Mission: what the venture does, for whom and why, today. Vision: what it aims to become in the future.
  3. 3The executive summary is a one-page snapshot that appears first but is written last.
  4. 4Revise so every number and assumption agrees across sections, e.g. start-up capital equals total financing.
  5. 5Use spreadsheets with formulas for financials, word processing for the written plan, and presentation software and charts for the pitch.
  6. 6A pitch ends with a clear ask: how much, for what, and how it will be repaid.

By now Ava has a pile of pieces: market research, a marketing plan, an operations plan, start-up capital, a cash-flow projection and a financing mix. A bank officer will not read a pile. The final step is to turn the pieces into one clear document that opens with a short overview, tells one consistent story, looks professional, and can be explained out loud in ten minutes. A brilliant idea in a messy plan often loses to an ordinary idea in a clear one, because the reader cannot see the brilliance.

The overview: executive summary, mission, vision and goals

TodayFutureMissiontoday: our purposeWhat do we do?For whom?Why does it matter?Example“We tune and repair bikesat customers' homes sostudents and families inour town can ride safely,without hauling a bike to ashop.”SMART goalsmilestones along the wayWhat will we achieve?How much?By when?Example“Complete 60 tune-ups at$50 each, for $3,000 insales, by August 31.”Visionthe future we aim forWhere are we going?What will we become?Example“To be our region's go-tobike-care service, helpingmore people ride everyday.”Is the goal SMART?S Specifictune-ups forlocal ridersM Measurable60 tune-ups,$3,000 in salesA Achievable5 a week × 12weeks = 60R Relevantbuilds our coreserviceT Time-boundby August 31
Fig 1Mission (what we do today and why), SMART goals (milestones) and vision (where we are heading), shown for a mobile bike-repair venture.
PartWhat it answersAva's Cycle Works
Mission statementWhat do we do, for whom, and why does it matter?We tune up bikes and sell safe, affordable refurbished bikes so that students and families in our town can keep riding.
Vision statementWhat do we want to become in the future?To be the place our town thinks of first for keeping bikes on the road and out of landfills.
GoalsWhat will we achieve, by how much, by when?Complete 195 tune-ups (15% of the town's market) and earn a $3,105 net profit by October 31.
The three statements that open a venture plan, written for Ava's Cycle Works.

The executive summary is a one-page snapshot of the whole plan. Many readers decide from this page alone whether to keep reading, so it must stand on its own. It covers: the business and its product or service, the opportunity and target market, what makes it different, the owner and their experience, the key financial numbers (start-up capital, financing requested, projected sales and profit, break-even), and exactly what the reader is being asked for. Here is Ava's: "Ava's Cycle Works is a seasonal bike-repair and refurbished-bike shop serving students and families in our town from May to October. About 1,300 tune-ups are done locally each season, and our goal is 15% of them. The owner, Ava Mensah, has two years of repair experience. Start-up capital is $8,700: $2,700 of the owner's savings, a $3,000 family loan and a $3,000 youth start-up loan requested here. We project $18,200 of sales and a $3,105 net profit, an ROI of 35.7%, and we break even at 38 tune-ups in a summer month. Our cash-flow projection stays positive every month, with $4,235 on hand at season's end."

Write the executive summary last
It appears first in the plan, but you cannot summarize what you have not finished. Write it after the financial plan, copy the numbers straight from the final tables, and keep it to one page.

Assembling and revising the complete plan

A venture plan, front to back1Cover / title pageventure name, owner, contact information, date2Executive summarya one-page overview: written last, read first3Description & missionwhat the venture does, for whom, and why4Marketing researchtarget market, competitors, industry trends5Resource analysispeople, skills, equipment and suppliers needed6Production planhow the good or service is made and delivered7Marketing planproduct, price, place and promotion (the 4 Ps)8Financial planstart-up costs, cash-flow projection, break-even9Appendicesrésumés, price quotes, survey results, permitsWrite the executive summary last: it sums up everything that follows.
Fig 2The parts of a complete venture plan from front to back. The executive summary comes first but is written last.
  • Numbers agree everywhere. Start-up capital in the financial plan ($8,700) must equal total financing ($8,700) and the figure in the executive summary.
  • Assumptions match. The 195 tune-ups in the cash-flow projection must match the sales forecast in the marketing plan and the capacity in the operations plan.
  • Every claim has evidence. Market size, prices and costs point to research, quotes or surveys, with details in the appendices.
  • The audience can follow it. Plain language, defined terms, headings, page numbers and a table of contents.
  • It is error-free. Spell-check, then have someone else proofread, because you will read what you meant to write.

