B
y now, you have a detailed understanding of your business and its operating envi-
ronment. You have identified your core competencies, competitive advantages and
strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Now you can have fun devising a strat-
egy, setting objectives, turning them into an operating plan and documenting it. This is
the focus of this chapter. In the ones that follow you can cost the plan, make cash flow
projections and develop a budget.
A strategy and an operating plan
If you have been writing your business plan while working through this book, you have so
far described the current status of the business and its external environment. Along the
way you have documented your:
central objective;
vision and mission;
core competencies;
competitive advantages;
strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.
You now have everything that you need to develop a strategy, turn it into a plan, execute
it, and bask in your success. Start by reviewing the items on the above list. Have a good
hard think about how they fit together and make your business unique. Ponder also on
how to cover your weaknesses, exploit the opportunities and head off threats. If you look
carefully, you might find ways to turn threats into opportunities and advantages. In the
middle of every difficulty lies opportunity.
As you work through the next few pages, keep in mind the fact that your ultimate aim at
present is to document your strategy. The five steps that you will undertake are shown below.
A STRATEGY AND AN OPERATING PLAN 109
Five steps to a well-documented strategy
1 Identify the domain sought – market niche, unique products, etc.
2 Explain your competitive advantages in pursuing that domain.
3 Introduce the strategy that you have devised.
4 Specify your objectives.
5 Identify the potential rewards.
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