Start-up Funding | |
Start-up Expenses to Fund | $575,000 |
Start-up Assets to Fund | $425,000 |
Total Funding Required | $1,000,000 |
Assets | |
Non-cash Assets from Start-up | $200,000 |
Cash Requirements from Start-up | $225,000 |
Additional Cash Raised | $0 |
Cash Balance on Starting Date | $225,000 |
Total Assets | $425,000 |
Liabilities and Capital | |
Liabilities | |
Current Borrowing | $1,000,000 |
Long-term Liabilities | $0 |
Accounts Payable (Outstanding Bills) | $0 |
Other Current Liabilities (interest-free) | $0 |
Total Liabilities | $1,000,000 |
Capital | |
Planned Investment | |
Investor 1 | $0 |
Investor 2 | $0 |
Other | $0 |
Additional Investment Requirement | $0 |
Total Planned Investment | $0 |
Loss at Start-up (Start-up Expenses) | ($575,000) |
Total Capital | ($575,000) |
Total Capital and Liabilities | $425,000 |
Total Funding | $1,000,000 |
We have two locations, one in Kahului, Maui and the other in Hilo, Hawai’i. The two offices are presently being leased by Servco Pacific, Inc., and we will rent from them on a month-to-month basis until we are able to relocate to more suitable facilities. On Kauai, we have a sub-contractor agreement with Kauai Office Equipment to handle installations and service.
IMH will acquire an existing operation whose primary business has been the sale and service of business appliances (copiers, facsimiles, printers, etc.) and has operated as a part of the office equipment industry. We will build from this base to transform the business into a value-added provider of the emerging services and technologies of the new Information Industry. Following the lead of Canon, USA and other manufacturers which we represent, we will approach the marketplace from a total systems solutions viewpoint.
This new paradigm will begin with an analysis of the client’s existing and planned business processes, and will provide total workflow solutions utilizing multifunctional imaging platforms and information distribution systems. These systems will be backed by professional and reliable technical service and proactive customer service. By forming strategic alliances with local Information Industry Value-Added Resellers, we will be able to offer turnkey Local Area Network (LAN) systems and the ability to retrofit existing LAN and peer-to-peer systems.
Copies of our product and sales literature are attached as appendices. Of course, one of our first tasks will be to change the message of our literature to make sure we are selling the company, rather than the product.
IMH will market and sell brand name business information distribution systems and hardware, technical service and support for these products, and the consumable supplies used by these systems. We will be a single-source provider for business information and imaging products and services.
After researching our various manufacturer’s offerings and evaluating our core competencies, we will focus our marketing and sales efforts around the digital products offered by Canon USA and eCopy, Inc. We will supplement this product line with Lexmark and Hewlett Packard printer products. As we continue to transition the company into the digital marketplace, we will form alliances with additional IT manufacturers and suppliers who can round out our product and services line.
Hardware product offerings will include:
Software offerings will include:
Service Products include:
Professional Services include:
The only way we can hope to differentiate well is to define the vision of the company to be an information technology ally to our clients. We will not be able to compete in any effective way with the large mainland-based office equipment companies by selling boxes or products as appliances. We need to offer a real alliance to our local customers.
Unfortunately, we cannot sell the products at a higher price just because we offer services; the market has shown that it will not support that concept. We have to also sell the service and consumable supplies and charge for them separately. This monthly recurring revenue is the foundation of our financial stability.
New technology has changed almost everything about the traditional office equipment (copier) industry, and for all practical purposes it no longer exists. The new Information Industry has emerged because of the technology of convergence. The primary driver of convergence of different forms of information is technological change, specifically the rapid diffusion of digital technology into an ever-wider array of information businesses. Beyond digitization, dramatic changes in computing and telecommunications industries (mainly in faster microprocessors and increasing bandwidth) are also driving convergence.
IMH will make convergence the theme of its vision, planning, and marketing strategies. We will move into the new Information Industry’s technology with the aim of bringing the most efficient workflow solutions to our clients while providing value-added customer support and service, and earning a reasonable profit in the process.
Our strategy hinges on providing unparalleled service and support, which is critical to setting us apart from the competition. We need to differentiate on service and support in order to become true partners with our clients. Our service offers will include:
Beginning at start up, we will explore and research new information technologies for inclusion in our product offerings. The products which we choose will be in line with our vision to transition the company from being an appliance seller, to being a provider of total information management solutions. These convergent information products will include:
We have an established relationship with our manufacturers and suppliers, and will be able to take advantage of all discounts and promotions in order to keep our margins at roughly 49% throughout the operation. We will also implement and employ “just-in-time” inventory strategies for hardware, supplies, and service parts orders to further strengthen our margins.
As we continue to grow the business, we will evaluate other IT industry manufacturers and product lines to strengthen our offerings with a view primarily to quality and margin advantages.
IMH will focus on local markets, including small offices and home offices (1-9 employees), medium to large businesses (10-99 employees), corporate Hawai’i (multiple locations or 100+ employees), and local government offices.
Our market segmentation scheme is fairly straightforward, and focuses on all Neighbor Island businesses. The information contained in our customer analysis table is taken directly from the 2000 US Census and government directories, and clearly shows that our largest market potential is the small office and home office (SOHO) segment. This segment is largely overlooked by most of our competitors because of its “low end” buying habits, and a reluctance to compete with the major retail chain box movers. We will target the SOHO market segment with value-added and affordable business solutions customized to its unique needs, and offer the same quality of service and support as are afforded the larger businesses.
The next largest market segment is medium to large businesses, and is the arena where we now focus most of our sales efforts. We will continue to target this segment, but with a different approach than our predecessors. The strategy used by former management has been to bring in selected products, and then attempt to find a buyer. This resulted in inventory overstock, and obsolescence. We will work with the medium to large businesses to determine their needs, and design customized solutions before ordering the required systems (JIT inventory strategy). This segment will remain an extremely important part of our marketing mix, and contains a large portion of our current clients. A majority of our systems upgrade opportunities and repeat business will come from this market segment initially.
Although the Corporate Hawai’i market segment is the smallest in numbers, it has the potential to provide a significant share of our revenues and growth (the 80/20 rule). We have a scattering of current clients in the Corporate Hawai’i segment, but we need to do a better job of penetrating this lucrative end of the market. We will accomplish this by offering professional services to include workflow and network design, MIS support, and other value-added support benefits such as “uptime guarantees.” We will develop long-term relationships within this segment, and earn their business.
The local government market segment is unique in that we act primarily as a “middle man” for our manufacturers due to GSA price schedules and other national government-only programs. This segment is fiercely competitive, very price-focused, and buying decisions are often influenced by “who you know,” as well as price. We are fortunate in that we have long-established relationships within the County and State government agencies, and have many loyal clients in this segment. We will increase our share of this market segment by offering the same value-added service and support benefits that we bring to our commercial clients.
Market Analysis | |||||||
Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 | |||
Potential Customers | Growth | CAGR | |||||
SOHO | 4% | 6,800 | 7,072 | 7,355 | 7,649 | 7,955 | 4.00% |
Medium/Large Business | 4% | 2,100 | 2,184 | 2,271 | 2,362 | 2,456 | 3.99% |
Corporate Hawaii | 3% | 140 | 144 | 148 | 152 | 157 | 2.91% |
Government Offices | 2% | 1,225 | 1,243 | 1,262 | 1,281 | 1,300 | 1.50% |
Total | 3.69% | 10,265 | 10,643 | 11,036 | 11,444 | 11,868 | 3.69% |
Developing a market strategy is a departure from the way the company has been managed in the past. We will change the paradigm of being a product- and price-focused sales organization, to that of becoming a customer- and market-focused organization, with all departments sharing responsibility for customer satisfaction. We will accomplish this paradigm shift through the implementation of a balanced scorecard philosophy of management, with special attention to employee learning and growth.
As mentioned previously our market segmentation strategy is straightforward, and addresses all components of the Neighbor Island business community. Planning and implementing specific strategies for each of the four identified segments will be an on-going process, and we will consult with marketing specialists, and our manufacturers, to further refine these efforts as we develop our marketing plan.
That is the primary reason that IMH has chosen Canon USA as its preferred manufacturer. Canon has led the way in the industry with it’s digital technology innovations, and its ability to bring both the product and the concept to the marketplace. We will follow Canon’s lead and bring this efficient, productivity-enhancing technology to Neighbor Island businesses.
As computer prices continue to fall, unit sales increase. The published market research on sales of personal computers is astounding, as the United States market alone is absorbing more than 30 million units per year, and sales are growing at more than 20 percent per year. We could quote Dataquest, Infocorp, IDC, or others; it doesn’t matter, they all agree on high growth of CPU sales.
This rapid growth rate holds true for productivity systems which connect to the computers being sold. The stand-alone analog systems and appliances which abound in the business marketplace today, will be replaced by connected digital convergence systems in the coming months and years. IMH will position itself to be a value-added provider of this rapidly emerging technology for new businesses, while continuing to maintain and upgrade our current analog customer base.
All businesses have in common a need to be continuously productive, and they rely on their service providers and vendors to sustain their productivity. Effectively filling this need requires that the vendor bring to the table sound planning, quality products, reliable service, and a true partnership and support relationship.
Specific business needs include the ability to gather, compile, analyze, and distribute information in various media formats. This is where IMH’s strengths will be most beneficial to our clients, both big and small. Anyone can sell the “box” at an attractive price, but only a true value-added provider can offer the peace-of-mind that comes from a customer-focused approach to the relationship.
Primarily due to geographic isolation and smaller populations, the Neighbor Island business community has an additional common need of being able to rely on other locally-based vendors and suppliers for quick, reliable, customer service and support. Having to call someone on Oahu, or the mainland, to place a service call, or to order supplies, or get an answer to a simple billing question, is both an irritant and a hindrance to most Neighbor Island-based businesses. Our primary goal is to fill this need by bringing true pro-active, and total, customer service to the Neighbor Island business community, and to gain their confidence and loyalty. This will become one of our underlying strengths.
IMH is a part of the Information Industry, and specializes in providing information management systems and technology for business processes. We envision that a converged information industry operating within the context of an advanced information infrastructure will be a huge boost for U.S. businesses. Several Washington think tanks estimate that it could spur more than $300 billion annually in new sales and increase worker productivity by 20 to 40 percent.
At the present time, an estimated two-thirds of all American jobs are information related, and that number will increase as the shift from manufacturing to service industries continues. The convergence of information industries will continue because the technological and business imperatives are compelling. If one company does not see the possibilities, another will.
Business decision makers and finance managers understand the concept and value of service and support, and are much more likely to pay for it when the offering is clearly stated.
There is no doubt that we compete more against the box pushers than against other service providers. We need to effectively compete against the idea that businesses should buy information platforms as plug-in appliances that don’t need ongoing service, support, and training.
Our research and experience has indicated that our target market segments think about price, but would buy based on quality service if the offering were properly presented. They think about price because that is what is traditionally presented to them first. We have very good indications that many would rather pay 10-20% more for a relationship with a long-term vendor providing back-up and quality service and support. They end up in the box-pusher channels because they are not aware of the alternatives.
Availability is also very important. The business decision makers tend to want immediate, local solutions to problems.
Medium to large business segment buyers are accustomed to buying from vendors who visit their offices. They expect the copy machine vendors, office products vendors, and office furniture vendors, as well as the local graphic artists, freelance writers, or whomever, to visit their office to make their sales.
Unfortunately our SOHO target segment buyers may not expect to buy from us. Many of them turn immediately to the retail superstores (office equipment, office supplies, and electronics), the Web, and mail order to look for the best price, without realizing that there is a better option for them for only a little bit more. We will overcome this hurdle through innovative service offerings, and targeted marketing.
In our higher-end targeted segments (medium to large businesses, corporate Hawai’i, and government offices), the primary competitors are Xerox and Lanier. The secondary “low end” competitors on the Neighbor Islands are Maui Office Machines and Business Equipment on Maui, and Electronics Hawai’i and Stationers on the Big Island. Our overall competitive strategy in these segments will be Canon’s superior technology, and superior value-added service and support.
In our SOHO target segment, the primary competitors are the superstores: Office Max, Office Depot, Sears, and to some extent Costco, Hopaco, and the Web. While these outlets can offer lower prices, they offer no (or very little) aftermarket service or support. That is our competitive advantage in this segment, and will differentiate us from these “box movers.”
The traditional office equipment (copier) industry has been dominated by only a few major manufacturers: Xerox, Canon, Oce, and Ricoh (and its OEM products – Lanier, Savin, and Gestetner); and then come the low-end players: Sharp, Toshiba, and Minolta. With the exception of Xerox, which maintains its own sales force, the other manufacturers distribute and sell mainly through authorized dealers.
The rapidly emerging Information Industry’s digital convergence products will most likely be dominated by the same participants as described above. While Xerox has been a past leader in the manufacture and sales of analog products, Canon has emerged as both an innovator, and the leader, in the new Information Industry with their ImageRunner digital products and Image Platform information distribution systems. Canon is also (and has been for many years) the front runner in color repro-graphic systems, and holds the most patents of any manufacturer in the industry.
We must differentiate ourselves from the box pushers. We need to establish our business offering as a clear and viable alternative for our target markets, to the price oriented sales pitch to which they are accustomed.
The industry’s cheese has been moved. In order to shift to a more contemporary paradigm, our marketing and sales efforts will need:
Our competitive edge is our positioning as a strategic ally with our clients, who are clients more than customers. By building a business based on long-standing relationships with satisfied clients, we simultaneously build defenses against competition. The longer the relationship stands, the more we help our clients understand what we offer them and why they should both stay with IMH, and refer us to other businesses. In close-knit communities like the Neighbor Islands, reputation is extremely important, and word-of-mouth advertising is invaluable.
Our main strategy will be placing emphasis on service and support, and our main tactics are networking expertise, systems training, and implementing a customer relationship management system (CRM) from e-automate. Our specific programs for networking include mailers and internal training. Specific programs for end user training include direct mail promotion, and on-site customer programs. Implementing the CRM software and training will be coordinated with the e-automate Corporation.
Our second strategy is emphasizing relationships. The tactics are marketing the company (instead of the products), more regular contacts with the customer, and increasing sales per customer. Programs for marketing the company include new sales literature, and direct mail. Programs for more regular contacts include call-backs after installation, direct mail, and sales management. Programs for increasing sales per customer include upgrade mailings and sales training.
IMH offers its clients peace-of-mind by being a vendor who acts as a strategic ally, and delivers quality products backed by premium service and support, at a premium price.
We will sell the company and its ability to act as an ally. We will sell IMH, and the reputation of the industry-leading manufacturers it represents.
We will sell our service and support. The hardware is like the razor, and the support, service, software, and training, are the razor blades. We need to serve our customers with total solutions, and not just product features. The products are a means to arriving at end solutions.
The Yearly Total Sales chart summarizes our conservative sales forecast. We expect sales to increase from $3.1 million in the first year to more than $4 million in the third year of this plan.
The important elements of the sales forecast are shown in the following Chart, and Table 5.4.1. Non-hardware sales increase to almost $2 million total in the third year, or 47% of total sales.
Sales Forecast | |||
Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
Sales | |||
Hardware – Image Platforms | $1,092,956 | $1,256,899 | $1,445,434 |
Hardware – Printers | $69,615 | $80,057 | $92,066 |
Hardware – Facsimiles | $142,711 | $164,117 | $188,735 |
Hardware – Misc (TW, Shrd) | $45,250 | $52,037 | $59,843 |
Professional Services | $29,808 | $34,279 | $39,420 |
Government (Comp) | $87,019 | $100,072 | $115,082 |
Supplies (Toner/Paper) | $501,228 | $576,412 | $662,874 |
Service – Agreements/Repairs | $946,764 | $1,088,779 | $1,252,095 |
Equipment Rentals | $243,653 | $280,200 | $322,230 |
Other | $31,327 | $36,026 | $41,430 |
Total Sales | $3,190,329 | $3,668,878 | $4,219,209 |
Direct Cost of Sales | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 |
Hardware – Image Platforms | $677,632 | $772,501 | $880,651 |
Hardware – Printers | $45,250 | $51,585 | $58,807 |
Hardware – Facsimiles | $88,481 | $100,868 | $114,989 |
Hardware – Misc (TW, Shrd) | $31,675 | $36,109 | $41,165 |
Professional Services | $14,904 | $16,990 | $19,369 |
Government (Comp) | $30,457 | $34,720 | $39,581 |
Supplies (Toner/Paper) | $225,553 | $257,130 | $293,128 |
Service – Agreements/Repairs | $378,706 | $431,724 | $492,166 |
Equipment Rentals | $134,009 | $152,770 | $174,158 |
Other | $7,832 | $8,928 | $10,178 |
Subtotal Direct Cost of Sales | $1,634,497 | $1,863,326 | $2,124,192 |
The following table lists important program milestones, with dates and managers in charge, and budgets for each. The milestone schedule indicates our emphasis on planning for implementation. The most important programs are the sales and marketing programs listed in detail in the previous topics.
Milestones | |||||
Milestone | Start Date | End Date | Budget | Manager | Department |
SIOT (NI) Valuation | 5/1/2001 | 5/31/2001 | $0 | BH | Admin |
Complete Business Plan | 5/14/2001 | 6/22/2001 | $200 | BH | Admin |
Submit Letter of Intent | 6/1/2001 | 6/15/2001 | $0 | BH | Admin |
Choose New Company Name | 6/15/2001 | 7/31/2001 | $0 | All | All |
Secure Startup Funding | 6/15/2001 | 7/31/2001 | $0 | BH/All | All |
Retain Attorney/CPA | 6/15/2001 | 7/31/2001 | $10,000 | BH | Marketing |
Negotiate Purchase Agreement | 6/18/2001 | 8/15/2001 | $0 | BH/All | Admin |
Set Up ESOT/ESOP | 6/30/2001 | 8/31/2001 | $12,500 | BH/LW | All |
Set Up New Corporation | 6/30/2001 | 8/31/2001 | $12,500 | BH/LW | All |
Solicit Board Members | 6/30/2001 | 8/31/2001 | $0 | BH | All |
HR Roll-Over Plan (SPI to IMH) | 7/1/2001 | 8/31/2001 | $0 | BH/LW | Admin |
Purchase e-Automate Software | 8/1/2001 | 8/31/2001 | $20,000 | BH/LW | Admin |
A/P & A/R into e-Automate | 8/1/2001 | 8/31/2001 | $0 | LW | Admin |
Business Licenses/Permits | 8/1/2001 | 8/31/2001 | $500 | BH/LW | Admin |
Customers into e-Automate | 8/1/2001 | 8/31/2001 | $0 | JM/BK | Sales |
Inventory into e-Automate | 8/1/2001 | 8/31/2001 | $0 | LW/JA/EO | Service |
Letter To Vendors/Customers | 8/1/2001 | 8/31/2001 | $0 | LW | Admin |
New Stationary/Brochures | 8/1/2001 | 8/31/2001 | $2,500 | LW | Admin |
Obtain Insurance | 8/1/2001 | 8/31/2001 | $25,000 | BH/LW | Admin |
Switch Utilities To IMH | 8/1/2001 | 8/31/2001 | $1,000 | LW | Admin |
Web Site Development | 8/1/2001 | 8/31/2001 | $10,000 | BH | Admin |
Complete Marketing Plan | 8/1/2001 | 8/31/2001 | $2,500 | All | Sales |
IMH Operations – Day 1 | 9/3/2001 | 9/3/2001 | $0 | All | All |
Bd. of Dir. Mtg. (First) | 9/4/2001 | 9/7/2001 | $1,000 | All | All |
All Company – Kick Off Mtg. | 9/4/2001 | 9/7/2001 | $750 | All | All |
Sales Strategies & Programs | 9/4/2001 | 9/30/2001 | $2,500 | JM | Sales |
Marketing Strategy & Programs | 9/4/2001 | 9/30/2001 | $3,500 | BK | Sales |
First Quarter BP Review | 12/10/2001 | 12/14/2001 | $0 | All | All |
Headcount Review | 12/10/2001 | 12/14/2001 | $0 | BH/EO/JA | Sales/Svc |
Bd. of Dir. Mtg. (Qtrly) | 12/10/2001 | 12/14/2001 | $1,000 | All | All |
Cost IT Training Sources | 3/4/2002 | 3/8/2002 | $0 | BH/EO/JA/BK | Sales/Svc |
Second Quarter BP/MP Review | 3/4/2002 | 3/8/2002 | $0 | All | All |
Enroll Team in IT Training | 3/18/2002 | 3/29/2002 | $2,500 | All | All |
Third Quarter BP/MP Review | 6/3/2002 | 6/7/2002 | $0 | All | All |
Bd. of Dir. Mtg. (Qtrly) | 6/3/2002 | 6/7/2002 | $1,000 | All | All |
Fourth Quarter BP/MP Review | 9/2/2002 | 9/5/2002 | $0 | All | All |
Bd. of Dir. Mtg. (Qtrly) | 9/2/2002 | 9/5/2002 | $1,000 | All | All |
New 3-Year BP Due | 9/2/2002 | 9/13/2002 | $0 | All | All |
New 3-Year Mktg. Plan Due | 9/2/2002 | 9/13/2002 | $0 | All | All |
Name me | 9/16/2002 | 9/30/2002 | $1,000 | All | All |
Totals | $110,950 |
The marketing strategy is the core of our main strategy:
Specific sales programs will be included in our new Marketing Plan, and will be included in this Business Plan as they are finalized. In general however, our sales programs will be centered around conducting workflow and information distribution analyses, direct mail, and placing an emphasis on the benefits which IMH and its manufacturers will be able to offer its clients through “total care” service and support.
