Business Planning

• Staffing


  A management function involving employees' acquisition, training, appraisal, and compensation
• Teams in the workplace

  • May be formed based on employees of similar skill sets, employees for specific projects, or tasks, or pairing experienced and inexperienced employees together
  • Used to promote excellent communication, camaraderie, productivity, or efficiency within the workplace
• Trend analysis


  1. Examines and predicts the movement of an item based on current and historical data

  2. Comparison may include trends in the financial performance of the business, competitor movement and growth, manufacturing efficiency, new/ emerging technologies, customer complaints, and staff performance or key performance indicators (KPIs)
• Situational analysis


  Establishes the business's current position in the marketplace, examines its strengths and weaknesses, and includes research on financial data of business operations to establish a trend
• Identifying and sustaining competitive advantage

  • Train staff to increase productivity
  • Cheap sources of debt finance to reduce costs
  • Lower prices to attract sales
  • Technology used to lower costs and prices and increase quality
• Overextension of financing and other resources

  Businesses need to start small and gradually expand organically in the market. Otherwise, the business might experience excessive financial and other resources such as labour and equipment
• Business planning


  Includes cash flow projections, budget predictions, accurate and up-to-date financial statements, and the setting of short-, medium-, and long-term goals and objectives
• Technology


  A clear understanding of emerging technologies and decisions on their implementation can make or break a business
• Economic conditions


  The economy refers to all the activities related to an entity's consumption and trade of goods and services. Economic movements tend to affect all individuals and groups, whether directly or indirectly
• Market types


  • Primary: Mining, agriculture, fishing, and logging. Extraction
  • Secondary: Automotive, construction, manufacturing, food, processing, extraction
  • Tertiary: Hospitality, retail, healthcare, real estate, education
  • Quaternary: media, financial services, education, real estate, robotics
  • Quinary: Ngo's, NurNgo'shomes, fire service, police service, childcare
• Market research


  Evaluates the viability of a new service or product through research conducted directly with potential customers
• Types of market research

  • Primary: Provides results specifically about your company (e.g. Focus groups, interviews, surveys)
  • Secondary: Involves applying the results of previously completed studies of your situation (e.g. Free or low-cost)
• Location


  Council zones areas for specific purposes. Factories and white goods stores tend to be located away from residential areas. Location is relevant to the type of business. It is also important to consider any external services required to produce a good or service
• Types of financing


  • Debt financing: Company borrows money from a financial institution
  • Equity financing: Raising money by selling shares of ownership in the business
• Costs associated with financing

  Monetary (e.g. interest payments) or non-monetary (e.g. loss of ownership)
• Retained profit


  Money earned by the business not taken by the owner or distributed as dividends to shareholders. It is any money left after taxes and expenses are paid and reinvested into the business. No interest is paid on the money
• Owners' equity

  The portion of a company's owner can claim
• Sales of Asset


  An asset no longer of any use to the business may be sold, and the funds may be reinvested into areas of the business
• Overdrafts


  A 'contact' 'between' a bank and a business, allowing a business to overdraw/ have a deficit balance (negative) on its account. There is an agreed maximum limit that can be overdrawn. The purpose is to manage cashflow shortages for expected or unexpected reasons. High interest rates must be paid regardless of the level of profits in the business
• Commercial Bills


  A written order for a loan amount guaranteed by the business, which is rowed from other companies or governments with surplus funds. Funds and interest are repaid on a specific date in the future, usually 30 to 180 days after the bill is sold. However, the loan can be rolled over or extended and is reassessed each time it matures. They usually cost $ 100,000 or more, and many banks set a minimum borrowing amount of $ 500,000
• Factoring


  Selling accounts receivable at a discount to a factoring business to create a quick cash flow. This occurs when the company believes a customer may be unlikely to pay on time or at all. The factoring business takes over management of the unpaid accounts. Debtors (customers owing the business) now pay the factoring company instead of the original business
• Mortgages


  Obtained from banks or business lenders and have an extended repayment period of up to 20 years. Often used to purchase non-current assets, e.g., buildings and machinery used as security for the loan. The lender can sell security or bank if repayments are not made. There is a lower-than-normal interest rate, as the risks to lenders are lower
• Debentures


