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Written by Professional Academy guest blogger Lori Wade
Writing a business plan definitely isn’t easy. It’s a long, energy-consuming process that requires paying a lot of attention to the details and making sure that you didn’t forget to mention something in your plan.
This also means that in order to create a proper business plan you shouldn’t focus on the planning process only. You should also remember to mention and describe all the important details that will matter for potential investors – for example, a management summary.
Basically, it’s a section that includes all the most important information about people responsible for company’s management. By adding such section to your business plan you show the investors how exactly is your business structured. You also demonstrate them who are involved in the development of your company and how’s the whole business is managed.
This section is very important because it demonstrates the experience of your team, and therefore the strength of your company the most. It supports all the data provided in other sections of your business plan and can influence the investors’ decision a lot.
For better understanding, you can check the examples of management summaries included in a bakery business plan and in a coffee shop business plan.
Without a doubt, focusing on your management team is important. Focusing on a person responsible for selecting and organizing this team is even more important, though.
Write about the team leader, making sure that their background, vision, and credentials are described in details. If possible, explain how exactly did they choose this specific management team. Don’t go into many details but make sure that even a brief explanation is included.
It’s important to write about your managers, of course. The question is how can you do it right?
Don’t forget that your goal is to highlight their skills and professionalism – and to do this quickly and briefly at the same time. The investors won’t have much time to read the detailed descriptions, therefore you should focus on the following things:
Assuming you have them, include them in this section along with the reasons why there were included in the first place.
Your company’s staff isn’t always limited to people who work for you. Sometimes you might need the help of some outside professionals and while the reasons for that could be very different, it’s important to not forget to mention them in this section. This will show the investors that you have every important area of your business covered.
Here are some tips on how can you do so.
1. Describe how your staff interacts with each other.
Sure, describing your employees’ primary roles in your company is important. However, any company doesn’t work strictly as described in the various organizational chart. The employees sometimes go beyond their basic professional duties, interacting with each other and taking different professional roles. It’s crucial to describe it so the investors would understand how your company really functions.
2. Focus on what’s important, discard what’s not.
We’ve already mentioned the details about your management team that is important to include in this section. While some additional information actually might be a plus, you should still pay attention to what you decide to include. Otherwise, there’s a big chance you’ll focus on things that aren’t as relevant – for example, list the whole employees’ bios in this section.
You can still add them to your business plan, though, but not here. Put them in the appendix, for example.
3. Make sure the connections between employees and business activities are clear.
When we’re describing the management team, we do so in order to describe the roles they play in the business. Therefore, it’s important to make the connection between your staff and your company’s achievements evident. Make sure that you relate specific skills and work experience of your employees with the roles that they play and will play in both your company’s present and future.
4. Encourage your team to review your writing.
Of course, no business plan is written without a review. A management summary is also rarely written flawlessly from the first draft – in most cases, you need to review and edit it properly.
It’s a good idea to encourage your management team to participate in reviewing this section of your plan. In this case, they will be able to confirm that all the information about them, their skills, and roles are listed correctly. They might also be able to offer some valuable suggestions to you.
Moreover, such approach will show your team that you value their opinion and care about them. Such things can affect your communication greatly, motivating your staff and boosting their productivity.
Summing this up, just like a thesis statement definition is a crucial part of any essay, a management summary is a very important part of every business plan. Of course, writing it isn’t easy – and doing it the right way is even more challenging. However, these tips will hopefully help you create a strong and impressive management summary that will make the right impression on the potential investors.
What do you think about management summaries? Do you find them important for any business plan or do you think that they aren’t necessary?
Lori Wade is a freelance content writer who is interested in a wide range of spheres from education and online marketing to entrepreneurship. She is also an aspiring tutor striving to bring education to another level like we all do. If you are interested in writing, you can find her on Twitter or Google+ or find her on other social media. Read and take over Lori’s useful insights!
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