For businesses who want to be sure their information distribution systems are always working reliably, IMH is a vendor and trusted strategic ally who makes certain their systems work, their people are trained, and their down time is minimal. Unlike the product/price oriented vendors, it knows the customer and goes to their site when needed, and offers proactive support, service, training, and installation.
We must charge appropriately for the high-end, high-quality service and support we offer. Our revenue structure has to match our cost structure, so the salaries we pay to assure good service and support must be balanced by the revenue we charge.
We cannot build the service and support revenue into the price of products. The market can’t bear the higher prices and the buyer feels ill-used when they see a similar product priced lower with the competition. Despite the logic behind this, the market doesn’t support this concept.
We will employ the following general promotional strategies for the various market segments:
IMH is first and foremost a direct sales organization, meaning that we must present our services and products directly to the majority of our customers and clients. Having said that, for our planned penetration into the SOHO market, we will need to establish a presence as a Value-Added Reseller (VAR) for certain low-end product lines which don’t carry the margins necessary to sustain the costs of direct sales. We will plan our new locations accordingly.
As we work to complete this Business Plan, we are simultaneously working on our Marketing Plan. As you can see from the milestones table, we anticipate completion of our detailed Marketing Plan by 9/30/01, or one month from start-up. Because we are acquiring an on-going business, the shift to our vision of customer- and market-focused strategies will not happen overnight. We must plan this shift carefully, and implement it judiciously, so as not to disrupt our immediate operations. We have budgeted for, and will utilize, marketing advisors and consultants (including our manufacturers) in the design of our Marketing Plan.
Our alliances with our manufacturers, and especially Canon USA, will be the most pivotal to our success. We will remain a Canon Authorized Dealer, and continue to enjoy all of the benefits of this long-standing relationship.
We will form alliances with other locally-based VARs and computer network providers to enable us to provide complete turnkey packages for our clients. These relationships will be included in our Marketing Plan.
Our management philosophy is simple and is an integral part of our values: doing right things right, the first time (Kina’ole).
IMH will be an employee-owned company and we all share the same vision of providing our clients (who in many cases are friends and neighbors) with the very best in customer service – period. We will encourage personal growth, creativity, and enable individual empowerment to achieve this goal. We will manage the business by setting achievable Balanced Scorecard goals, measuring them, and making mid-stream adjustments as necessary.
Our team includes 15 employees initially, and is organizationally flat. The departmental divisions are sales and marketing, service, and administration. Operational managers include:
The total head count moving over from Servco at the time of the acquisition will be 13. We are adding two former employees at startup to round out our team, for a total startup head count of 15.
There are an additional six positions shown as “vacant” in the Personnel plan. During each quarterly business plan review, we will assess the need to fund these positions to sustain our growth, and more evenly distribute the workload.
Personnel Plan | |||
Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
Production Personnel | |||
None planned | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Other | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Subtotal | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Sales and Marketing Personnel | |||
Alan Fukuyama – Sales (Maui) | $38,250 | $40,545 | $42,978 |
Brian Kurlansky – Sales (Kona) | $38,250 | $40,545 | $42,978 |
Jay Moore – Sales (Maui) | $38,250 | $40,545 | $42,978 |
Wilbert Shimabukuro – Sales (Hilo) | $38,250 | $40,545 | $42,978 |
Vacant – Aftermarket Sales (Maui) | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Vacant – Aftermarket Sales (Hilo) | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Subtotal | $153,000 | $162,180 | $171,911 |
General and Administrative Personnel | |||
Bill Harding – General Manager | $57,600 | $61,056 | $64,719 |
Laurie Watson – Admin Manager | $45,600 | $48,336 | $51,236 |
Vacant – Office Manager (Hilo) | $31,200 | $33,072 | $35,056 |
Vacant – Whse & Delivery (Maui) | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Vacant – Whse & Delivery (Hilo) | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Other | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Subtotal | $134,400 | $142,464 | $151,012 |
Other Personnel | |||
Earle Oshiro – Systems Manager (Hilo) | $49,800 | $52,788 | $55,955 |
Joe Alfonsi – Systems Manager (Maui) | $49,800 | $52,788 | $55,955 |
Wane Ogawa – Syst Engineer (Hilo) | $39,600 | $41,976 | $44,495 |
Francis Takahashi – Syst Engineer (Hilo) | $39,600 | $41,976 | $44,495 |
Baron Ganeko – Syst Engineer (Kona) | $39,600 | $41,976 | $44,495 |
Abe Braceros – Sr. Syst Engineer (Maui) | $41,100 | $43,566 | $46,180 |
Arlo Villanueva – Syst Tech (Maui) | $28,800 | $30,528 | $32,360 |
Caroline Nacua – Syst Tech (Maui) | $28,800 | $30,528 | $32,360 |
Vacant – Syst Tech (Kona) | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Vacant – Syst Tech (Maui) | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Subtotal | $317,100 | $336,126 | $356,294 |
Total People | 15 | 15 | 15 |
Total Payroll | $604,500 | $640,770 | $679,216 |
Bill Harding, president and general manager: XX years old, and has lived on Maui for 43 years. Joined SIOT in 1998 as Maui branch manager, and became general manager for Neighbor Island operations six months later. Prior management experience includes: BTA market manager of the Neighbor Islands for VoiceStream Wireless, Neighbor Island area sales manager for Central Security Systems, and radar project manager for Telcom International in Nigeria, West Africa. Bill has attended numerous management and sales training courses and seminars throughout his career.
Laurie Watson, secretary/treasurer and administrative manager: XX years old, and local Maui resident. Has been at the same location through three different owners prior to Servco’s acquisition of The Office Place in 1995, for a total of 15 years of local office equipment industry experience. Laurie has extensive knowledge of service procedures and dispatching, A/R and A/P procedures, inventory control and tracking, as well as an intimate knowledge of our customer base. Her experience and knowledge will be invaluable in recovering our customer base, and in growing the business.
Anne Tioganco, office manager (Hilo): XX years old, and local Hilo resident. Anne has also been with the company through all of the acquisitions, and has XX years experience in the office equipment industry. She will assist Laurie by handling the administrative and customer service tasks for our Hilo branch, and will be instrumental in our Big Island customer recovery efforts.
Earle Oshiro, systems manager (Big Island): XX years old, and local Hilo resident. Like Laurie and Anne above, Earle has been with the company through four different owners, and has XX years of local office equipment service management experience. Earle has also completed Canon’s “train the trainer” course, and will be a great asset in the on-going training and development of our systems engineers and technicians.
Joseph Alfonsi, systems manager (Maui): XX years old, and local Maui resident. Joe joined the Maui branch of SIOT in 1999 as field service manager, after transferring from the SIOT Honolulu branch. He has XX years of local office equipment industry service experience, and is familiar with both Canon and Ricoh products. Joe is an asset to the Maui team, and has outstanding customer service skills.
We believe we have a good team for covering the main points of the business plan. Key members have the experience and knowledge to manage and grow the business, and are highly motivated by the employee-owner concept.
The obvious management gap is a plan to fill the general manager’s position at some point in the future, before the current GM reaches retirement age. As an employee-owned company, the preferred strategy will be to promote from within, and fill vacancies as they occur. As the company grows, we will seek out additional talent in all operational areas.
Although we are treating the business as a start-up company, the financial plan is solidly based on past performance. We have taken actual SIOT P&L income and expenses from the past three years, and eliminated corporate overhead expenses such as warehouse and administrative costs, inventory penalties, and corporate nominal interest. We then projected income based on actual past performance, and factored back in the revenue base that was relocated to Honolulu over the past two years (mainly service and supplies).
We approached the financial planning from a conservative standpoint, and based those numbers on achievable gross margins. Also, our actual interest and tax rates will most likely be lower than the assumed rates due to our being structured as an employee-owned corporation (ESOT).
The financial plan depends on important assumptions, most of which are shown in Table 7.1. As mentioned previously, we assumed interest and tax rates based on a “worst case” scenario, and these will be adjusted once we have finalized the initial funding and establish the ESOT. We have also assumed our personnel burden at 30% of payroll in order to allow for above-average benefits for our employees. As we shop around for benefits vendors, this assumption will be subject to revision as well.
Other key business assumptions are:
General Assumptions | |||
Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
Plan Month | 1 | 2 | 3 |
Current Interest Rate | 14.00% | 14.00% | 14.00% |
Long-term Interest Rate | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% |
Tax Rate | 37.33% | 38.00% | 37.33% |
Other | 0 | 0 | 0 |
As shown in the Benchmarks chart below, our key financial indicators are:
For our break-even analysis, we assume running costs which include our full payroll, rent, and utilities, and an estimation of other running costs. Payroll alone, at present, is about $65,500 per month (including benefits and taxes).
We will monitor gross margins very closely, and maintain them at a midrange percentage by taking advantage of all promotions and discounts offered by our manufacturers. Canon USA has tentatively agreed to offer us “end column” pricing as a new dealer incentive.
The chart shows what we need to sell per month to break even, according to these assumptions. This is about 78% of our projected sales for our first year, and is well below what we have achieved annually over the past three years under more adverse operating conditions.
Break-even Analysis | |
Monthly Revenue Break-even | $209,018 |
Assumptions: | |
Average Percent Variable Cost | 51% |
Estimated Monthly Fixed Cost | $101,932 |
Our Pro Forma Profit and Loss statement was constructed from a conservative point-of-view, and is based in large part on past performance. By strengthening our service position, and rebuilding our customer relationships, we will widen our customer base and increase sales.
Month-to-month assumptions for profit and loss are included in the appendix.
Pro Forma Profit and Loss | |||
Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
Sales | $3,190,329 | $3,668,878 | $4,219,209 |
Direct Cost of Sales | $1,634,497 | $1,863,326 | $2,124,192 |
Production Payroll | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Other | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Total Cost of Sales | $1,634,497 | $1,863,326 | $2,124,192 |
Gross Margin | $1,555,832 | $1,805,552 | $2,095,017 |
Gross Margin % | 48.77% | 49.21% | 49.65% |
Operating Expenses | |||
Sales and Marketing Expenses | |||
Sales and Marketing Payroll | $153,000 | $162,180 | $171,911 |
Advertising/Promotion | $10,500 | $11,130 | $11,798 |
Commissions | $159,516 | $169,087 | $179,233 |
Travel – Sales | $22,500 | $23,850 | $25,281 |
Learning & Growth – Sales | $6,150 | $6,519 | $6,910 |
Entertainment | $5,400 | $5,724 | $6,067 |
Total Sales and Marketing Expenses | $357,066 | $378,490 | $401,200 |
Sales and Marketing % | 11.19% | 10.32% | 9.51% |
General and Administrative Expenses | |||
General and Administrative Payroll | $134,400 | $142,464 | $151,012 |
Sales and Marketing and Other Expenses | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Depreciation | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Depreciation | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Utilities | $9,000 | $9,540 | $10,112 |
Telephone & ISP | $34,200 | $36,252 | $38,427 |
Office Supplies | $4,200 | $4,452 | $4,719 |
Insurance | $16,800 | $17,808 | $18,876 |
Bank Charges | $6,000 | $6,360 | $6,742 |
Postage | $10,020 | $10,621 | $11,258 |
Taxes & Licenses | $10,200 | $10,812 | $11,461 |
Bonuses | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Learning & Growth – Admin | $3,150 | $3,339 | $3,539 |
Accounting | $6,000 | $6,360 | $6,742 |
Rent | $72,000 | $72,000 | $72,000 |
Payroll Taxes | $181,350 | $192,231 | $203,765 |
Other General and Administrative Expenses | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Total General and Administrative Expenses | $487,320 | $512,239 | $538,654 |
General and Administrative % | 15.27% | 13.96% | 12.77% |
Other Expenses: | |||
Other Payroll | $317,100 | $336,126 | $356,294 |
Consultants | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Learning & Growth – Service | $9,200 | $9,752 | $10,337 |
Travel – Service | $22,500 | $23,850 | $25,281 |
Freight & Cartage | $30,000 | $31,800 | $33,708 |
Total Other Expenses | $378,800 | $401,528 | $425,620 |
Other % | 11.87% | 10.94% | 10.09% |
Total Operating Expenses | $1,223,186 | $1,292,258 | $1,365,473 |
Profit Before Interest and Taxes | $332,645 | $513,294 | $729,544 |
EBITDA | $332,645 | $513,294 | $729,544 |
Interest Expense | $140,000 | $127,050 | $99,750 |
Taxes Incurred | $72,797 | $146,773 | $235,123 |
Net Profit | $119,848 | $239,471 | $394,671 |
Net Profit/Sales | 3.76% | 6.53% | 9.35% |
Because we are treating the new company as a start-up, the cash flow for FY2002 is somewhat exaggerated by the instant influx of new capital. Subsequent years however show a healthy growth in cash flow, mainly due to the short 60-month repayment of the start-up loan and increased sales.
Pro Forma Cash Flow | |||
Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
Cash Received | |||
Cash from Operations | |||
Cash Sales | $2,073,714 | $2,384,771 | $2,742,486 |
Cash from Receivables | $906,354 | $1,252,568 | $1,440,453 |
Subtotal Cash from Operations | $2,980,067 | $3,637,339 | $4,182,939 |
Additional Cash Received | |||
Sales Tax, VAT, HST/GST Received | $0 | $0 | $0 |
New Current Borrowing | $0 | $0 | $0 |
New Other Liabilities (interest-free) | $0 | $0 | $0 |
New Long-term Liabilities | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Sales of Other Current Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Sales of Long-term Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 |
New Investment Received | $30,000 | $0 | $0 |
Subtotal Cash Received | $3,010,067 | $3,637,339 | $4,182,939 |
Expenditures | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 |
Expenditures from Operations | |||
Cash Spending | $604,500 | $640,770 | $679,216 |
Bill Payments | $2,210,315 | $2,809,360 | $3,143,202 |
Subtotal Spent on Operations | $2,814,815 | $3,450,130 | $3,822,418 |
Additional Cash Spent | |||
Sales Tax, VAT, HST/GST Paid Out | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Principal Repayment of Current Borrowing | $0 | $185,000 | $205,000 |
Other Liabilities Principal Repayment | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Long-term Liabilities Principal Repayment | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Purchase Other Current Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Purchase Long-term Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Dividends | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Subtotal Cash Spent | $2,814,815 | $3,635,130 | $4,027,418 |
Net Cash Flow | $195,252 | $2,209 | $155,521 |
Cash Balance | $420,252 | $422,461 | $577,982 |
The Projected Balance Sheet is quite solid. We do not project any trouble meeting our debt obligations as long as we achieve our specific objectives.
Pro Forma Balance Sheet | |||
Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
Assets | |||
Current Assets | |||
Cash | $420,252 | $422,461 | $577,982 |
Accounts Receivable | $210,261 | $241,801 | $278,071 |
Inventory | $172,142 | $196,241 | $223,715 |
Other Current Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Total Current Assets | $802,655 | $860,503 | $1,079,768 |
Long-term Assets | |||
Long-term Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Accumulated Depreciation | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Total Long-term Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Total Assets | $802,655 | $860,503 | $1,079,768 |
Liabilities and Capital | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 |
Current Liabilities | |||
Accounts Payable | $227,807 | $231,184 | $260,778 |
Current Borrowing | $1,000,000 | $815,000 | $610,000 |
Other Current Liabilities | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Subtotal Current Liabilities | $1,227,807 | $1,046,184 | $870,778 |
Long-term Liabilities | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Total Liabilities | $1,227,807 | $1,046,184 | $870,778 |
Paid-in Capital | $30,000 | $30,000 | $30,000 |
Retained Earnings | ($575,000) | ($455,152) | ($215,681) |
Earnings | $119,848 | $239,471 | $394,671 |
Total Capital | ($425,152) | ($185,681) | $208,990 |
Total Liabilities and Capital | $802,655 | $860,503 | $1,079,768 |
Net Worth | ($425,152) | ($185,681) | $208,990 |
The following table shows our main business ratios, and is compared to national averages. Our SIC industry class is currently: Office equipment, nec – 5044.99.