Using technology to produce the plan

ToolUse it forTip
Word processorThe written plan: headings, styles, table of contents, page numbers.Use built-in heading styles so the table of contents updates itself.
SpreadsheetStart-up capital, cash-flow projection, break-even, income forecast.Use formulas, not typed totals, so one change updates every number.
ChartsShowing numbers at a glance.Line chart for cash over time, bar chart for monthly sales, pie chart for the financing mix.
Presentation softwareSlides for a pitch to a lender or panel.One idea per slide, large text, a chart instead of a full table.
Shared cloud documentsWorking with a partner or getting feedback.Use comments and version history instead of emailing copies.
Matching each technology to the job it does best.
Row  Item               May (column B)
1    Opening cash       2700
4    Total receipts     =B2+B3
11   Total payments     =SUM(B5:B10)
12   Net cash flow      =B4-B11
13   Closing cash       =B1+B12

June opening cash (C1) =B13
Spreadsheet formulas behind the cash-flow projection. Linking June's opening cash to May's closing cash means every month updates when one number changes.

Presenting the plan to a lender or panel

VentureplanBankers and lenderswant to know:Can the loan be repaid ontime?What collateral backs theloan?Investors / venturecapitalistswant to know:How fast can it grow?What return will I earn?Supplierswant to know:Can it pay for orders oncredit?Will it order steadily?Partners andemployeeswant to know:Is the venture stable?What is my role andreward?The entrepreneura road map to follow and tomeasure progress against
Fig 3Different readers want different things from the same plan, so shape the presentation for the audience in the room.
  1. Open with the hook: the problem and your solution in two sentences.
  2. Show the market: who the customers are and the evidence they will buy.
  3. Explain how it works: product or service, price, location, operations.
  4. Walk through the numbers: start-up capital, financing, cash flow, break-even and profit, using one or two clear charts.
  5. Make the ask: exactly how much money you need, what it will pay for and how it will be repaid.
  6. Close and invite questions: thank the panel and restate the ask in one sentence.
Handling questions
Listen to the whole question and pause before answering. Answer the question that was asked, briefly, and back it with a number from the plan. If you do not know, say so honestly and offer to follow up with the answer, then do it. Prepare by listing the ten hardest questions you could be asked, such as "What if it rains all of May?", and rehearse an answer for each.

Good business communication also covers the paperwork around the pitch. A business report uses a title, headings, short paragraphs and labelled tables, and puts conclusions first. Forms, such as a loan application, must be completed accurately and match the plan exactly. Charts replace walls of numbers. Dress and speak as you would for a job interview, rehearse until you can present without reading, and bring printed copies of the plan for the panel.

VideoUse the three steps in this talk to shape the story you tell when you present your venture plan to a lender or panel.Watch on YouTube

Worked examples

Reveal one step at a time and try to beat it to the next line.

Example 1
Ava's first mission statement reads: "Ava's Cycle Works wants to be the best and make money." Rewrite it as a strong mission statement and write a separate vision statement.
Example 2
While revising, Ava finds these numbers in her draft: the start-up capital table totals $8,700; the financing section lists savings $2,700, family loan $3,000 and youth loan $2,500; the marketing plan forecasts 195 tune-ups; the cash-flow projection uses 30 + 40 + 45 + 40 + 25 + 10 tune-ups. Find and fix the inconsistencies.
Example 3
Ava has ten minutes to present to a youth-loan review panel. Plan her slides and choose a chart for each set of numbers.

Where marks get lost

  • Writing the executive summary first and never updating it, so its numbers no longer match the finished financial plan.
  • Mixing up mission and vision: the mission describes what the venture does now and why; the vision describes what it hopes to become.
  • Leaving numbers inconsistent between sections, such as financing that does not add up to the start-up capital. Lenders notice immediately.
  • Typing totals into a spreadsheet instead of using formulas, so changing one month's sales leaves the closing cash wrong.
  • Pasting a full cash-flow table onto a slide and reading it aloud, instead of showing one chart and explaining what it means.

Flashcards 8

Executive summary
Mission statement
Vision statement
Overview of a venture plan
+ 4 more

Practice

1
Which part of the venture plan is placed first but should be written last?
2
"To become the region's leading bike-care service within five years." What is this?
3
A venture plan's start-up capital is $12,400. The financing section lists owner's savings $4,000, a family loan $2,500 and a bank loan $5,400. By how many dollars is the financing short?
$
4
Match each set of numbers to the best way to show it in a presentation.
Closing cash month by month
Sales of each product in each month
Share of start-up capital from each source
Exact start-up costs for the panel to check
5
Put these parts of a venture plan in the order they appear in the finished document.
  1. 1Financial plan
  2. 2Marketing plan
  3. 3Appendices
  4. 4Title page
  5. 5Executive summary
  6. 6Business description, mission and vision
6
During a pitch, a panel member asks a question Ava cannot answer. What should she do?
7
Why should the cash-flow projection be built in a spreadsheet with formulas?
8
Which statement in a venture plan explains what the business does, for whom, and why it matters?
9
Which closing line best makes "the ask" at the end of a pitch to a lender?

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