  Assets are used as security. Finance companies and other large businesses are invited into the business by lending them large amounts of money to purchase large assets. A business that has lent the money becomes a debenture holder. The company issuing the debenture is monitored by a trustee (supervisor) who ensures the business operates effectively in a way that results in profit to ensure the debenture is repaid with interest on maturity. Debentures may be a private or public issue. The public issue requires a prospectus (business and financial plan) and is traded in the ASX
• Leasing


  An arrangement/ contract where the owner of an asset agrees to lend someone else/ another business the asset in return for periodic payment. Businesses can lease non-current assets, e.g., a company car/ factory, in return for payments to the owner. The business does not have to pay the total value of the asset. No upfront payments are required, and the payments can be flexible. The lease payments are tax deductible and allow the business to update technology as the payments are linked to the asset's liasset'shares
• Ordinary shares


  Provide part ownership in a company and allow the shareholders to receive a dividend as their share of profits. New issues occur when a private company provides a prospectus to indicate what the shareholders will receive if they invest in the business. This happens in ASX's primASX'sarket. This company will choose the number of shares to be released for purchase and will decide whether the shareholders wi
• Private Equity


  Money invested into a business that does not incur any debt but usually results in decreased ownership of the company as the investor receives a percentage of ownership and control proportionate to the money invested. Usually from other companies/ individuals who are in some way connected to the business. It may be used to buy out public company shareholders (LTD) and turn it into a private company (PTY LTD)
• Legal business name


  Registered with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC). The business must have an Australian business number (ABN) obtained from the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) before it can apply to register its name. This ABN must appear on all transactions, letters, and documents
• Zoning


  Local governments can restrict where certain local businesses can be located. These regulations create areas or zones where land can only be used for specific purposes, i.e., to ensure residential areas are quiet and free from pollution. This allows local governments to plan for the growth of communities through regulations on land use
• Health regulations


  Local governments require businesses to be registered and hold all relevant permits and licenses. The company must inform the local council about its operation and provide details of the owner's owner's licensees regulations to protect consumers from diseases and food poisoning. This includes the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (CTH), supported in NSW by the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011. Specific industries also have specific requirements for health, especially those associated with food preparation and service. Other regulations include smoke-free zones, operating hours, food standards, rubbish accumulation and disposal, overgrown vegetation, air conditioning cooling towers, public swimming pools, environmental issues, and pollution levels
• Australian Consumer Law (ACL)

  Part of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth). This law applies to nearly every aspect of operations, meaning all consumers have the same rights, and businesses have the same responsibilities across Australia. Product must be safe, businesses cannot take part in misleading and deceptive conduct, goods must be priced openly, warranties and refunds must be provided to cover faulty manufacturing, businesses cannot unduly harass or coerce customers when collecting outstanding debts
• Patents


  The legal protection an individual/ business can use to protect a new idea/ invention for a limited time from being copied by competitors
• Licenses


  Some business operators, including importers, liquor-related businesses, taxi owners, auditors, chemists, and butchers, are also required to have licenses to trade
• Human Resources


  The business function focused on the relationship between the employer and its employees. It primarily involves recruiting appropriately skilled employees for various positions, further developing and maintaining their skills to suit their positions and the business, and separating these employees from the business if necessary
• Skills


  Recruited employees need to be assets to the business. They need to match the skills required for the position and the business culture. Different skill levels are needed for other jobs, especially as the firm grows; the jobs become more task-oriented, individualised, and skill-specific
• Costs


  Wages are weekly payments based on hours worked and hourly pay rate, whilst salary refers to the annual pay rate offered in exchange for work. Employee costs are considered 'wage' and''non'wage''costs. 'Wage costs are direct payments to employees in exchange for their labour. They include wages and salaries. Non-wage costs are additional costs related to employing someone beyond their basic salary
• Casualisation of the workforce

  Driven by economic pressures, technological advancements, globalisation, changing business models, and regulatory changes. Businesses seek cost reduction and flexibility, while some workers favour work-life balance
• Gathering business ideas


  Through careful market research to identify opportunities. They can be discovered through new technology creating new products and services, political changes presenting new opportunities, businesses leaving the market, and changing consumer tastes and attitudes
• Sources of planning idea
• Situational analysis


  Assisted into the target audience, projected business growth, external threats and flaws that could be eliminated
• Steps in Completing a situational analysis

  1. 5C analysis

  2. SWOT analysis

  3. Five forces analysis

  4. Other spec