Ratio Analysis | ||||
Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Industry Profile | |
Sales Growth | 0.00% | 15.00% | 15.00% | 1.50% |
Percent of Total Assets | ||||
Accounts Receivable | 26.20% | 28.10% | 25.75% | 30.97% |
Inventory | 21.45% | 22.81% | 20.72% | 38.08% |
Other Current Assets | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 16.04% |
Total Current Assets | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 85.09% |
Long-term Assets | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 14.91% |
Total Assets | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
Current Liabilities | 152.97% | 121.58% | 80.64% | 44.30% |
Long-term Liabilities | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 8.46% |
Total Liabilities | 152.97% | 121.58% | 80.64% | 52.76% |
Net Worth | -52.97% | -21.58% | 19.36% | 47.24% |
Percent of Sales | ||||
Sales | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
Gross Margin | 48.77% | 49.21% | 49.65% | 26.76% |
Selling, General & Administrative Expenses | 45.02% | 42.69% | 40.40% | 15.95% |
Advertising Expenses | 0.33% | 0.30% | 0.28% | 0.95% |
Profit Before Interest and Taxes | 10.43% | 13.99% | 17.29% | 2.55% |
Main Ratios | ||||
Current | 0.65 | 0.82 | 1.24 | 1.80 |
Quick | 0.51 | 0.63 | 0.98 | 0.87 |
Total Debt to Total Assets | 152.97% | 121.58% | 80.64% | 6.22% |
Pre-tax Return on Net Worth | -45.31% | -208.01% | 301.35% | 55.95% |
Pre-tax Return on Assets | 24.00% | 44.89% | 58.33% | 14.11% |
Additional Ratios | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
Net Profit Margin | 3.76% | 6.53% | 9.35% | n.a |
Return on Equity | 0.00% | 0.00% | 188.85% | n.a |
Activity Ratios | ||||
Accounts Receivable Turnover | 5.31 | 5.31 | 5.31 | n.a |
Collection Days | 57 | 64 | 64 | n.a |
Inventory Turnover | 10.91 | 10.12 | 10.12 | n.a |
Accounts Payable Turnover | 10.70 | 12.17 | 12.17 | n.a |
Payment Days | 27 | 30 | 28 | n.a |
Total Asset Turnover | 3.97 | 4.26 | 3.91 | n.a |
Debt Ratios | ||||
Debt to Net Worth | 0.00 | 0.00 | 4.17 | n.a |
Current Liab. to Liab. | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | n.a |
Liquidity Ratios | ||||
Net Working Capital | ($425,152) | ($185,681) | $208,990 | n.a |
Interest Coverage | 2.38 | 4.04 | 7.31 | n.a |
Additional Ratios | ||||
Assets to Sales | 0.25 | 0.23 | 0.26 | n.a |
Current Debt/Total Assets | 153% | 122% | 81% | n.a |
Acid Test | 0.34 | 0.40 | 0.66 | n.a |
Sales/Net Worth | 0.00 | 0.00 | 20.19 | n.a |
Dividend Payout | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | n.a |
Sales Forecast | |||||||||||||
Month 1 | Month 2 | Month 3 | Month 4 | Month 5 | Month 6 | Month 7 | Month 8 | Month 9 | Month 10 | Month 11 | Month 12 | ||
Sales | |||||||||||||
Hardware – Image Platforms | 0% | $78,500 | $78,500 | $78,500 | $86,350 | $86,350 | $86,350 | $94,985 | $94,985 | $94,985 | $104,484 | $104,484 | $104,484 |
Hardware – Printers | 0% | $5,000 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $5,500 | $5,500 | $5,500 | $6,050 | $6,050 | $6,050 | $6,655 | $6,655 | $6,655 |
Hardware – Facsimiles | 0% | $10,250 | $10,250 | $10,250 | $11,275 | $11,275 | $11,275 | $12,403 | $12,403 | $12,403 | $13,643 | $13,643 | $13,643 |
Hardware – Misc (TW, Shrd) | 0% | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,575 | $3,575 | $3,575 | $3,933 | $3,933 | $3,933 | $4,326 | $4,326 | $4,326 |
Professional Services | 0% | $0 | $0 | $2,500 | $2,750 | $2,750 | $2,750 | $3,025 | $3,025 | $3,025 | $3,328 | $3,328 | $3,328 |
Government (Comp) | 0% | $6,250 | $6,250 | $6,250 | $6,875 | $6,875 | $6,875 | $7,563 | $7,563 | $7,563 | $8,319 | $8,319 | $8,319 |
Supplies (Toner/Paper) | 0% | $36,000 | $36,000 | $36,000 | $39,600 | $39,600 | $39,600 | $43,560 | $43,560 | $43,560 | $47,916 | $47,916 | $47,916 |
Service – Agreements/Repairs | 0% | $68,000 | $68,000 | $68,000 | $74,800 | $74,800 | $74,800 | $82,280 | $82,280 | $82,280 | $90,508 | $90,508 | $90,508 |
Equipment Rentals | 0% | $17,500 | $17,500 | $17,500 | $19,250 | $19,250 | $19,250 | $21,175 | $21,175 | $21,175 | $23,293 | $23,293 | $23,293 |
Other | 0% | $2,250 | $2,250 | $2,250 | $2,475 | $2,475 | $2,475 | $2,723 | $2,723 | $2,723 | $2,995 | $2,995 | $2,995 |
Total Sales | $227,000 | $227,000 | $229,500 | $252,450 | $252,450 | $252,450 | $277,695 | $277,695 | $277,695 | $305,465 | $305,465 | $305,465 | |
Direct Cost of Sales | Month 1 | Month 2 | Month 3 | Month 4 | Month 5 | Month 6 | Month 7 | Month 8 | Month 9 | Month 10 | Month 11 | Month 12 | |
Hardware – Image Platforms | $48,670 | $48,670 | $48,670 | $53,537 | $53,537 | $53,537 | $58,891 | $58,891 | $58,891 | $64,780 | $64,780 | $64,780 | |
Hardware – Printers | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,575 | $3,575 | $3,575 | $3,933 | $3,933 | $3,933 | $4,326 | $4,326 | $4,326 | |
Hardware – Facsimiles | $6,355 | $6,355 | $6,355 | $6,991 | $6,991 | $6,991 | $7,690 | $7,690 | $7,690 | $8,459 | $8,459 | $8,459 | |
Hardware – Misc (TW, Shrd) | $2,275 | $2,275 | $2,275 | $2,503 | $2,503 | $2,503 | $2,753 | $2,753 | $2,753 | $3,028 | $3,028 | $3,028 | |
Professional Services | $0 | $0 | $1,250 | $1,375 | $1,375 | $1,375 | $1,513 | $1,513 | $1,513 | $1,664 | $1,664 | $1,664 | |
Government (Comp) | $2,188 | $2,188 | $2,188 | $2,406 | $2,406 | $2,406 | $2,647 | $2,647 | $2,647 | $2,912 | $2,912 | $2,912 | |
Supplies (Toner/Paper) | $16,200 | $16,200 | $16,200 | $17,820 | $17,820 | $17,820 | $19,602 | $19,602 | $19,602 | $21,562 | $21,562 | $21,562 | |
Service – Agreements/Repairs | $27,200 | $27,200 | $27,200 | $29,920 | $29,920 | $29,920 | $32,912 | $32,912 | $32,912 | $36,203 | $36,203 | $36,203 | |
Equipment Rentals | $9,625 | $9,625 | $9,625 | $10,588 | $10,588 | $10,588 | $11,646 | $11,646 | $11,646 | $12,811 | $12,811 | $12,811 | |
Other | $563 | $563 | $563 | $619 | $619 | $619 | $681 | $681 | $681 | $749 | $749 | $749 | |
Subtotal Direct Cost of Sales | $116,325 | $116,325 | $117,575 | $129,333 | $129,333 | $129,333 | $142,266 | $142,266 | $142,266 | $156,492 | $156,492 | $156,492 |
Personnel Plan | |||||||||||||
Month 1 | Month 2 | Month 3 | Month 4 | Month 5 | Month 6 | Month 7 | Month 8 | Month 9 | Month 10 | Month 11 | Month 12 | ||
Production Personnel | |||||||||||||
None planned | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Other | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Subtotal | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Sales and Marketing Personnel | |||||||||||||
Alan Fukuyama – Sales (Maui) | $3,000 | $3,000 | $3,000 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | |
Brian Kurlansky – Sales (Kona) | $3,000 | $3,000 | $3,000 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | |
Jay Moore – Sales (Maui) | $3,000 | $3,000 | $3,000 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | |
Wilbert Shimabukuro – Sales (Hilo) | $3,000 | $3,000 | $3,000 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | $3,250 | |
Vacant – Aftermarket Sales (Maui) | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Vacant – Aftermarket Sales (Hilo) | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Subtotal | $12,000 | $12,000 | $12,000 | $13,000 | $13,000 | $13,000 | $13,000 | $13,000 | $13,000 | $13,000 | $13,000 | $13,000 | |
General and Administrative Personnel | |||||||||||||
Bill Harding – General Manager | $4,500 | $4,500 | $4,500 | $4,900 | $4,900 | $4,900 | $4,900 | $4,900 | $4,900 | $4,900 | $4,900 | $4,900 | |
Laurie Watson – Admin Manager | $3,650 | $3,650 | $3,650 | $3,850 | $3,850 | $3,850 | $3,850 | $3,850 | $3,850 | $3,850 | $3,850 | $3,850 | |
Vacant – Office Manager (Hilo) | $2,450 | $2,450 | $2,450 | $2,650 | $2,650 | $2,650 | $2,650 | $2,650 | $2,650 | $2,650 | $2,650 | $2,650 | |
Vacant – Whse & Delivery (Maui) | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Vacant – Whse & Delivery (Hilo) | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Other | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Subtotal | $10,600 | $10,600 | $10,600 | $11,400 | $11,400 | $11,400 | $11,400 | $11,400 | $11,400 | $11,400 | $11,400 | $11,400 | |
Other Personnel | |||||||||||||
Earle Oshiro – Systems Manager (Hilo) | $4,000 | $4,000 | $4,000 | $4,200 | $4,200 | $4,200 | $4,200 | $4,200 | $4,200 | $4,200 | $4,200 | $4,200 | |
Joe Alfonsi – Systems Manager (Maui) | $4,000 | $4,000 | $4,000 | $4,200 | $4,200 | $4,200 | $4,200 | $4,200 | $4,200 | $4,200 | $4,200 | $4,200 | |
Wane Ogawa – Syst Engineer (Hilo) | $3,150 | $3,150 | $3,150 | $3,350 | $3,350 | $3,350 | $3,350 | $3,350 | $3,350 | $3,350 | $3,350 | $3,350 | |
Francis Takahashi – Syst Engineer (Hilo) | $3,150 | $3,150 | $3,150 | $3,350 | $3,350 | $3,350 | $3,350 | $3,350 | $3,350 | $3,350 | $3,350 | $3,350 | |
Baron Ganeko – Syst Engineer (Kona) | $3,150 | $3,150 | $3,150 | $3,350 | $3,350 | $3,350 | $3,350 | $3,350 | $3,350 | $3,350 | $3,350 | $3,350 | |
Abe Braceros – Sr. Syst Engineer (Maui) | $3,200 | $3,200 | $3,200 | $3,500 | $3,500 | $3,500 | $3,500 | $3,500 | $3,500 | $3,500 | $3,500 | $3,500 | |
Arlo Villanueva – Syst Tech (Maui) | $2,250 | $2,250 | $2,250 | $2,450 | $2,450 | $2,450 | $2,450 | $2,450 | $2,450 | $2,450 | $2,450 | $2,450 | |
Caroline Nacua – Syst Tech (Maui) | $2,250 | $2,250 | $2,250 | $2,450 | $2,450 | $2,450 | $2,450 | $2,450 | $2,450 | $2,450 | $2,450 | $2,450 | |
Vacant – Syst Tech (Kona) | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Vacant – Syst Tech (Maui) | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Subtotal | $25,150 | $25,150 | $25,150 | $26,850 | $26,850 | $26,850 | $26,850 | $26,850 | $26,850 | $26,850 | $26,850 | $26,850 | |
Total People | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | |
Total Payroll | $47,750 | $47,750 | $47,750 | $51,250 | $51,250 | $51,250 | $51,250 | $51,250 | $51,250 | $51,250 | $51,250 | $51,250 |
General Assumptions | |||||||||||||
Month 1 | Month 2 | Month 3 | Month 4 | Month 5 | Month 6 | Month 7 | Month 8 | Month 9 | Month 10 | Month 11 | Month 12 | ||
Plan Month | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | |
Current Interest Rate | 14.00% | 14.00% | 14.00% | 14.00% | 14.00% | 14.00% | 14.00% | 14.00% | 14.00% | 14.00% | 14.00% | 14.00% | |
Long-term Interest Rate | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | |
Tax Rate | 30.00% | 38.00% | 38.00% | 38.00% | 38.00% | 38.00% | 38.00% | 38.00% | 38.00% | 38.00% | 38.00% | 38.00% | |
Other | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Pro Forma Profit and Loss | |||||||||||||
Month 1 | Month 2 | Month 3 | Month 4 | Month 5 | Month 6 | Month 7 | Month 8 | Month 9 | Month 10 | Month 11 | Month 12 | ||
Sales | $227,000 | $227,000 | $229,500 | $252,450 | $252,450 | $252,450 | $277,695 | $277,695 | $277,695 | $305,465 | $305,465 | $305,465 | |
Direct Cost of Sales | $116,325 | $116,325 | $117,575 | $129,333 | $129,333 | $129,333 | $142,266 | $142,266 | $142,266 | $156,492 | $156,492 | $156,492 | |
Production Payroll | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Other | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Total Cost of Sales | $116,325 | $116,325 | $117,575 | $129,333 | $129,333 | $129,333 | $142,266 | $142,266 | $142,266 | $156,492 | $156,492 | $156,492 | |
Gross Margin | $110,675 | $110,675 | $111,925 | $123,118 | $123,118 | $123,118 | $135,429 | $135,429 | $135,429 | $148,972 | $148,972 | $148,972 | |
Gross Margin % | 48.76% | 48.76% | 48.77% | 48.77% | 48.77% | 48.77% | 48.77% | 48.77% | 48.77% | 48.77% | 48.77% | 48.77% | |
Operating Expenses | |||||||||||||
Sales and Marketing Expenses | |||||||||||||
Sales and Marketing Payroll | $12,000 | $12,000 | $12,000 | $13,000 | $13,000 | $13,000 | $13,000 | $13,000 | $13,000 | $13,000 | $13,000 | $13,000 | |
Advertising/Promotion | $500 | $500 | $500 | $1,000 | $1,000 | $1,000 | $1,000 | $1,000 | $1,000 | $1,000 | $1,000 | $1,000 | |
Commissions | $11,350 | $11,350 | $11,475 | $12,623 | $12,623 | $12,623 | $13,885 | $13,885 | $13,885 | $15,273 | $15,273 | $15,273 | |
Travel – Sales | $1,500 | $1,500 | $1,500 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | |
Learning & Growth – Sales | $0 | $0 | $0 | $400 | $400 | $400 | $400 | $400 | $400 | $1,250 | $1,250 | $1,250 | |
Entertainment | $450 | $450 | $450 | $450 | $450 | $450 | $450 | $450 | $450 | $450 | $450 | $450 | |
Total Sales and Marketing Expenses | $25,800 | $25,800 | $25,925 | $29,473 | $29,473 | $29,473 | $30,735 | $30,735 | $30,735 | $32,973 | $32,973 | $32,973 | |
Sales and Marketing % | 11.37% | 11.37% | 11.30% | 11.67% | 11.67% | 11.67% | 11.07% | 11.07% | 11.07% | 10.79% | 10.79% | 10.79% | |
General and Administrative Expenses | |||||||||||||
General and Administrative Payroll | $10,600 | $10,600 | $10,600 | $11,400 | $11,400 | $11,400 | $11,400 | $11,400 | $11,400 | $11,400 | $11,400 | $11,400 | |
Sales and Marketing and Other Expenses | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Depreciation | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Depreciation | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Utilities | $750 | $750 | $750 | $750 | $750 | $750 | $750 | $750 | $750 | $750 | $750 | $750 | |
Telephone & ISP | $2,850 | $2,850 | $2,850 | $2,850 | $2,850 | $2,850 | $2,850 | $2,850 | $2,850 | $2,850 | $2,850 | $2,850 | |
Office Supplies | $350 | $350 | $350 | $350 | $350 | $350 | $350 | $350 | $350 | $350 | $350 | $350 | |
Insurance | $1,400 | $1,400 | $1,400 | $1,400 | $1,400 | $1,400 | $1,400 | $1,400 | $1,400 | $1,400 | $1,400 | $1,400 | |
Bank Charges | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 | |
Postage | $835 | $835 | $835 | $835 | $835 | $835 | $835 | $835 | $835 | $835 | $835 | $835 | |
Taxes & Licenses | $850 | $850 | $850 | $850 | $850 | $850 | $850 | $850 | $850 | $850 | $850 | $850 | |
Bonuses | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Learning & Growth – Admin | $0 | $0 | $0 | $150 | $150 | $150 | $150 | $150 | $150 | $750 | $750 | $750 | |
Accounting | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 | $500 | |
Rent | $6,000 | $6,000 | $6,000 | $6,000 | $6,000 | $6,000 | $6,000 | $6,000 | $6,000 | $6,000 | $6,000 | $6,000 | |
Payroll Taxes | 30% | $14,325 | $14,325 | $14,325 | $15,375 | $15,375 | $15,375 | $15,375 | $15,375 | $15,375 | $15,375 | $15,375 | $15,375 |
Other General and Administrative Expenses | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Total General and Administrative Expenses | $38,960 | $38,960 | $38,960 | $40,960 | $40,960 | $40,960 | $40,960 | $40,960 | $40,960 | $41,560 | $41,560 | $41,560 | |
General and Administrative % | 17.16% | 17.16% | 16.98% | 16.22% | 16.22% | 16.22% | 14.75% | 14.75% | 14.75% | 13.61% | 13.61% | 13.61% | |
Other Expenses: | |||||||||||||
Other Payroll | $25,150 | $25,150 | $25,150 | $26,850 | $26,850 | $26,850 | $26,850 | $26,850 | $26,850 | $26,850 | $26,850 | $26,850 | |
Consultants | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Learning & Growth – Service | $0 | $0 | $0 | $850 | $850 | $850 | $650 | $650 | $850 | $1,500 | $1,500 | $1,500 | |
Travel – Service | $1,500 | $1,500 | $1,500 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | $2,000 | |
Freight & Cartage | $2,500 | $2,500 | $2,500 | $2,500 | $2,500 | $2,500 | $2,500 | $2,500 | $2,500 | $2,500 | $2,500 | $2,500 | |
Total Other Expenses | $29,150 | $29,150 | $29,150 | $32,200 | $32,200 | $32,200 | $32,000 | $32,000 | $32,200 | $32,850 | $32,850 | $32,850 | |
Other % | 12.84% | 12.84% | 12.70% | 12.76% | 12.76% | 12.76% | 11.52% | 11.52% | 11.60% | 10.75% | 10.75% | 10.75% | |
Total Operating Expenses | $93,910 | $93,910 | $94,035 | $102,633 | $102,633 | $102,633 | $103,695 | $103,695 | $103,895 | $107,383 | $107,383 | $107,383 | |
Profit Before Interest and Taxes | $16,765 | $16,765 | $17,890 | $20,485 | $20,485 | $20,485 | $31,735 | $31,735 | $31,535 | $41,589 | $41,589 | $41,589 | |
EBITDA | $16,765 | $16,765 | $17,890 | $20,485 | $20,485 | $20,485 | $31,735 | $31,735 | $31,535 | $41,589 | $41,589 | $41,589 | |
Interest Expense | $11,667 | $11,667 | $11,667 | $11,667 | $11,667 | $11,667 | $11,667 | $11,667 | $11,667 | $11,667 | $11,667 | $11,667 | |
Taxes Incurred | $1,530 | $1,937 | $2,365 | $3,351 | $3,351 | $3,351 | $7,626 | $7,626 | $7,550 | $11,370 | $11,370 | $11,370 | |
Net Profit | $3,569 | $3,161 | $3,858 | $5,467 | $5,467 | $5,467 | $12,442 | $12,442 | $12,318 | $18,552 | $18,552 | $18,552 | |
Net Profit/Sales | 1.57% | 1.39% | 1.68% | 2.17% | 2.17% | 2.17% | 4.48% | 4.48% | 4.44% | 6.07% | 6.07% | 6.07% |
Pro Forma Cash Flow | |||||||||||||
Month 1 | Month 2 | Month 3 | Month 4 | Month 5 | Month 6 | Month 7 | Month 8 | Month 9 | Month 10 | Month 11 | Month 12 | ||
Cash Received | |||||||||||||
Cash from Operations | |||||||||||||
Cash Sales | $147,550 | $147,550 | $149,175 | $164,093 | $164,093 | $164,093 | $180,502 | $180,502 | $180,502 | $198,552 | $198,552 | $198,552 | |
Cash from Receivables | $0 | $2,648 | $79,450 | $79,479 | $80,593 | $88,358 | $88,358 | $88,652 | $97,193 | $97,193 | $97,517 | $106,913 | |
Subtotal Cash from Operations | $147,550 | $150,198 | $228,625 | $243,572 | $244,685 | $252,450 | $268,859 | $269,154 | $277,695 | $295,745 | $296,069 | $305,465 | |
Additional Cash Received | |||||||||||||
Sales Tax, VAT, HST/GST Received | 0.00% | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
New Current Borrowing | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
New Other Liabilities (interest-free) | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
New Long-term Liabilities | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Sales of Other Current Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Sales of Long-term Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
New Investment Received | $30,000 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Subtotal Cash Received | $177,550 | $150,198 | $228,625 | $243,572 | $244,685 | $252,450 | $268,859 | $269,154 | $277,695 | $295,745 | $296,069 | $305,465 | |
Expenditures | Month 1 | Month 2 | Month 3 | Month 4 | Month 5 | Month 6 | Month 7 | Month 8 | Month 9 | Month 10 | Month 11 | Month 12 | |
Expenditures from Operations | |||||||||||||
Cash Spending | $47,750 | $47,750 | $47,750 | $51,250 | $51,250 | $51,250 | $51,250 | $51,250 | $51,250 | $51,250 | $51,250 | $51,250 | |
Bill Payments | $3,455 | $106,054 | $176,195 | $180,247 | $208,235 | $195,733 | $196,816 | $227,755 | $214,007 | $215,366 | $250,790 | $235,663 | |
Subtotal Spent on Operations | $51,205 | $153,804 | $223,945 | $231,497 | $259,485 | $246,983 | $248,066 | $279,005 | $265,257 | $266,616 | $302,040 | $286,913 | |
Additional Cash Spent | |||||||||||||
Sales Tax, VAT, HST/GST Paid Out | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Principal Repayment of Current Borrowing | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Other Liabilities Principal Repayment | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Long-term Liabilities Principal Repayment | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Purchase Other Current Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Purchase Long-term Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Dividends | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
Subtotal Cash Spent | $51,205 | $153,804 | $223,945 | $231,497 | $259,485 | $246,983 | $248,066 | $279,005 | $265,257 | $266,616 | $302,040 | $286,913 | |
Net Cash Flow | $126,345 | ($3,605) | $4,680 | $12,075 | ($14,800) | $5,467 | $20,793 | ($9,852) | $12,438 | $29,129 | ($5,971) | $18,552 | |
Cash Balance | $351,345 | $347,740 | $352,420 | $364,495 | $349,696 | $355,163 | $375,956 | $366,105 | $378,543 | $407,672 | $401,700 | $420,252 |
Pro Forma Balance Sheet | |||||||||||||
Month 1 | Month 2 | Month 3 | Month 4 | Month 5 | Month 6 | Month 7 | Month 8 | Month 9 | Month 10 | Month 11 | Month 12 | ||
Assets | Starting Balances | ||||||||||||
Current Assets | |||||||||||||
Cash | $225,000 | $351,345 | $347,740 | $352,420 | $364,495 | $349,696 | $355,163 | $375,956 | $366,105 | $378,543 | $407,672 | $401,700 | $420,252 |
Accounts Receivable | $0 | $79,450 | $156,252 | $157,127 | $166,005 | $173,770 | $173,770 | $182,606 | $191,147 | $191,147 | $200,866 | $210,261 | $210,261 |
Inventory | $200,000 | $127,958 | $127,958 | $129,333 | $142,266 | $142,266 | $142,266 | $156,492 | $156,492 | $156,492 | $172,142 | $172,142 | $172,142 |
Other Current Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Total Current Assets | $425,000 | $558,753 | $631,949 | $638,879 | $672,766 | $665,731 | $671,199 | $715,054 | $713,744 | $726,182 | $780,679 | $784,103 | $802,655 |
Long-term Assets | |||||||||||||
Long-term Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Accumulated Depreciation | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Total Long-term Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Total Assets | $425,000 | $558,753 | $631,949 | $638,879 | $672,766 | $665,731 | $671,199 | $715,054 | $713,744 | $726,182 | $780,679 | $784,103 | $802,655 |
Liabilities and Capital | Month 1 | Month 2 | Month 3 | Month 4 | Month 5 | Month 6 | Month 7 | Month 8 | Month 9 | Month 10 | Month 11 | Month 12 | |
Current Liabilities | |||||||||||||
Accounts Payable | $0 | $100,184 | $170,219 | $173,291 | $201,710 | $189,208 | $189,208 | $220,622 | $206,870 | $206,989 | $242,935 | $227,807 | $227,807 |
Current Borrowing | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,000,000 |
Other Current Liabilities | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Subtotal Current Liabilities | $1,000,000 | $1,100,184 | $1,170,219 | $1,173,291 | $1,201,710 | $1,189,208 | $1,189,208 | $1,220,622 | $1,206,870 | $1,206,989 | $1,242,935 | $1,227,807 | $1,227,807 |
Long-term Liabilities | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Total Liabilities | $1,000,000 | $1,100,184 | $1,170,219 | $1,173,291 | $1,201,710 | $1,189,208 | $1,189,208 | $1,220,622 | $1,206,870 | $1,206,989 | $1,242,935 | $1,227,807 | $1,227,807 |
Paid-in Capital | $0 | $30,000 | $30,000 | $30,000 | $30,000 | $30,000 | $30,000 | $30,000 | $30,000 | $30,000 | $30,000 | $30,000 | $30,000 |
Retained Earnings | ($575,000) | ($575,000) | ($575,000) | ($575,000) | ($575,000) | ($575,000) | ($575,000) | ($575,000) | ($575,000) | ($575,000) | ($575,000) | ($575,000) | ($575,000) |
Earnings | $0 | $3,569 | $6,730 | $10,588 | $16,056 | $21,523 | $26,990 | $39,432 | $51,874 | $64,193 | $82,744 | $101,296 | $119,848 |
Total Capital | ($575,000) | ($541,431) | ($538,270) | ($534,412) | ($528,944) | ($523,477) | ($518,010) | ($505,568) | ($493,126) | ($480,807) | ($462,256) | ($443,704) | ($425,152) |
Total Liabilities and Capital | $425,000 | $558,753 | $631,949 | $638,879 | $672,766 | $665,731 | $671,199 | $715,054 | $713,744 | $726,182 | $780,679 | $784,103 | $802,655 |
Net Worth | ($575,000) | ($541,431) | ($538,270) | ($534,412) | ($528,944) | ($523,477) | ($518,010) | ($505,568) | ($493,126) | ($480,807) | ($462,256) | ($443,704) | ($425,152) |
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Business Plan Outline
Start Your Consulting Firm Plan Here
If you need a business plan for your consulting business, you’ve come to the right place. Our consulting business plan template below has been used by countless entrepreneurs and business owners to create business plans to start or grow their consulting businesses.
Important note: If you are looking for a business plan consultant , specifically, a consultant to help you write your business plan, we recommend Growthink who offers a business plan consultation service here.
Below are links to each section of your consulting business plan template:
Next Section: Executive Summary >
What is a consulting business plan.
A consulting business plan is a plan to start and/or grow your consulting firm. Among other things, it outlines your business concept, identifies your target customers, presents your marketing plan, and details your financial projections.
You can easily complete your consulting firm business plan using our Consulting Firm Business Plan Template here .
There are many types of consulting firms. Most consultant companies are in business concentrations such as Management, Strategy, Operations, IT, Human Resources, Financial Advisory, and Marketing/Sales. There are also firms that are singularly focused such as those that offer business plan consulting.
The primary source of revenue for consulting firms are fees paid by the client. The client will either sign a contract or agreement of the services it will choose and the pricing for those services beforehand.
The key expenses for a consulting business are the cost of leasing the office, employee cost, marketing/advertising costs, and any office technology or software.
Consulting businesses are most likely to receive funding from banks. Typically you will find a local bank and present your consulting business plan to them. Angel investors and other types of capital-raising such as crowdfunding are other common funding sources.
Starting a consulting business can be an exciting endeavor. Having a clear roadmap of the steps to start a business will help you stay focused on your goals and get started faster.
1. Develop A Consulting Business Plan - The first step in starting a business is to create a detailed consulting business plan that outlines all aspects of the venture. This should include potential market size and target customers, the services or products you will offer, pricing strategies and a detailed financial forecast.
2. Choose Your Legal Structure - It's important to select an appropriate legal entity for your consulting business. This could be a limited liability company (LLC), corporation, partnership, or sole proprietorship. Each type has its own benefits and drawbacks so it’s important to do research and choose wisely so that your consulting business is in compliance with local laws.
3. Register Your Consulting Business - Once you have chosen a legal structure, the next step is to register your consulting business with the government or state where you’re operating from. This includes obtaining licenses and permits as required by federal, state, and local laws.
4. Identify Financing Options - It’s likely that you’ll need some capital to start your consulting business, so take some time to identify what financing options are available such as bank loans, investor funding, grants, or crowdfunding platforms.
5. Choose a Location - Whether you plan on operating out of a physical location or not, you should always have an idea of where you’ll be based should it become necessary in the future as well as what kind of space would be suitable for your operations.
6. Hire Employees - There are several ways to find qualified employees including job boards like LinkedIn or Indeed as well as hiring agencies if needed – depending on what type of employees you need it might also be more effective to reach out directly through networking events.
7. Acquire Necessary Consulting Equipment & Supplies - In order to start your consulting business, you'll need to purchase all of the necessary equipment and supplies to run a successful operation.
8. Market & Promote Your Business - Once you have all the necessary pieces in place, it’s time to start promoting and marketing your consulting business. This includes creating a website, utilizing social media platforms like Facebook or Twitter, and having an effective Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategy. You should also consider traditional marketing techniques such as radio or print advertising.
Learn more about how to start a successful consulting business:
You can download our free consulting business plan template PDF here . This is a sample consulting business plan template you can use in PDF format.
How to write an it consulting business plan: a guide for success in 2024.
The world of IT consulting is rapidly evolving. Economic fluctuations, coupled with the rise of freelance and specialized consultancies, have led to a highly competitive environment. Despite these challenges, the demand for IT consulting services remains strong. To succeed in this competitive landscape, IT consultants need a comprehensive business plan. A well-structured plan should include growth strategies, pay rates, expenses, marketing, equipment costs, training, qualifications, and technology. Here’s how to create an effective business plan for your consulting business in 2024.
Understand Your Target Market
Your target market comprises the customers who are the best fit for your services. Identifying this group will help you focus your marketing efforts and resources effectively. As Seth Godin famously said, “When you speak to everyone, you speak to no one.” It’s crucial to understand who your ideal customers are and where to find them. Conduct a target market analysis to set appropriate price points and tailor your services to meet their needs.
Clarify Your Unique Selling Proposition
A USP summarizes what makes your business unique and valuable to your target market. It answers the question: How do your services benefit your clients better than anyone else’s? A clear USP helps define your business goals and provides a strong foundation for your business plan. Outline your business objectives with specific steps to achieve your goals.
Plan for Initial Costs
Estimating your startup costs is essential for avoiding unnecessary risks and staying on track during volatile months. Consider all potential expenses, including technology, furniture, insurance, marketing, legal fees, and miscellaneous costs. Whether you’re setting up a remote or in-person consulting business, having a clear understanding of your startup expenses will help you plan effectively.
Predict Fixed Overhead Costs
Fixed costs, such as office rental, software licenses, salaries, taxes, and insurance, are necessary to keep your business operating smoothly. Ensure your profit margins reflect these costs to maintain financial stability.
Create a Cohesive Marketing Plan
A strong marketing strategy is crucial for launching your consulting business. This includes establishing your brand, creating a professional website, investing in social media and search marketing, and building a professional network. Strategically determine your marketing spend, funding requirements, loan collateral, and cost of interest to maximize your marketing efforts and avoid wasted resources.
Manage Your Finances
Pay attention to your balance sheet to avoid cash deficits. Track your assets, liabilities, and shareholders’ equity to understand your financial health. Cash flow projections are vital for predicting future cash flows and planning spending decisions. They help you anticipate and avoid future cash flow issues.
Predict Future Needs
Monthly sales forecasts help you understand the future needs of your business and fine-tune predictions accordingly. This is particularly important for service businesses, which can be susceptible to revenue swings. The more predictable your revenue, the better you can manage your business.
Plan for Growth
A concrete growth strategy is crucial for the future success of your consulting business. Determine your targeted area of growth, invest in market research, set growth goals, plan your actions, and execute your strategy. This will help you navigate market fluctuations and ensure sustained business growth.
Utilize Software for Consultants
With the continuous evolution of technology, your IT consulting business plan should incorporate the latest technological developments and digitalization. Providing digital offerings will enhance your business’s appeal and increase your chances of securing funding. Software for consultants like Olive can be a vital differentiator, helping you manage and automate the software selection process, streamline technology evaluations, and facilitate agile collaboration with stakeholders.
Writing and executing a consulting business plan requires planning, strategy, and foresight. By leveraging the right automation technology and creating a comprehensive business plan, you can build a successful consulting business ready for 2024 and beyond. Olive’s tools can help you streamline processes, enhance collaboration, and deliver more value to your clients, ensuring your business thrives in a competitive environment.
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Are you about starting an IT consulting business? If YES, here’s a complete sample IT consulting business plan template & feasibility report you can use for FREE to raise money . If you thinking starting an IT consulting business plan is uppermost on your mind, then you have got to be ready to take the necessary steps required in building a great business. There are various things that is required to be done; chief amongst them is the writing of business plan.
1. industry overview.
When we talk about consulting services, we are perhaps talking about getting practical advice from expects. The consulting industry is indeed a broad industry that covers a wide range of services such as management consulting, strategy consulting technological consulting, marketing consulting, human resource consulting, training consulting, tax consulting, and any other business activities that involves giving advice and expertise et al.
In essence, consulting firms are hired to proffer solutions to the challenges that organizations faces. Organizations don’t just hire consultants for the sake of hiring consultants, but they do so simply because they expect them to help tackle their business challenges and deliver solutions as required.
As a consulting firm, if you good at developing coaching skills, process analysis, technology implementation, strategy development, or operational improvement services, then with little push, you will have more jobs than you can handle.
The IT Consulting industry comprises of businesses that offers IT related consulting services such as writing, testing and supporting custom software; planning and designing integrated hardware, software and communication infrastructure; and on-site management of computer systems and data processing facilities. Players in this industry may also go the extra mile to offer services such as packaging software and off-site data processing and hosting services.
The IT Consulting industry is a thriving sector of the economy of the united states of America and they generates a whooping sum of well over 3 billion annually from more than 459,808 registered and licensed IT consulting firms scattered all around the United States of America.
The industry is responsible for the employment of well over 2,143,418 people. Experts project the IT consulting industry to grow at a 2.2 percent annual rate. It is important to state that IBM is the market leader in the IT consulting industry in the United States of America – that have the largest market share own by an establishment in the industry.
In the United States of America, the distribution of IT consulting firms generally reflects its population distribution with increased consulting density near technological centers and key demand markets, including financial service companies, large corporations and government clients. Most IT consulting companies are located in the Southeast, closely followed by the Mid-Atlantic and the West.
The Southeast contains the largest number of IT consulting firms, with 23.7 percent of industry establishments. Many IT consulting firms are in this region because 25.6 percent of the US population resides in this region. The State of Virginia accounts for the largest proportion of industry establishments in this region with 6.5 percent in 2015.
The IT consulting industry is a high-paying industry especially if you have been able to cut your teeth in the industry. It gives you the opportunity to work with high and low profile clients and if you are able to proffer IT solutions to business challenges you will be greatly rewarded. In most cases, if you are lucky to be among the few experts in the industry, you will have the privilege of choosing who to work for and the amount you want to charge.
Generally, IT consultants are skilled at conducting research and of course analyzing the results they got from the research. IT Consultants go as far as gathering any related data that will help them come up with workable solutions for the organization they are working for; they ensure that they identify behavioral patterns, production bottle – necks, the market trends and of course customers preference.
With that and other factors, they will be able to create standard operating processes and systems that can help the organization achieve its goals and objectives.
As an IT consulting firm, your core responsibility is to improve your client’s business by effecting changes in response to your analysis; you should be able to change the fortune of the business within an agreed time – line. Corporations are willing to pay expensive fees as long as they are going to get results.
No business person will be willing to pay you for an IT consulting service if you don’t have a track record that shows that you know what you are doing. It is one thing to convince a client to patronize your IT consulting services and it another thing for you to deliver solutions as agreed.
Lastly, one good thing about the IT consulting industry is that there is readily available market for their services simply because organizations naturally would want to improve their performance annually; corporations always seem to want more success. So if you are well positioned and you know how to deliver results, you will always smile to the bank.
Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP is a standard and world – class IT consulting firm that will be located in New York City, New York. We have been able to secure a standard office facility in a busy business district in New York City.
Our services will cover areas such as; providing information technology expertise for consumers, writing, modifying, testing and supporting software to meet the specific needs of our client, Planning, design and integration of computer or network systems, on-site management and IT functions, computer systems design, development, and integration, computer application design and development, IT technical support services, IT infrastructure and network design services, IT technical consulting services and other related IT consulting and advisory services.
We are aware that businesses these days require diverse and sophisticated approaches. This is why we will position our IT consulting firm to offer a wide range of IT consulting services as requested by our clients. Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP is a client-focused and result driven IT consulting firm that provides broad-based experience at an affordable fee that won’t in any way put a hole in the pocket of our clients.
We will offer a complete range of IT consulting services to our local, state, national, and multi-national clients and we will ensure that we work hard to provide the required services and business solutions needed by our clients to accomplish their business goals and objectives.
At Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP our client’s best interest will always come first, and everything we do will be guided by our values and professional ethics. We will ensure that we hold ourselves accountable to the highest standards by meeting our client’s needs precisely and completely.
We will cultivate a working environment that provides a human, sustainable approach to earning a living, and living in our world, for our partners, employees and for our clients.
Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP will at all times demonstrate her commitment to sustainability, both individually and as a firm, by actively participating in our communities and integrating sustainable business practices wherever possible.
We will ensure that we hold ourselves accountable to the highest standards by meeting our client’s needs precisely and completely. We will cultivate a working environment that provides a human, sustainable approach to earning a living, and living in our world, for our partners, employees and for our clients.
Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP is founded by Dr. Rendell Downey and his son Clement Downey. The organization will be managed by Dr. Denzel Graham – Douglas, he graduated from University of California – Berkley (First Degree), Brock School of Business at Stamford University (MBA), and University of Harvard (PhD.).
He has extensive experience in a diverse range of IT consulting, and his IT consulting practice is concentrated in the areas of helping both big corporations and start – ups position their business for growth, sustainability and expansion by leveraging on workable IT solutions.
Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP is going to offer varieties of services within the scope of the IT consulting industry in the United States of America. Our intention of starting our IT consulting firm is to make profits from the industry and we will do all that is permitted by the law in the United States of America to achieve our aim and ambition.
Our business offering are listed below;
Our Business Structure
Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP, is an IT consulting firm that intend starting small in New York City, but hope to grow big in order to compete favorably with leading IT consulting firms in the industry both in the United States and on a global stage.
We are aware of the importance of building a solid business structure that can support the picture of the kind of world class business we want to own. This is why we are committed to only hire the best hands within our area of operations.
At Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP, we will ensure that we hire people that are qualified, hardworking, creative, result driven, customer centric and are ready to work to help us build a prosperous business that will benefit all the stake holders (the owners, workforce, and customers).
As a matter of fact, profit-sharing arrangement will be made available to all our senior management staff and it will be based on their performance for a period of five years or more as agreed by the board of trustees of the company. In view of the above, we have decided to hire qualified and competent hands to occupy the following positions;
Legal Secretary
Business Analyst
Business Developer
Front Desk Officer
Chief Executive Office / Lead Consultant:
Human Resources and Admin Manager
IT Consultant
Client Service Executive
Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP engaged the services of a core professional in the area of business consulting and structuring to assist the firm in building a solid IT consulting firm that can favorably compete in the highly competitive IT consulting industry.
Part of what the team of business consultant did was to work with the management our firm in conducting a SWOT analysis for Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP. Here is a summary from the result of the SWOT analysis that was conducted on behalf of Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP;
Our core strength lies in the power of our team; our workforce. We have a team of creative, result driven and highly proficient IT expert, a team with excellent qualifications and experience various niche areas in the IT Consulting industry and other related industry. Aside from the synergy that exists in our carefully selected IT experts, our services will be measurable, result driven and guided by best practices in the industry.
As a new IT consulting firm in New York City – New York, it might take some time for our organization to break into the market and gain acceptance especially from top profile clients in the already saturated and highly competitive IT Consulting industry; that is perhaps our major weakness.
Another weakness is that we may not have the required cash to pump into promoting our business especially via main stream media (TV, Radio and Newspapers et al) the way we would want to.
No doubt, the opportunities available in the IT consulting industry is massive considering the number of corporate organizations and non – profits organizations who cannot successfully run their businesses without the professional assistance of IT firms. As a standard and world class IT firm, we are ready to take advantage of any opportunity that is available in the industry.
Some of the threats that we are likely going to face as an IT consulting firm operating in the United States are unfavorable government policies, the arrival of a competitor within our location of operations and global economic downturn which usually affects purchasing / spending power. There is hardly anything we could do as regards these threats other than to be optimistic that things will continue to work for our good.
Quite a number of distinct trends have emerged in recent time in the IT consulting industry which is why IT consulting firms are positioning their organizations to survive the peaks and troughs of an ailing economy.
As a matter of fact, most of these trends aid IT consulting firms and organizations to become more creative, competitive, efficient, and productive in a global market. Some other trends in the IT consulting industry could be attributed to changing demographics, attitudes and work styles.
No doubt, as the cost of IT consulting services continues to increase and as corporate spending falls, new IT consulting delivery methods will continue to emerge and gain momentum going forward. In addition, the market for IT consulting services has shifted from a sellers’ market to a buyers’ market. A market where IT consultants provide software solutions that will make it easier for their clients to run their businesses.
Lastly, it is now becoming trendy in the IT consulting industry for smaller IT consulting firms to merge with bigger IT consulting firms and for bigger IT consulting firms to acquire smaller IT consulting firms; mergers and acquisitions. Many IT consulting firms all over the United States are coming to the conclusion that the bigger the better for them.
Although Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP will initially serve small to medium sized business, from new ventures to well established businesses, but that does not in any way stop us from growing to be able to compete with the leading IT consulting firms in the United States.
We hope to someday merge or acquire other smaller IT consulting firms and expand our IT consulting services beyond the shores of the United States of America. As a full service business IT consulting firm, Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP have a variety of practice areas to help startups grow.
While we works with a variety of organizations and industries, Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP will also specialize in working with startups, real estate investors, and contractors, manufacturers and distributors, banks, lending and financial institutions.
Our target market cuts across people of different class and people from all walks of life, local and international organizations as well. We are coming into the industry with a business concept that will enable us work with the highly placed people and companies in the country and at the same with the lowly placed people and smaller businesses.
In other words, our target market is the whole of the United States of America and subsequently other parts of the world. Below is a list of the people and organizations that we have specifically design our products and services for;
Our Competitive Advantage
Surviving in the business world as an IT consulting firm requires more than, your expertise, knowing how to conduct your business but also how to network with key people that matters; decision makers that can decide who will get a contract or a business deal.
We are quite aware that to be highly competitive in the IT consulting industry means that you are not only expected to be able to deliver consistent and excellent services, but you must be result driven and able to meet set targets. No one would want to continue to hire your services if don’t always meet up with the target sales the organization intends to generate when they hired you.
Our competitive advantage lies in the power of our team; our workforce. We have a team of creative, result driven and highly proficient IT experts, a team with excellent qualifications and experience various niche areas in the IT Consulting industry and other related industry. Aside from the synergy that exists in our carefully selected IT experts, our services will be measurable, result driven and guided by best practices in the industry.
Lastly, all our employees will be well taken care of, and their welfare package will be among the best within our category (startups IT consulting firms in the United States) in the industry. It will enable them to be more than willing to build the business with us and help deliver our set goals and achieve all our business aims and objectives.
Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP is established with the aim of maximizing profits in the IT Consulting industry and we are going to go all the way to ensure that we do all it takes to attract clients on a regular basis and sign retainer – ship with most of our clients.
Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP will generate income by offering the following IT consulting services to corporate organizations and non – profits organization;
One thing is certain; there would always be corporate organizations, government agencies, non – profits and individuals who would need the services of IT consulting firms to help them improve their business system and processes.
We are well positioned to take on the available market in IT consulting industry and we are quite optimistic that we will meet our set target of generating enough income / profits from the first six month of operations and grow our IT consulting firm to enviable heights.
We have been able to critically examine the IT consulting market space and we have analyzed our chances in the industry and we have been able to come up with the following sales forecast. The sales projection is based on information gathered on the field and some assumptions that are peculiar to similar startups in New York City – New York.
Below is the sales projection for Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP, it is based on the location of our business and of course the wide range of our services and target market;
N.B: This projection is done based on what is obtainable in the industry and with the assumption that there won’t be any major economic meltdown and there won’t be any major competitor offering same IT consulting services as we do within same location. Please note that the above projection might be lower and at the same time it might be higher.
We mindful of the fact that there are stiffer competition amongst IT consulting firms in the United States of America, hence we have been able to hire some of the best business developer to handle our sales and marketing. Our sales and marketing team will be recruited base on their vast experience in the industry and they will be trained on a regular basis so as to be well equipped to meet their targets and the overall goal of the organization.
We will also ensure that our excellent job deliveries speaks for us in the market place; we want to build a standard IT consulting business that will leverage on word of mouth advertisement from satisfied clients (both individuals and organizations).
Our goal is to grow our IT consulting firm to become one of the top 20 IT consulting firms in the United States of America which is why we have mapped out strategy that will help us take advantage of the available market and grow to become a major force to reckon with not only in the United States but in the world stage as well.
Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP is set to make use of the following marketing and sales strategies to attract clients;
We have been able to work with our in house brand and publicity consultants to help us map out publicity and advertising strategies that will help us walk our way into the heart of our target market. We are set to become the number one choice for both corporate clients and individual clients in the whole of the United States and beyond which is why we have made provisions for effective publicity and advertisement of our IT consulting firm.
Below are the platforms we intend to leverage on to promote and advertise Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP;
Hourly billing for IT consulting services is a long – time tradition in the industry. However, for some types of IT consultancy services, flat fees make more sense because they allow clients to better predict consultancy costs. As a result of this, Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP will charge our clients a flat fee for many basic services such as IT consulting and advisory service et al.
At Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP we will keep our fees below the average market rate for all of our clients by keeping our overhead low and by collecting payment in advance. In addition, we will also offer special discounted rates to start – ups, nonprofits, cooperatives, and small social enterprises.
We are aware that there are some clients that would need regular access to IT consultancy and advisory services and assistance, we will offer flat rate for such services that will be tailored to take care of such clients’ needs. So also, there are some one – off jobs or government contracts which are always lucrative, we will ensure that we abide by the pricing model that is expected from contractors or organizations that bid for such contracts.
Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP, our payment policy will be all inclusive because we are quite aware that different people prefer different payment options as it suits them. Here are the payment options that we will make available to our clients;
In view of the above, we have chosen banking platforms that will help us achieve our plans with little or no itches.
In setting up any business, the amount or cost will depend on the approach and scale you want to undertake. If you intend to go big by renting a place, then you would need a good amount of capital as you would need to ensure that your employees are well taken care of, and that your facility is conducive enough for workers to be creative and productive.
This means that the start-up can either be low or high depending on your goals, vision and aspirations for your business. The materials and equipment that will be used are nearly the same cost everywhere, and any difference in prices would be minimal and can be overlooked.
As for the detailed cost analysis for starting an IT consulting firm; it might differ in other countries due to the value of their money. Starting an IT consulting firm can be cost effective; this is so because on the average, you are not expected to acquire expensive machines and equipment.
Basically what you should be concerned about is the amount needed to secure a standard office facility in a good and busy business district, the amount needed to furniture and equip the office, the amount needed to pay bills, promote the business and obtain the appropriate business license and certifications.
Basically, this is the area we are looking towards spending our start – up capital on;
Going by the report from the research and feasibility studies, we will need about $250,000 to set up a medium scale but standard IT consulting firm in the United States of America.
Generating Funding / Startup Capital for Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP
Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP is going to start as a private business that will be solely owned by Dr. Rendell Downey and family. He will be the sole financial of the firm, but may likely welcome partners later which is why he has decided to restrict the sourcing of his start – up capital to 3 major sources.
These are the areas we intend generating our start – up capital;
N.B: We have been able to generate about $100,000 (Personal savings $80,000 and soft loan from family members $20,000) and we are at the final stages of obtaining a loan facility of $150,000 from our bank. All the papers and document has been duly signed and submitted, the loan has been approved and any moment from now our account will be credited.
The future of a business lies in the numbers of loyal customers that they have the capacity and competence of the employees, their investment strategy and the business structure. If all of these factors are missing from a business (company), then it won’t be too long before the business close shop.
One of our major goals of starting Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP is to build a business that will survive off its own cash flow without the need for injecting finance from external sources once the business is officially running.
We know that one of the ways of gaining approval and winning customers over is to offer our IT consulting services and other related IT advisory and consulting services a little bit cheaper than what is obtainable in the market and we are well prepared to survive on lower profit margin for a while.
Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP will make sure that the right foundation, structures and processes are put in place to ensure that our staff welfare are well taken of. Our company’s corporate culture is designed to drive our business to greater heights and training and re – training of our workforce is at the top burner of our business strategy.
As a matter of fact, profit-sharing arrangement will be made available to all our management staff and it will be based on their performance for a period of three years or more as determined by the board of the organization. We know that if that is put in place, we will be able to successfully hire and retain the best hands we can get in the industry; they will be more committed to help us build the business of our dreams.
Check List / Milestone
As an IT consultant, you know that a solid business plan is the backbone of your success. It's the roadmap that guides your decisions, secures funding, and attracts the right clients and partnerships. That's why ClickUp's Business Plan Template for IT Consultants is a game-changer!
With this template, you'll be able to:
Whether you're starting a new consulting firm or looking to level up your current one, ClickUp's Business Plan Template for IT Consultants has everything you need to thrive in the digital age. Don't miss out, get started today!
When using the Business Plan Template for IT Consultants, you'll experience these benefits:
Are you an IT consultant looking to create a comprehensive business plan? Look no further than ClickUp's Business Plan Template for IT Consultants. Here are the main elements included in this template:
If you're an IT consultant looking to create a comprehensive business plan, follow these steps using the Business Plan Template in ClickUp:
Start by clearly outlining the services you offer as an IT consultant. Are you specializing in cybersecurity, software development, or network infrastructure? Next, identify your target market. Who are your ideal clients? Small businesses, startups, or specific industries? Understanding your services and target market will help you tailor your business plan accordingly.
Use custom fields in ClickUp to categorize your services and target market for easy reference.
Research and analyze your competition in the IT consulting industry. Identify their strengths, weaknesses, pricing strategies, and target market. This information will help you differentiate yourself and develop strategies to stand out in the market. Additionally, assess any potential opportunities or threats that could impact your business.
Utilize the Table view in ClickUp to organize your competitive analysis by competitor, services, pricing, and other relevant factors.
Determine the financial goals and projections for your IT consulting business. Start by estimating your startup costs, including equipment, licenses, marketing, and office space. Then, project your monthly or annual revenue based on your pricing strategy and target market. It's important to consider both short-term and long-term financial goals to ensure the sustainability and growth of your business.
Use the Goals feature in ClickUp to set and track your financial goals and projections over time.
Outline your marketing and sales strategy to attract clients and generate revenue. This could include digital marketing tactics such as content creation, social media campaigns, and search engine optimization. Additionally, define your sales process, including lead generation, prospecting, and closing deals. Consider how you will position yourself as an expert in the IT consulting field and communicate the unique value you offer to clients.
Utilize the Automations feature in ClickUp to automate repetitive marketing and sales tasks, such as lead tracking and follow-ups.
By following these steps and utilizing the Business Plan Template in ClickUp, you can create a comprehensive business plan that will guide your IT consulting business towards success.
IT consultants can use this Business Plan Template to effectively communicate their business model and secure funding, partnerships, and clients.
First, hit “Add Template” to sign up for ClickUp and add the template to your Workspace. Make sure you designate which Space or location in your Workspace you’d like this template applied.
Next, invite relevant members or guests to your Workspace to start collaborating.
Now you can take advantage of the full potential of this template to create a comprehensive business plan:
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Starting your own business, or scaling up is intimidating. we’re here to break it down piece by piece so you can create your very own plan., in this free , you will learn:.
You’re in the right place if…
○ You have an idea for a consulting firm, and you’re ready to take the next step ○ You’ve started a business, and you need focus and direction
○ Your consulting company needs to bring in partners or funding
Starting a consulting business is no small task, so setting a clear action plan is essential. This comprehensive guide will give you a step-by-step breakdown of how to create a consulting business plan, why you need one, and how a business model canvas can help you along the way.
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If you want to start a consulting firm or expand your current consulting business, you need a business plan. The following consulting business plan template gives you the key elements to include in a winning business plan. A consultant business plan template can be used to create a business plan for any type of consulting business including but not limited to: business consulting, management consulting, IT consulting, and Human Resources consulting.
You can download the consulting business plan template (including a full, customizable financial model) to your computer here.
Below are links to each of the key sections of a successful consulting business plan:
You can download the consulting business plan template in Word (including a full, customizable financial model) to your computer here.
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Do you want to start an IT consulting business? It’s a great idea If you are thinking about it, especially if you want to start a small but profitable business. It requires fundamental knowledge of IT and an understanding of customer dealing. And you can start it on your own or with a small team too.
Even though it is a relatively simple business to start, you should still use a business plan for IT consulting as a guiding tool. It is a significant step when you wonder how to start an IT consulting business. Business plans are always helpful even if you’re reading a sample life coaching business plan .
So, it’s up to you. Either hire business plan writing services or write your own business plan using this document as a guide.
2.1 the business.
Hampton’s IT Consulting will be an IT consulting startup owned by Ruby Hampton. The company will provide IT consultation services in and around the Brooklyn area. It will offer a wide variety of services ranging from simple consultations to system development, implementation and management.
Ever wondered how to start your own IT consulting business? The best start is to read a lot of business plans for IT consulting and then develop one of your own. The best business plan strategy ensures success with adequate human and technical resources planning.
So, if you want to do IT consulting for small business, you need to go through the trouble of writing a business plan like this one.
To start a IT consulting business, you need to identify your customers. Our customers will come from all walks of life:
Our target is to become the most trusted and demanded consulting company in Brooklyn for customers who need help achieving their business goals through IT.
We want to achieve the below-mentioned financial targets for the first two years of our launch:
3.1 company owner.
Ruby Hampton will be the owner of Hampton’s IT Consulting. Ruby completed her Master’s in IT about two years back. Afterwards, she worked for an IT consultation company in Manhattan. After that, she left the job to start her own endeavour in the field.
Ruby noticed that many businesses around her Brooklyn hometown were struggling to make adequate use of their IT resources for improving their work. She realized that she could use her knowledge and experience to improve the functions of businesses in Brooklyn. And so, she decided to start her own IT consulting firm.
Step1: Plan Everything
The first step in learning how to start a IT consulting business of your own is to develop a business plan for IT consulting firm. To help you figure out how to set up an IT consulting business, we are providing a sample business plan here. Ruby decided to offer consultations services to every business under the sun, so you can use this plan for IT consulting business ideas for any business. You can also hire business plan experts to handle everything for you.
Step2: Define the Brand
You need to develop a brand for your business that can help you stand out. In this phase, you highlight your professional values and policies towards your customers to show your competitive advantage.
Step3: Establish Your Corporate Office
Ruby decided to rent out an office in a Brooklyn commercial building for starting the firm. But, first, she will put together a small team and procure the computing equipment needed.
Step4: Establish a Web Presence
Online advertisement is a huge part of the marketing of any business. Understanding this, Ruby decided to create social media profiles for her business and get a website developed. She expects that it will help her stay connected to her clients.
Step5: Promote and Market
In the final phase, a comprehensive marketing plan needs to be executed to promote the business.
Legal | $122,200 |
Consultants | $0 |
Insurance | $13,000 |
Rent | $33,000 |
Research and Development | $10,000 |
Expensed Equipment | $26,000 |
Signs | $3,400 |
Start-up Assets | $226,000 |
Cash Required | $169,000 |
Start-up Inventory | $39,000 |
Other Current Assets | $240,000 |
Long-term Assets | $217,000 |
Start-up Expenses to Fund | $207,600 |
Start-up Assets to Fund | $891,000 |
Assets | |
Non-cash Assets from Start-up | $1,156,000 |
Cash Requirements from Start-up | $285,000 |
Additional Cash Raised | $50,000 |
Cash Balance on Starting Date | $35,000 |
Liabilities and Capital | |
Liabilities | $18,000 |
Current Borrowing | $0 |
Long-term Liabilities | $0 |
Accounts Payable (Outstanding Bills) | $48,000 |
Other Current Liabilities (interest-free) | $0 |
Capital | |
Planned Investment | $1,098,600 |
Investor 1 | $0 |
Investor 2 | $0 |
Other | $0 |
Additional Investment Requirement | $0 |
Loss at Start-up (Start-up Expenses) | $361,400 |
Before you start an IT consulting business company, you need to figure out what your services will be. That way, you can plan your business around these services you will provide to the customers.
A strong IT consulting business model contains detailed information about the services of an IT business consulting group.
Since Ruby decided to offer a wide variety of services, this IT consulting services business plan can be used as a reference for any business plan. Even a private counseling practice business plan .
So if you want to start your own IT consulting business, you can take help from this document. Here, we are describing all the services offered by Hampton’s IT consulting briefly:
IT Infrastructure Planning
We will provide a basic infrastructure consultation service. In this service, we will analyze the client’s business requirements and provide them with a comprehensive plan to develop their infrastructure resources around their business.
Security Consulting
We will also offer security IT security consultation, which will include:
Risk Assessment Analysis
Our firm will also provide analysis and risk assessment of the IT infrastructure of the business. The client can then avail of our resources further to alleviate the concerns uncovered by the analysis.
Disaster Recovery Planning
IT systems are prone to disasters. Our firm will ensure a system that can recover from any unexpected disaster at a quick pace so that our customers don’t have to face any troubles.
When you want to start an IT consulting business or any other business, you should have a good idea of who your customer base and competition will be. This information is usually added as a part of IT consulting firm business plan for an IT firm or a business plan for business consulting .
excellent work, competent advice. Alex is very friendly, great communication. 100% I recommend CGS capital. Thank you so much for your hard work!
You can gain insights about your customers and competition through a marketing analysis. Any expert will tell you that marketing analysis is a crucial part of a business plan, let it be a sample IT consulting business plan or a mortgage business plan template .
In case you don’t know how to conduct marketing analysis, you can reach out to some IT business consulting experts. You can also use this document as a learning point for developing a business plan for IT consulting business software. Below, we have presented a detailed marketing analysis of Hampton’s IT Consulting Firm.
According to IBISWorld, the IT Consultation business in the US has a bold market share of $525.3 Billion. And as of 2021, it continues to grow at a rate of 2.4% every year. Taking a general view, the involvement of digital devices and systems is increasing day by day in every industry. As a result, businesses are looking for ways to shift their old infrastructures to the digital realm. It means that the demand for IT consultation services is not about to go down any time soon.
The expected customer base of Hampton’s IT Consulting is divided into the following groups:
5.2.1 government facilities.
The primary area of the shift to digital services is the government facilities. These facilities require a lot of assistance to shift their systems online or improve existing systems without affecting their operations too much. So they are expected to be our long time customers.
Our second biggest customers will be the businesses that want to stay up-to-date with the newest technology. They are expected to utilize our services regularly as well.
Educational facilities also require developments in their IT systems quite regularly. So, they are also expected to use our services from time to time.
Last but not least, most retail stores are going online and need robust systems for that purpose. We expect to provide our services to these clients as well.
Businesses | 31% | 21,000 | 25,200 | 30,240 | 36,288 | 43,546 | 10.00% |
Educational Facilities | 27% | 18,000 | 21,600 | 25,920 | 31,104 | 37,325 | 10.00% |
Commerical Stores | 26% | 15,000 | 18,000 | 21,600 | 25,920 | 31,104 | 10.00% |
Government Facilities | 16% | 12,000 | 14,400 | 17,280 | 20,736 | 24,883 | 11.00% |
10% |
Our prices will be dependent on the range of services required by the customers. They will be along the same lines as the market standard. But we will maintain continuous communication with the clients to ensure satisfaction till the end.
To start own IT consulting business, you need a solid marketing plan to stand out in the industry. To gain this prominence, and for marketing IT consulting business, you need to find promising areas of your businesses that will help customers recognize you as a better option.
Like a freelance business plan , you need to showcase your distinctions. In this IT consulting startup business plan, we are detailing a marketing plan for Hampton’s IT Consulting:
Unit Sales | |||
IT Infrastructure | 876 | 929 | 984 |
Security Consulting | 674 | 714 | 757 |
Risk Assessment | 453 | 480 | 509 |
Disaster Recovery | 124 | 131 | 139 |
Unit Prices | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 |
IT Infrastructure | $1,250.00 | $1,450.00 | $1,682.00 |
Security Consulting | $1,250.00 | $1,450.00 | $1,682.00 |
Risk Assessment | $1,450.00 | $1,682.00 | $1,951.12 |
Disaster Recovery | $1,750.00 | $2,030.00 | $2,354.80 |
Sales | |||
Direct Unit Costs | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 |
IT Infrastructure | $950.00 | $1,045.00 | $1,097.25 |
Security Consulting | $950.00 | $1,045.00 | $1,097.25 |
Risk Assessment | $1,000.00 | $1,100.00 | $1,155.00 |
Disaster Recovery | $1,250.00 | $1,375.00 | $1,443.75 |
Direct Cost of Sales | |||
An IT consulting business proposal contains information about business personnel as well. This is because the success of a business is highly dependent on the workforce, especially for big IT consulting business names. Wanting to uphold these standards and to become a part of IT consulting business slogans, Ruby detailed the team requirements and selection criterion in the business plan:
Manager | $40,000 | $44,000 | $48,400 |
IT Executives | $142,000 | $156,200 | $171,820 |
Technician | $15,000 | $16,500 | $18,150 |
Web Developer | $25,000 | $27,500 | $30,250 |
Sales Executives | $25,000 | $27,500 | $30,250 |
Accountant | $15,000 | $16,500 | $18,150 |
Receptionist | $30,000 | $33,000 | $36,300 |
The success of a business isn’t just ensured by sales. Every business needs a financial plan to make sure that the business is working on the correct route and providing a profit. A financial plan is as important to It consulting definition business as it is to a business plan for recruitment firm .
A financial plan doesn’t only help you in managing your expenses. It also helps to answer fundamental questions like how much does it cost to start a consulting business.
Here we’re providing the detailed financial plan of Hampton’s IT Consulting. You can get an idea of the business finances through this plan.
Plan Month | 1 | 2 | 3 |
Current Interest Rate | 8.12% | 8.20% | 8.26% |
Long-term Interest Rate | 8.40% | 8.44% | 8.47% |
Tax Rate | 24.03% | 24.21% | 24.60% |
Other | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Monthly Units Break-even | 5340 |
Monthly Revenue Break-even | $132,500 |
Assumptions: | |
Average Per-Unit Revenue | $231.00 |
Average Per-Unit Variable Cost | $0.62 |
Estimated Monthly Fixed Cost | $163,800 |
Other | $0 | $0 | $0 |
TOTAL COST OF SALES | |||
Expenses | |||
Payroll | $292,000 | $321,200 | $353,320 |
Sales and Marketing and Other Expenses | $145,000 | $148,000 | $156,000 |
Depreciation | $2,300 | $2,350 | $2,500 |
Leased Equipment | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Utilities | $2,900 | $3,000 | $3,100 |
Insurance | $2,100 | $2,100 | $2,100 |
Rent | $2,900 | $3,000 | $3,200 |
Payroll Taxes | $24,000 | $25,000 | $27,000 |
Other | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Profit Before Interest and Taxes | $259,650 | $526,323 | $1,003,320 |
EBITDA | $259,650 | $526,323 | $1,003,320 |
Interest Expense | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Taxes Incurred | $51,930 | $105,265 | $200,664 |
Net Profit | $207,720 | $421,058 | $802,656 |
Net Profit/Sales | 7.39% | 12.18% | 18.88% |
Cash Received | |||
Cash from Operations | |||
Cash Sales | $51,000 | $55,080 | $59,486 |
Cash from Receivables | $22,000 | $23,760 | $25,661 |
SUBTOTAL CASH FROM OPERATIONS | |||
Additional Cash Received | |||
Sales Tax, VAT, HST/GST Received | $0 | $0 | $0 |
New Current Borrowing | $0 | $0 | $0 |
New Other Liabilities (interest-free) | $0 | $0 | $0 |
New Long-term Liabilities | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Sales of Other Current Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Sales of Long-term Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 |
New Investment Received | $0 | $0 | $0 |
SUBTOTAL CASH RECEIVED | |||
Expenditures | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 |
Expenditures from Operations | |||
Cash Spending | $42,000 | $42,000 | $45,000 |
Bill Payments | $27,000 | $28,000 | $31,000 |
SUBTOTAL SPENT ON OPERATIONS | |||
Additional Cash Spent | |||
Sales Tax, VAT, HST/GST Paid Out | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Principal Repayment of Current Borrowing | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Other Liabilities Principal Repayment | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Long-term Liabilities Principal Repayment | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Purchase Other Current Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Purchase Long-term Assets | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Dividends | $0 | $0 | $0 |
SUBTOTAL CASH SPENT | |||
Net Cash Flow | $21,000 | $23,000 | $25,000 |
Cash Balance | $27,000 | $30,000 | $33,000 |
Assets | |||
Current Assets | |||
Cash | $275,000 | $308,000 | $338,800 |
Accounts Receivable | $24,000 | $26,880 | $30,213 |
Inventory | $4,300 | $4,816 | $4,900 |
Other Current Assets | $1,000 | $1,000 | $1,000 |
TOTAL CURRENT ASSETS | |||
Long-term Assets | |||
Long-term Assets | $10,000 | $10,000 | $10,000 |
Accumulated Depreciation | $19,400 | $21,728 | $24,444 |
TOTAL LONG-TERM ASSETS | |||
TOTAL ASSETS | |||
Liabilities and Capital | Year 4 | Year 5 | Year 6 |
Current Liabilities | |||
Accounts Payable | $18,700 | $20,944 | $23,541 |
Current Borrowing | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Other Current Liabilities | $0 | $0 | $0 |
SUBTOTAL CURRENT LIABILITIES | |||
Long-term Liabilities | $0 | $0 | $0 |
TOTAL LIABILITIES | |||
Paid-in Capital | $30,000 | $30,000 | $31,000 |
Retained Earnings | $53,000 | $57,770 | $63,547 |
Earnings | $193,400 | $210,806 | $231,887 |
TOTAL CAPITAL | |||
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND CAPITAL | |||
Net Worth | $293,400 | $319,806 | $351,787 |
Sales Growth | 7.25% | 8.03% | 8.90% | 3.00% |
Percent of Total Assets | ||||
Accounts Receivable | 9.21% | 10.20% | 11.31% | 9.80% |
Inventory | 5.39% | 5.97% | 6.62% | 9.90% |
Other Current Assets | 2.11% | 2.34% | 2.59% | 2.40% |
Total Current Assets | 149.80% | 151.00% | 152.00% | 158.00% |
Long-term Assets | 11.55% | 11.60% | 11.64% | 12.00% |
TOTAL ASSETS | ||||
Current Liabilities | 4.90% | 4.94% | 4.98% | 4.34% |
Long-term Liabilities | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% |
Total Liabilities | 7.59% | 7.65% | 7.72% | 7.38% |
NET WORTH | ||||
Percent of Sales | ||||
Sales | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
Gross Margin | 94.60% | 97.15% | 99.87% | 99.00% |
Selling, General & Administrative Expenses | 93.56% | 96.09% | 98.78% | 97.80% |
Advertising Expenses | 1.52% | 1.56% | 1.60% | 1.40% |
Profit Before Interest and Taxes | 41.50% | 42.62% | 43.81% | 33.90% |
Main Ratios | ||||
Current | 34 | 35 | 36 | 32 |
Quick | 33 | 33.8 | 34.645 | 33 |
Total Debt to Total Assets | 0.18% | 0.18% | 0.17% | 0.40% |
Pre-tax Return on Net Worth | 74.08% | 74.89% | 75.00% | 75.00% |
Pre-tax Return on Assets | 96.30% | 101.12% | 106.17% | 111.30% |
Additional Ratios | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
Net Profit Margin | 33.56% | 34.60% | 35.67% | N.A. |
Return on Equity | 55.80% | 57.53% | 59.31% | N.A. |
Activity Ratios | ||||
Accounts Receivable Turnover | 7.7 | 7.8 | 7.8 | N.A. |
Collection Days | 100 | 100 | 100 | N.A. |
Inventory Turnover | 32.4 | 34.02 | 35 | N.A. |
Accounts Payable Turnover | 15.6 | 16 | 16.3 | N.A. |
Payment Days | 27 | 27 | 27 | N.A. |
Total Asset Turnover | 2.5 | 2.5 | 2.6 | N.A. |
Debt Ratios | ||||
Debt to Net Worth | -0.04 | -0.03 | -0.04 | N.A. |
Current Liab. to Liab. | 1 | 1 | 1 | N.A. |
Liquidity Ratios | ||||
Net Working Capital | $244,000 | $257,664 | $272,093 | N.A. |
Interest Coverage | 0 | 0 | 0 | N.A. |
Additional Ratios | ||||
Assets to Sales | 0.85 | 0.87 | 0.89 | N.A. |
Current Debt/Total Assets | 1% | 0% | 0% | N.A. |
Acid Test | 29 | 29.12 | 29.16 | N.A. |
Sales/Net Worth | 2.1 | 2.2 | 2.2 | N.A. |
Dividend Payout | 0 | 0 | 0 | N.A. |
How do I write a business plan for a consulting business?
A business plan is critical if you are wondering how do I start a consulting business. You can take help from this document for writing a consulting business plan.
What does an IT business consultant do?
An IT consultant has many job roles such as system development and implementation, maintenance, security and analysis of systems.
How much does it cost to start a IT consulting business?
The costs of starting an IT business depends on the scale of the business and requirements. But if you want to know how much does it cost to do a business plan, it generally ranges between $5k to $10k.
How do I start a computer consulting business?
If you want to start a computer consulting, you will need a computer consulting business plan. You can refer to this document for help in that matter.
Download IT Consulting Business Plan Sample in pdf
OGSCapital’s team has assisted thousands of entrepreneurs with top-rate business plan development, consultancy and analysis. They’ve helped thousands of SME owners secure more than $1.5 billion in funding, and they can do the same for you.
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If you want to start a consulting business , then you need to write your consulting business plan.
I’ve watched countless starry-eyed entrepreneurs “start” their business with a 50-100 page business plan.
They spend weeks — or even months — toiling away at their desk after their 9-5 detailing everything about their future business.
After they’ve written it, they beam with pride.
“This plan is the key to my success in consulting! With this plan, I can’t fail.”
Then, they take their plan out to the real world.
The real world isn’t as perfect and pretty when starting your business.
And that golden business plan? Well, it almost always doesn’t work the way they’d hoped.
All of the projections they made? Naw, not even close.
So they scurry back to their desk to revise the plan — and the cycle continues.
Here’s the truth about consulting business plans…
You don’t need a long, complex business plan.
If your business plan is more than 5 pages, every extra page you write is almost certainly wasting your time.
All you need is a 1-3 page document to cover the foundations of your business.
By the end of this post, you’ll write your 5-part entrepreneurial consulting business plan — and have everything you need to start a successful consulting business.
Let’s begin with the first part: your consulting business model.
That’s the first question you want to answer for your consulting business plan.
Understand what type of business you want to build first before you start building it.
That way, you’re building a business to support your lifestyle and not the other way around.
At Consulting Success®, we believe that your business shouldn’t consume your life .
Your consulting business should enrich your life and create a fulfilling lifestyle for you and your family.
For your consulting business model, you have 4 options:
1. Solo Model : The classic independent consultant . Your business is just you (and maybe a few contractors). From delivering projects to marketing and sales, you are responsible for every part of the business.
(To see the pros and cons of each model, see our post on The 3 PROVEN Consulting Business Models .)
2. Firm Model : The typical large consulting firm. Your firm consists of consultants, associations, junior and senior people. Your role starts off as doing a bit of everything — but eventually, your role becomes hiring, training, and managing your team.
3. Productized Model : This model comes out of one of the above models. You identify a particular problem your clients have, and you build your business around solving that problem with a focus on efficiency. This model is all about systems, efficiency, and scale.
4. Hybrid Model : The hybrid model is a mix of the models above. For example, you might offer a productized consulting offer — but also do some solo custom consulting. Once you’ve mastered one of these models, the hybrid model helps you add new products and services to create more revenue.
Pick one of the models above. If you’re unsure about which one to use, start with the solo model. You can always change it in the future. Chances are, your business will evolve in the future anyways.
With your consulting business model selected, let’s move to the next part of your consulting business plan — clarity around your ideal client.
For every hour you spend on planning, you should spend 4 hours on putting your plan into action.
That’s the second question you’ll answer with your consulting business plan.
This is all about how you’re going to specialize .
As an entrepreneurial consultant, specialization is crucial.
You can’t offer everything to anybody.
You’ll have to begin by choosing a specific type of client to serve — your niche.
A niche is a certain subset of people whom you might potentially serve — SaaS companies, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, etc.
To find your ideal client, you’ll have to test out different niches.
This is why we teach the Niche Scoring Method in our Clarity Coaching Program .
Using this scorecard, you score each potential niche from 1 to 5 based on the following factors:
In the Clarity Coaching Program for Consultants , we also teach you about the different layers of specialization, how to find and validate your ideal client’s potential, how to do outreach to potential clients, and more.
By going through these exercises, you’ll figure out which niche is best for you to start with.
Picking a niche and defining your ideal client is the foundation on which you’ll build your business — and get clients.
You shouldn’t move on with your consulting business plan until you’ve defined your ideal client.
Once you’ve done that, you can move on to the next part: Magnetic Messaging.
That’s the third question you’ll answer on your consulting business plan.
You’ve picked your business model.
You’ve defined your ideal client.
Now, you’ll write a message designed to get your ideal client’s attention.
We’ve created a formula to make writing this message as simple as possible: Magnetic Messaging.
Here’s the formula:
I help [WHO] to [solve WHAT problem] so they can [see WHAT results]. My [WHY choose me]…
Let’s break each part of the formula down.
Why does this message grab your ideal client’s attention?
When your message contains these 4 elements, it will draw interest from your ideal clients. They’ll want to learn more.
They’ll browse your marketing materials, read your articles, sign up for your email list, and reach out to you for conversations.
Effective messaging is the foundation of your marketing: what you communicate to the marketplace to get your ideal client’s attention.
You won’t write the perfect message on your first try.
But you do need to write a first draft — and actually put it to work in the marketplace.
Once you’ve written down your first magnetic message, it’s time to start planning your strategic offer.
That’s the 4th question you’ll answer on your consulting business plan.
With clarity around your ideal client and a message that grabs their attention…
…you must create an offer — a service — that solves their problems and gets them the result that they want.
The classic custom consulting service is the “full engagement.”
After you engage in a meaningful sales conversation with your prospective client, you’ll send them a consulting proposal .
In your proposal, instead of including one option, you’ll include three:
Map out the different options you’ll offer your prospects.
Take a look at the marketing consulting example below for an idea of how the 3 different options might look:
However, we recommend you start with a discovery offer .
A discovery offer is a smaller service (priced at $1.5K to $15K). You design it to get your client a quick, low-risk win.
Your discovery offer helps get your “foot in the door” with the client. Once you get them that quick, low-risk win, they’ll trust your expertise. This will open the door for larger projects with the same client.
Discovery offers are easier to sell, create, and deliver.
Here’s our discovery offer checklist:
Of course, you’ll also have to set your consulting fees .
You can use the hourly method, the fixed-rate method, the value-based method , or the retainer method.
Pricing is an incredibly complex and deep topic. But you’ll have to pick a price to start with and adjust it based on the feedback you get.
Never sell yourself short. Remember: pricing is marketing. If you can deliver your clients results, then charge what you’d feel good about.
Once you’ve mapped out your 3 engagement options and a discovery offer, you’re ready to take your offers to the marketplace — and start winning consulting business.
This is the final question you’ll answer on your consulting business plan.
And it’s where you start to see real results: winning clients, delivering projects, and earning revenue.
However, according to our How To Become A Consultant Study , marketing and sales are where consultants struggle the most.
Your Marketing Engine is what you’re doing every day to get in front of your ideal clients.
Your Sales Pipeline organizes all of the leads who come into contact with you.
Let’s start with your pipeline.
Your pipeline is organized into 6 columns:
All of your prospective clients fit into one of these 6 categories.
Using a CRM to create and organize this pipeline will help you organize your marketing and sales efforts.
Marketing is what fills up your “lead” column.
Without marketing, you won’t have any leads. And without leads, you won’t have the chance to win new business.
We organize marketing for consultants in 3 different categories:
A basic Marketing Engine will have you doing a mix of these different methods every day.
Every day, you want to be reaching out to new clients, following up with your leads, and creating content that demonstrates your expertise and adds value.
The type of marketing you focus on also depends on the stage of your business .
If you’re a newer consultant, you’ll rely more on outreach. You don’t have as much of an audience for authority content to work yet.
But if you’re a later-stage consultant, you’ll rely more on content. Your content and consulting website has a farther reach, and can generate leads at scale.
For your business plan, focus on setting up a pipeline that is easy to track, and creating the right marketing habits to fill up your leads column.
At this stage, your plan is done.
It’s time to start taking action.
By answering these 5 questions…
…you’ll write a consulting business plan that enables you to take action.
We’ve included dozens of articles, case studies , and guides on how to answer these 5 questions.
However, in consulting, execution is more important than your plan.
So, use our resources to help answer these 5 questions — and go build your consulting business.
Apply to join our Clarity Coaching Program , the place where dedicated consultants go to get a personalized plan, strategy, coaching and support to grow a successful consulting business.
If you’re committed and serious about growing your consulting business, then this customized coaching program is for you.
We’ll work hands on with you to develop a strategic plan and then dive deep and work through your ideal client clarity, strategic messaging, consulting offers, fees, and pricing, business model optimization, and help you to set up your marketing engine and lead generation system to consistently attract ideal clients.
Schedule a FREE growth session today to apply for our limited-capacity Clarity Coaching Program by clicking here .
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It’s excellent news for IT consultants because their niche services are in demand. The IT consulting industry is growing, and with it comes more competition, so it’s important for startups to have a good IT consulting business plan in place before they begin operations. Everything from expansion to salaries to marketing to the acquisition of new tools to employee certification and technological advancement should be factored into a comprehensive plan. You’ll need a solid foundation, much like any other company.
Download our ready-to-use IT consulting business plan template today.
A strong IT consulting business plan will incorporate both financial and strategic components. Although you may not necessarily require funds for office rent or capital equipment costs, you may need a loan to get you through the initial few months until you establish a regular cash flow. You might also decide that renting office space, possibly in a shared office setting, will help you make a stronger impression. Or you might need money for marketing and promotion, which is crucial in the very competitive IT industry. Whether you want to use crowdfunding, hunt for grants, or apply for a bank loan, it’s critical that your chosen strategy includes a reliable calculation of what you need to expand strategically.
An IT consulting business plan is essential if you want to launch a successful IT consulting firm or expand your current one. A business plan will assist you in obtaining money, if necessary, and in planning the expansion of your IT consulting company. A well-maintained IT consulting business plan is a living document that should be reviewed and revised each year.
The importance of a business plan can’t be overestimated when it comes to your IT business. Knowing this, you should get in touch with the business plan writers at BusinessYieldConsult to have them write an effective and catchy one for you today.
I know you’re excited about choosing this business but do you know how much important it is to have an effective business plan? There are some steps you need to follow which can never be ignored to make your plan a strong one. We have them listed below to serve as a guide in writing your own plan. Here are the steps you need to follow:
Although it is typically the last piece you write because it summarises each important element of your IT consulting business plan, your executive summary serves as an introduction to your business plan.
Your executive summary should draw the reader in right away. Tell them about the IT consulting company you run and its current state.
In your company overview, you will describe the type of IT consulting firm you are operating, such as strategic planning, architectural planning, operational assessment, and implementation planning.
The company overview needs to give information on the business in addition to describing the type of IT consulting firm you will run.
You must include a summary of the IT consulting sector in your sector or market study. Although it may appear unneeded, this provides a number of functions.
You first gain knowledge by researching the IT consulting sector. It aids in your understanding of the industry you work in.
Your marketing plan can benefit from market research, especially if your analysis reveals market trends. To demonstrate to readers that you are an authority in your field. You accomplish this by performing the study and presenting the results in your plan.
Your IT consulting business plan’s customer analysis section must include information on the clients you already serve and/or anticipate serving.
A target market is the group of potential clients to whom you want to offer your products, and it consists only of those who will work well for your company. In essence, you need to decide which fish in the water you’ll concentrate on catching. Realizing that you can’t advertise to everyone and that it is a waste of time, money, and resources to try will help you develop a target market.
Your competitive analysis should list both your company’s direct and indirect rivals before concentrating on the latter.
Customers can buy from other companies that aren’t directly in competition with your product or service, known as indirect competitors. This comprises internal IT personnel, business consultants, and other kinds of IT expertise. Such competition must also be mentioned.
Give a brief description of each of these competitors’ businesses and list their advantages and disadvantages. It won’t be possible for you to know everything about your competitors’ companies unless you previously worked there. However, you should be able to learn important details about them.
A solid management team is crucial to proving the viability of your IT consulting company. Draw attention to your key players’ backgrounds by highlighting the knowledge and expertise that demonstrate their capacity to expand a business.
You and/or your team members should ideally have first-hand knowledge of running an IT consulting business. If so, emphasise your experience and knowledge. Highlight any experience you believe will assist your firm in succeeding, but do so as well.
Consider forming an advisory board if your team is inadequate. An advisory board would be made up of 2–8 people who would serve as business mentors. They would assist with clarification and offer strategic direction. If necessary, seek out advisory board members with business management expertise in the IT consulting industry.
A crucial step in starting your IT consulting business is developing a comprehensive marketing plan. This entails forming a strong professional network, defining your brand , identifying your target market, developing a credible website, and spending money on search and social media marketing. It’s crucial to strategically assess your marketing spend, funding requirements, loan collateral, and interest rate because many firms make elementary errors that result in wasted money and missed chances.
Monthly sales estimates can help you better understand your company’s demands going forward and will enable you to adjust your predictions as necessary. When predicting performance statistics for your company’s upcoming month or any future months, you can use monthly forecasts in the form of production forecasts, profit forecasts, balance sheet forecasts, or sales forecasts for a 30-day period. Businesses that provide services are particularly vulnerable to fluctuations in sales. It’s preferable if income can be forecasted with some degree of accuracy.
Your income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statements are all parts of your financial statements.
Include all of your financial estimates and any other supporting materials in an appendix to your IT consulting business plan.
Writing an IT consulting business plan might not be easy for you. That’s why we’ve compiled a ready-to-use IT consulting business plan template for you. Click here to download.
You need a template checklist in addition to developing a plan so that you can make sure your investment is sound. The main goal of this IT consulting business plan template is to help you keep track of all the steps necessary to launch a reliable IT consulting business. These steps consist of:
Download our IT consulting business plan template for a stress-free business plan.
IT consultants are external analysts that examine a company’s IT systems to help them fulfill its business objectives. Among their key responsibilities are the analysis and diagnosis of an organization’s IT system, the identification of the client’s specific business requirements, and the development and deployment of an appropriate technological solution.
The following are steps you can take to start a small consulting business:
The various benefits of being a single proprietor and an owner of a corporation are combined in limited liability companies, which is why some consultants prefer to be members of such a company. This is the best legal form for a consulting business if you are a sole proprietor or run a small firm and wish to safeguard your personal assets.
You can start your consulting business by following the following steps:
Consulting plans detail the project’s goals, deliverables, and expected schedule for completion.
Here are ways to structure a consulting project:
Hourly fees for independent IT consultants in the UK can be anywhere from £35 to £200. Unfortunately, the typical rate is quite low, at only about £60 per hour.
The typical annual basic wage for an analyst or junior consultant is between £50,000 and £600,000. The range is £60,000–£75,000 annually if you’re an associate consultant.
Business plans usually need to be created with banks and investors in mind, and small enterprises often need start-up capital to get off the ground. It’s best to strike a balance while creating a business plan for your IT consulting firm.
Even though consultants starting their own businesses might not require much cash, it’s still important to include comprehensive financial information in your business plan. This will help you understand your company’s possible risks and rewards as well as its finances in more detail.
An IT consulting firm works with customers to assist them in resolving IT issues. The spectrum of this industry ranges from simple network analytics support all the way up to managed IT solutions. Most consulting companies will focus on a relatively small area of IT.
A bachelor’s degree in computer science, information technology, electrical engineering, or a similar field is often required for IT consultants. Many IT professionals have, however, chosen different routes by employing online resources, specialised training, and certifications.
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Access 8 templates for consultants in The Complete Consultant's Success Kit.
As your consulting business goes, the need to become more organized and process-focus grows.
In this kit, we've compiled eight templates you can use to delight your clients.
For your planning and onboarding, we've included a consulting planning template, a presentation template, and an onboarding checklist.
For researching, we've included a SWOT analysis template and a Porter's Five Forces template.
For your clients, we've included a sales, marketing, and business plan template.
Download now to get started!
What is a consulting business plan.
A consulting business plan is a tool that helps consultants develop their business. HubSpot's Consulting Business Plan Template provides tips that make it easy to learn how to write a consulting business plan with an effective structure:
A consulting proposal is designed to demonstrate your knowledge and expertise in a particular field. It provides an outline of the specific services you provide, as well as some estimates on how long it might take to complete those tasks.
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When you're trying to find consulting, it's important to know how to write a proposal. You should start with a cover page that lists your name, the prospective client's name and the date of submission. Then, you'll want an executive summary that covers the client's challenges, how you plan to solve them and what metrics or benchmarks you'll use for success.
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HubSpot's consulting templates were made for consulting businesses that want to be more organized and process-focused. For planning, we have a template for consulting planning, presentation, and onboarding checklist. For research, we have SWOT analysis and Porter's Five Forces templates. And finally for clients, there is a sales marketing template.
Using a business plan template tailored for consulting businesses:
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Edit this design consultant business plan template for a fresh designer business plan and much more.
Develop a modern consultant business plan and more with this editable Design Consultant Business Plan Template. This plan features icons, photos, and a modern color palette that you can personalize within minutes! Icons are a great way to break up large amounts of content and help the reader visualize the data or statistics. The Venngage gallery is full of interesting icons and you can change their size and choose their colors for more options. You can also capture your audience's attention by using realistic photos that express your business. Browse the gallery for photos that represent your company, or upload your own into the Design Consultant Business Plan Template. For a more cohesive business plan, apply a modern color palette that compliments the photos and icons. It's easy to create a new color scheme, or you can simply choose one of the automated modern color palettes on Venngage. Not exactly the business plan you were looking for? Search the Venngage library for more innovative business plan templates!
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Learn about the types of consulting and how to start your own consulting business. Discover tips for growing a small business as an independent consultant.
Do you dream of being your own boss? Starting your own consulting business can provide freedom and flexibility in addition to potential unlimited income. To understand if your background is well-suited to this career, check out the different types of consulting businesses and what it takes to get one off the ground.
Marketing consulting, legal consulting, sales consulting, education consulting, health care consulting, human resources consulting, environmental consulting.
Consulting businesses often are geared toward a specific market or interest. Focusing on a single industry allows consultants to work in areas where they can offer true expertise. Here are some examples of different types of consulting businesses:
Management consulting firms partner with organizations to provide strategic advice on overall performance. These firms can assist in a variety of areas, including business model selection, business plan development, market research , and organizational restructuring . Management consultants may come from a diverse variety of career backgrounds. They often work with company leaders to make high-level decisions.
These firms provide expert advice on business finances. This type of consultant can help offer financial advice or assist in areas such as investing, wealth management, and business risk assessment. Financial consultants often have a background in related fields such as finance or accounting. Financial accounting firms may also employ experts in fields like economics, regulatory compliance, or financial advising.
Information technology (IT) consulting firms focus on developing and implementing technology solutions. A technology consultant can help businesses manage their existing technology infrastructure, assist in selecting and onboarding new tech products, and analyzing their computer systems and business accounts security levels . For example, an IT consulting firm could help your team select and learn how to operate the best video conferencing software.IT consultants generally come from a technical background and may have experience creating software, working in cybersecurity, or developing enterprise systems.
These firms offer consulting services to help teams build solid marketing strategies . Companies may hire marketing consultants to conduct research on their target audience or industry trends. In addition to research, they can assist in areas such as marketing campaign development, product launch strategy, and brand development. Marketing consultants often have a background in various types of marketing , such as digital or print.
Legal strategy consultants typically have a background in law, often as a lawyer or legal professional. Individuals, companies, and government agencies may hire a legal consulting company for help in areas such as litigation, intellectual property (IP) development, and contracts. These businesses sometimes work in partnership with law firms to meet a business’s needs.
These consulting practices aim to help businesses succeed in sales and achieve their overall business goals . They can assist in market research or sales coaching in addition to sales team performance evaluation, process optimization, and sales forecasting . Sales consultants may have a professional background in business or sales.
Education consulting firms may work with educational institutions, lawmakers, or other organizations in the field. They can support curriculum development, offer teacher training, and help with educational planning. These consultants often have a background in education or administration.
These firms can provide advice related to multiple aspects of the health care industry. Hospitals, technology companies, or policymakers may choose to work with health care consulting firms to optimize their business operations . Consultants may advise in areas including regulatory compliance, patient safety, and clinical performance. They often have a background in medicine, hospital administration, or public health.
Human resources , or HR, consultants can help companies improve their HR operations. Companies could choose to hire an HR consulting firm to advise on employee compensation and benefits such as payroll, hiring and retention , and other HR management functions, or to implement a new employee communication strategy. These firms may also offer training services for HR professionals. Consultants often have a background in HR.
Individuals, businesses, or government agencies may work with environmental consultants to help you navigate regulations or create more sustainable development strategies. Since these firms have expertise in environmental issues, they can assist with work including impact assessment, site assessment, and sustainable business strategies. Consultants may have a background in science or engineering.
PR consulting companies can provide public relations services and offer strategic advice to help you keep a positive public image. Individuals or organizations may hire a consulting firm in place of, or in addition to, an internal PR team. Consultants often have a background in PR, and they can assist in media relations, crisis management, or high-level strategy development.
Brand consultants are focused on brand management and helping organizations develop their overall brand image. They can assist with market research, provide advice on brand positioning, and help craft strategic messaging. Consultants can come from fields including design, communications, and advertising.
Starting your own consulting business can be a lot of work. But it can be easier if you break down the initial process into the following steps:
Evaluating your professional expertise can help you determine which services your firm will offer. Successful consultants know how to market their experience and position themselves as experts within a specific industry.
Identify your target market and think about their needs and any common pain points. Conduct a competitive analysis and research other firms working in the same field—if you understand the services that your competitors offer, you can make a case for why your firm is superior.
Don’t forget to take care of the legal framework, which can vary by state. Select an official business name and choose the type of structure for your new business. As a self-employed consultant, you may consider setting up a limited liability corporation ( LLC ) to protect your personal assets in the event of a lawsuit. Set up your office space and purchase business insurance coverage.
Determine the hourly rate or project rate that you’ll charge for consulting work. Consider the value of your expertise and the consulting fees charged by competitors.
Develop a digital marketing strategy to create an online presence for your company and promote your business . Build a professional website to show to potential clients. Determine your budget for online advertising.
You need customers to build a profitable business. Focus on networking and referrals to help find new clients.
Consider digital marketing, optimize your website, focus on service.
According to marketing consultant Nik Sharma , known as “The DTC Guy,” there are a few tips that can help your consulting business thrive. Whether you’re just starting your consulting career or you’re branching out from a big agency, these business practices are relevant:
Get to know the people working in your industry. Reaching out to small business owners in your area can be a great start.
Email marketing and social media marketing can help increase awareness of your new consulting business. On the Shopify Masters podcast, Nik speaks about the power of content, saying , “I have this thing I call ‘the broke man’s content playbook,’ which is, essentially, you use these social platforms that give you a ton of reach: TikTok, Reels, and YouTube Shorts, and then of course channels like YouTube or Instagram.”
A well-designed website makes you look professional. Following best practices for search engine optimization (SEO) and mobile performance can make it easier for new clients to discover and learn about your business.
Providing excellent service to your first few clients could help your business grow. Happy clients may refer new customers or leave positive reviews—these can be a powerful word-of-mouth marketing tool. “Social proof is a big one that a lot of people tend to forget,” Nick says. The strategy resonates, since first-hand reports from satisfied clients offer social proof that supports your services. The same clients may return if pleased with your work.
What is the difference between a consultant and a contractor.
Contractors are hired to work with your team in a hands-on capacity—delivering work that contributes to execution. In contrast, companies hire consultants to offer strategic big-picture advice.
The cost of starting your own consulting business can vary widely depending on the size, location, and market of your company. Startup costs may include business registration and license fees, office expenses, and insurance .
Anyone can start their own business , but not everyone can run a successful consulting business. Building a profitable consulting business requires industry expertise, problem-solving skills, and the ability to attract clients—and retain them.
Many states require a license for a consulting business to operate, but the exact type of license may vary depending on your industry and location. Local government websites, small business development centers, and industry-specific chambers of commerce can help you determine which license your business requires.
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So, you’ve got an idea and you want to start a business —great! Before you do anything else, like seek funding or build out a team, you'll need to know how to write a business plan. This plan will serve as the foundation of your company while also giving investors and future employees a clear idea of your purpose.
Below, Lauren Cobello, Founder and CEO of Leverage with Media PR , gives her best advice on how to make a business plan for your company.
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According to Cobello, a business plan is a document that contains the mission of the business and a brief overview of it, as well as the objectives, strategies, and financial plans of the founder. A business plan comes into play very early on in the process of starting a company—more or less before you do anything else.
“You should start a company with a business plan in mind—especially if you plan to get funding for the company,” Cobello says. “You’re going to need it.”
Whether that funding comes from a loan, an investor, or crowdsourcing, a business plan is imperative to secure the capital, says the U.S. Small Business Administration . Anyone who’s considering giving you money is going to want to review your business plan before doing so. That means before you head into any meeting, make sure you have physical copies of your business plan to share.
The four main types of business plans are:
Internal business plans, strategic business plans, one-page business plans.
Let's break down each one:
If you're wondering how to write a business plan for a startup, Cobello has advice for you. Startup business plans are the most common type, she says, and they are a critical tool for new business ventures that want funding. A startup is defined as a company that’s in its first stages of operations, founded by an entrepreneur who has a product or service idea.
Most startups begin with very little money, so they need a strong business plan to convince family, friends, banks, and/or venture capitalists to invest in the new company.
Internal business plans “are for internal use only,” says Cobello. This kind of document is not public-facing, only company-facing, and it contains an outline of the company’s business strategy, financial goals and budgets, and performance data.
Internal business plans aren’t used to secure funding, but rather to set goals and get everyone working there tracking towards them.
As the name implies, strategic business plans are geared more towards strategy and they include an assessment of the current business landscape, notes Jérôme Côté, a Business Advisor at BDC Advisory Services .
Unlike a traditional business plan, Cobello adds, strategic plans include a SWOT analysis (which stands for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) and an in-depth action plan for the next six to 12 months. Strategic plans are action-based and take into account the state of the company and the industry in which it exists.
Although a typical business plan falls between 15 to 30 pages, some companies opt for the much shorter One-Page Business Plan. A one-page business plan is a simplified version of the larger business plan, and it focuses on the problem your product or service is solving, the solution (your product), and your business model (how you’ll make money).
A one-page plan is hyper-direct and easy to read, making it an effective tool for businesses of all sizes, at any stage.
Every business plan is different, and the steps you take to complete yours will depend on what type and format you choose. That said, if you need a place to start and appreciate a roadmap, here’s what Cobello recommends:
Before writing your business plan, you’ll want to do a thorough investigation of what’s out there. Who will be the competitors for your product or service? Who is included in the target market? What industry trends are you capitalizing on, or rebuking? You want to figure out where you sit in the market and what your company’s value propositions are. What makes you different—and better?
The purpose of your business plan will determine which kind of plan you choose to create. Are you trying to drum up funding, or get the company employees focused on specific goals? (For the former, you’d want a startup business plan, while an internal plan would satisfy the latter.) Also, consider your audience. An investment firm that sees hundreds of potential business plans a day may prefer to see a one-pager upfront and, if they’re interested, a longer plan later.
Every business plan needs a company description—aka a summary of the company’s purpose, what they do/offer, and what makes it unique. Company descriptions should be clear and concise, avoiding the use of jargon, Cobello says. Ideally, descriptions should be a few paragraphs at most.
A business plan should be centered around the company’s goals, and it should clearly explain how the company will generate revenue. To do this, Cobello recommends using actual numbers and details, as opposed to just projections.
For instance, if the company is already making money, show how much and at what cost (e.g. what was the net profit). If it hasn’t generated revenue yet, outline the plan for how it will—including what the product/service will cost to produce and how much it will cost the consumer.
How will you promote the business? Through what channels will you be promoting it? How are you going to reach and appeal to your target market? The more specific and thorough you can be with your plans here, the better, Cobello says.
What will you do with the money you raise? What are the first steps you plan to take? As a founder, you want to instill confidence in your investors and show them that the instant you receive their money, you’ll be taking smart actions that grow the company.
Creating a business plan is in some ways akin to building a legal case, but for your business. “You want to tell a story, and to be as thorough as possible, while keeping your plan succinct, clear, interesting, and visually appealing,” Cobello says. “Supporting documents could include financial projects, a competitive analysis of the market you’re entering into, and even any licenses, patents, or permits you’ve secured.”
A business plan is an individualized document—it’s ultimately up to you what information to include and what story you tell. But above all, Cobello says, your business plan should have a clear focus and goal in mind, because everything else will build off this cornerstone.
“Many people don’t realize how important business plans are for the health of their company,” she says. “Set aside time to make this a priority for your business, and make sure to keep it updated as you grow.”
Written by Dave Lavinsky
Over the past 20+ years, we have helped over 500 entrepreneurs and business owners create business plans to start and grow their IT companies.
If you’re unfamiliar with creating an IT business plan, you may think creating one will be a time-consuming and frustrating process. For most entrepreneurs it is, but for you, it won’t be since we’re here to help. We have the experience, resources, and knowledge to help you create a great business plan.
In this article, you will learn some background information on why business planning is important. Then, you will learn how to write an IT business plan step-by-step so you can create your plan today.
Download our Ultimate Business Plan Template here >
A business plan provides a snapshot of your IT business as it stands today, and lays out your growth plan for the next five years. It explains your business goals and your strategies for reaching them. It also includes market research to support your plans.
If you’re looking to start an IT business or grow your existing IT company, you need a business plan. A business plan will help you raise funding, if needed, and plan out the growth of your IT business to improve your chances of success. Your IT business plan is a living document that should be updated annually as your company grows and changes.
With regards to funding, the main sources of funding for an IT business are personal savings, credit cards, bank loans, and angel investors. When it comes to bank loans, banks will want to review your business plan and gain confidence that you will be able to repay your loan and interest. To acquire this confidence, the loan officer will not only want to ensure that your financials are reasonable, but they will also want to see a professional plan. Such a plan will give them the confidence that you can successfully and professionally operate a business. Personal savings and bank loans are the most common funding paths for IT companies.
How to write a business plan for an it services business.
If you want to start an IT business or expand your current one, you need a business plan. The guide below details the necessary information for how to write each essential component of your IT business plan.
Your executive summary provides an introduction to your business plan, but it is normally the last section you write because it provides a summary of each key section of your plan.
The goal of your executive summary is to quickly engage the reader. Explain to them the kind of IT business you are running and the status. For example, are you a startup, do you have an IT business that you would like to grow, or are you operating a chain of IT businesses?
Next, provide an overview of each of the subsequent sections of your plan.
In your company overview, you will detail the type of IT business you are operating.
For example, you might specialize in one of the following types of IT businesses:
In addition to explaining the type of IT business you will operate, the company overview needs to provide background on the business.
Include answers to questions such as:
In your industry or market analysis, you need to provide an overview of the IT industry.
While this may seem unnecessary, it serves multiple purposes.
First, researching the IT industry educates you. It helps you understand the market in which you are operating.
Secondly, market research can improve your marketing strategy, particularly if your analysis identifies market trends.
The third reason is to prove to readers that you are an expert in your industry. By conducting the research and presenting it in your plan, you achieve just that.
The following questions should be answered in the industry analysis section of your IT business plan:
The customer analysis section of your IT business plan must detail the customers you serve and/or expect to serve.
The following are examples of customer segments: individuals, schools, families, and corporations.
As you can imagine, the customer segment(s) you choose will have a great impact on the type of IT business you operate. Clearly, individuals would respond to different marketing promotions than corporations, for example.
Try to break out your target customers in terms of their demographic and psychographic profiles. With regards to demographics, including a discussion of the ages, genders, locations, and income levels of the potential customers you seek to serve.
Psychographic profiles explain the wants and needs of your target customers. The more you can recognize and define these needs, the better you will do in attracting and retaining your customers.
Don’t you wish there was a faster, easier way to finish your business plan?
With Growthink’s Ultimate Business Plan Template you can finish your plan in just 8 hours or less!
Your competitive analysis should identify the indirect and direct competitors your business faces and then focus on the latter.
Direct competitors are other IT businesses.
Indirect competitors are other options that customers have to purchase from that aren’t directly competing with your product or service. This includes other types of IT consultants, in-house IT support, or do-it-yourself IT tutorials. You need to mention such competition as well.
For each such competitor, provide an overview of their business and document their strengths and weaknesses. Unless you once worked at your competitors’ businesses, it will be impossible to know everything about them. But you should be able to find out key things about them such as
With regards to the last two questions, think about your answers from the customers’ perspective. And don’t be afraid to ask your competitors’ customers what they like most and least about them.
The final part of your competitive analysis section is to document your areas of competitive advantage. For example:
Think about ways you will outperform your competition and document them in this section of your plan.
Traditionally, a marketing plan includes the four P’s: Product, Price, Place, and Promotion. For an IT business plan, your marketing strategy should include the following:
Product : In the product section, you should reiterate the type of IT company that you documented in your company overview. Then, detail the specific products or services you will be offering. For example, will you provide cloud computing, data center management, or network setup services?
Price : Document the prices you will offer and how they compare to your competitors. Essentially in the product and price sub-sections of your plan, you are presenting the products and/or services you offer and their prices.
Place : Place refers to the site of your IT company. Document where your company is situated and mention how the site will impact your success. For example, is your IT business located in a busy retail district, a business district, a standalone office, or purely online? Discuss how your site might be the ideal location for your customers.
Promotions : The final part of your IT marketing plan is where you will document how you will drive potential customers to your location(s). The following are some promotional methods you might consider:
While the earlier sections of your business plan explained your goals, your operations plan describes how you will meet them. Your operations plan should have two distinct sections as follows.
Everyday short-term processes include all of the tasks involved in running your IT business, including answering calls, meeting with new clients, billing and collecting payments from clients, etc.
Long-term goals are the milestones you hope to achieve. These could include the dates when you expect to acquire your Xth client, or when you hope to reach $X in revenue. It could also be when you expect to expand your IT business to a new city.
To demonstrate your IT business’ potential to succeed, a strong management team is essential. Highlight your key players’ backgrounds, emphasizing those skills and experiences that prove their ability to grow a company.
Ideally, you and/or your team members have direct experience in managing IT businesses. If so, highlight this experience and expertise. But also highlight any experience that you think will help your business succeed.
If your team is lacking, consider assembling an advisory board. An advisory board would include 2 to 8 individuals who would act as mentors to your business. They would help answer questions and provide strategic guidance. If needed, look for advisory board members with experience in managing an IT business or successfully running a small IT consulting service.
Your financial plan should include your 5-year financial statement broken out both monthly or quarterly for the first year and then annually. Your financial statements include your income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statements.
An income statement is more commonly called a Profit and Loss statement or P&L. It shows your revenue and then subtracts your costs to show whether you turned a profit or not.
In developing your income statement, you need to devise assumptions. For example, will you charge your clients an hourly rate of $250 per hour, and will you work 5 hours per day? And will sales grow by 2% or 10% per year? As you can imagine, your choice of assumptions will greatly impact the financial forecasts for your business. As much as possible, conduct research to try to root your assumptions in reality.
Balance sheets show your assets and liabilities. While balance sheets can include much information, try to simplify them to the key items you need to know about. For instance, if you spend $50,000 on building out your IT business, this will not give you immediate profits. Rather it is an asset that will hopefully help you generate profits for years to come. Likewise, if a lender writes you a check for $50,000, you don’t need to pay it back immediately. Rather, that is a liability you will pay back over time.
Your cash flow statement will help determine how much money you need to start or grow your business, and ensure you never run out of money. What most entrepreneurs and business owners don’t realize is that you can turn a profit but run out of money and go bankrupt.
When creating your Income Statement and Balance Sheets be sure to include several of the key costs needed in starting or growing an IT business:
Attach your full financial projections in the appendix of your plan along with any supporting documents that make your plan more compelling. For example, you might include your office location lease or a list of your IT credentials.
Writing a business plan for your IT business is a worthwhile endeavor. If you follow the template above, by the time you are done, you will truly be an expert on IT business planning. You will understand the IT industry, your competition, and your customers. You will develop a marketing strategy and will understand what it takes to launch and grow a successful IT business.
What is the easiest way to complete my it services business plan.
Growthink's Ultimate Business Plan Template allows you to quickly and easily write your IT services business plan.
Starting an IT business is easy with these 14 steps:
Don’t you wish there was a faster, easier way to finish your IT business plan?
Since 1999, Growthink has developed business plans for thousands of companies who have gone on to achieve tremendous success. Click here to see how Growthink’s business plan services can give you a winning business plan.
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Free Business Plan Template
Find yourself staring at the blank screen while writing your business plan? Well, every entrepreneur feels that once in their business journey. This is where a business plan consultant comes into the picture.
Think of a business plan consultant as your strategic partner who helps you craft the plan and create strategies that help you with funding.
But the tricky part is: How do you choose the right business plan consultant? Because there are a lot of options that will confuse you.
Worry not, here are the tips for choosing the right business plan consultant through which you can examine and select the right one for your business.
But before that let us understand why it’s important to hire a consultant.
A business plan consultant works closely with you and understands your business thoroughly. They help you achieve your goals like expanded market share, cost reduction, enhanced customer experience, and more.
Consultants have experience in various industries and expertise in fields like marketing, strategic planning, and more. So, having a consultant by your side will lead you to a successful business.
So, as we know why we need a business plan consultant, let’s move ahead to the tips.
Are you too facing the issues in choosing the right business plan consultant ? Well, there are many options online and offline for a consultant, so let’s see how to choose “the one” for your business:
First, look into which industries the business plan consultant has experience in. Also, consider their expertise, and see if it is relevant for your business.
Go for industry-specific experience, as this ensures familiarity with the unique problems and opportunities related to the industry.
Also, see if they have any successful track record in similar projects in the same industry. Lastly, review their portfolio for detailed strategic plans customized for a business like yours.
Before finalizing the business plan consultant, ensure they have the qualifications that you’re looking for. Go for a solid educational background, such as degrees in business, finance, or related fields, which is necessary for your industry.
Also, check if the consultants have any additional training and memberships in any professional organizations.
Explore recommendations and reviews of the consultant, before you finalize them. If you have word-of-mouth referrals from other businesses then it is a plus, as they come authentically.
Also, scan online reviews and get to know about the consultant’s methodology. All of these combined act as evidence of the consultant’s past work, process, and credibility.
Look for a consultant who not only has the necessary skills and expertise but communicates effectively. A compatible consultant will be able to offer personalized advice that resonates with your vision, ultimately leading to a more successful output.
Understanding the approach of the consultant is essential to ensure a successful outcome. It’s important to verify that their process includes comprehensive research, data analysis, and a clear strategic plan.
Requesting a detailed outline of the process along with the expected timeline can help you understand their method and set clear expectations.
Discussing fees and contracts before hiring a consultant maintains transparency. You need to clearly understand their fee structure and what it covers.
Apart from that, make sure the contract clearly states what you’ll get, when you’ll get the plan, and how much you’ll have. This clarity helps prevent misunderstandings and potential disputes later on.
Request sample business plans from the consultant to evaluate their work. This will help you know their writing style, attention to detail, and overall professionalism.
By going through their past work, you can consider whether their process syncs with your expectations and requirements.
Here you should get to know about the consultant’s knowledge by asking certain specific questions from the industry like:
Also, look into if they can provide you with in-depth replies to your questions.
That’s it guys! I hope following the above tips will help you choose the right business plan consultant for your business.
But, if you don’t want to go to and for for your business plan, you can write it on your own with the help of a business planning software like Upmetrics .
This tool helps you with business planning, creating financial forecasts, strategic planning, and a lot more.
So, why not write your business plan on your own? Start planning today.
Sample Business Plan Library
Explore over 400 real-world business plan examples from a wide variety of industries.
One Page Business Plan Template
Use this simple one-page business plan template to immediately get started on your plan.
Free Startup Business Plan Template
Use this simple startup business plan template to immediately get started on your plan.
Can a business plan consultant help with funding.
Yes, a business plan consultant helps you with writing engaging business plans which ultimately supports you in attracting investors and banks for funds.
It might take around weeks, months, or even more for a business plan consultant or a writer to create a business plan for your business. However, with the AI-powered business planning tool like Upmetrics, you can write your plan in days.
Paying someone or not depends on your budget and requirements. But you can write your business plan professionally for just as low as $7 with Upmetrics.
You need to provide the history of your business, product or services, target market, competitors, marketing strategies, financial projections, operational details, legal requirements, and more—for them to understand your business.
About the Author
Upmetrics Team
Upmetrics is the #1 business planning software that helps entrepreneurs and business owners create investment-ready business plans using AI. We regularly share business planning insights on our blog. Check out the Upmetrics blog for such interesting reads. Read more
The cornerstone of winning any new business lies in the strength of your proposal. The aim? To not only outline your offer, but to paint a picture so vivid your prospects can see the brighter future your partnership could bring.
In this guide, we unpack everything you need to paint this picture. First, we’ll work through the theory: showing how to structure your proposal for maximum impact. Then, we’ll see how these look in practice with 19 industry-tailored, time-tested business proposal examples.
In short, everything you need to take your proposal game to the next level.
Every element of a great business proposal should serve the overall objective. Clarity and concision are your priorities. In the spirit of being direct, here's a blueprint (as well as some tips) to get you there:
Executive Summary : After your title page, begin with an executive summary that captures the essence of your proposal. This section should be compelling, providing a clear snapshot of the client's problem and your proposed solution, setting the stage for the details that follow.
Define the Problem : Show your deep understanding of the challenges your potential client is facing, showing empathy and insight. This reassures the client that you grasp the nitty-gritty and the nuances of their situation.
Propose Your Solutions : In this section, outline your proposed solutions. Each solution should directly address a facet of the client's problem, clearly explaining how your services or products fit their needs. Focus on how you solve the problem, not just the features and benefits of your product or service.
Methodology and Timeline : Discuss your methodology and project timeline, providing a clear roadmap of how and when you plan to implement your solutions. This section should reassure the client of your project management skills, communication and planning abilities and that you have a realistic approach.
Pricing: Transparently outline your pricing structure while emphasizing the value provided. It’s crucial to balance cost with the benefits your client will gain, presenting your proposal as a strategic investment. Remember to include any add-on services or additional charges to avoid surprising your client later on in the process.
Proof of Success : Support your proposal with concrete evidence of your past successes. Include case studies, testimonials, and relevant data that validate your claims and demonstrate your capability and experience. If it's appropriate, you can provide some references your prospect can reach out to.
Conclusion and Call to Action : Conclude with a strong call to action. Clearly state what steps you want the reader to take next, whether it’s scheduling a meeting, signing a contract, or any other specific requirements.
This structured approach ensures that your proposal is a persuasive, coherent argument that effectively communicates why you are the best choice for the client.
When it comes to your unique needs, you're the expert. But, in order to get you started or inspire you to sell in new ways, we offer a robust library of business proposal templates . Each one is tailored to a different sector, showcasing how to apply the structure we've just outlined in real-world scenarios. Here are 19 different sample proposals, so you have plenty of choices to use or peruse!
When writing a SaaS proposal , you must detail the office chaos your software will calm. Show them a future where productivity soars, thanks to your cloud-based wizardry. Be specific about features, but link each one to a benefit. "Our feature X means your team can do Y, leading to Z% more sales." Don't forget to sprinkle in client testimonials from other businesses that have achieved zen thanks to your help! Look at our SaaS Proposal Template to see exactly what I mean.
Propel your business forward with our SaaS Proposal Template – present a persuasive case for adopting your solution to prospects.
Here, you're the architect of the next app everyone can't live without. Your mobile app proposal should start with the vision: the gap in the market your app fills beautifully. Describe how smooth and intuitive the user journey is. Outline the development timeline and the rigor of your testing and quality assurance strategy. Then, pull out the portfolio and social proof to show that you have the experience to match the vision. Our Mobile App development template will give you a better idea of how to tell your story in a way prospective clients won't be able to refuse an opportunity to work with you.
Secure projects with a compelling and persuasive Mobile App Development Proposal Template– craft a comprehensive, innovative, and tailored pitch swiftly.
This is where you think big - there are so many proposal creation possibilities. You're addressing companies with complex needs and multiple stakeholders. Your sales proposa l should reflect that. Start with an executive summary that speaks their language—efficiency, scalability, ROI. Dive deep into how your solution aligns with their strategic goals. Use data to lead them to the inevitable conclusion that your solution isn't just the best option; it's the only one that makes sense. Our enterprise sales template belongs in your proposal kit and shows how this is done well.
Get to 'yes' faster by captivating your buyer with web-based sales assets
This one's all about transformation. Your opening should paint a picture for a prospective buyer of the digital makeover their business will undergo. Detail the technical wizardry you'll employ in your software development proposal, but take the time to demystify all of it. Break your process into clear, digestible phases, showing milestones and success at each turn. When discussing costs, emphasize the long-term value of custom software—like investing in a high-quality tool that pays for itself over time. Our software proposal template shows what this all looks like in practice.
Win development projects with a thorough and persuasive software pitch – prepare a comprehensive, detailed, and tailored proposal quickly.
Here, you're wooing investors with a unique idea that's as solid as it is exciting: your business model, your market analysis, and your growth projections. These are particularly crucial for larger projects that require significant capital. So, you need to present a clear and concise outline of the opportunity, the potential ROI, and the associated risks. Look at how Qwilr’s investment proposal template establishes a clear understanding between the investor and the opportunity. It also leaves space for all of the important contractual language to ensure you're staying compliant while you pitch.
Imagine you’re crafting a strategy to turn a brand from a wallflower into the life of the party. Your marketing proposal should delve into the current market position and paint a picture of the potential you can help them realize. Outline a multi-channel approach, weaving in success stories like proof points in your narrative. Include your proposed project scope and include the deliverables like brand guidelines, design assets, copy and strategy work. Show them how your unique blend of creativity and analytics will boost their visibility and engagement, leading to a measurable uptick in sales and brand loyalty. Our marketing proposal template shows you exactly how it's done.
Win clients with a clear and convincing Marketing Proposal – craft an engaging, goal-driven, and results-focused proposal in no time.
Your SEO proposal acts as their map, guiding them through the winding terrain of search engine algorithms to the pinnacle of those Page 1 rankings. Start by laying out the stark reality of their current online presence and its untapped potential. Break down your strategy into tangible steps—keyword research, on-page optimization, content marketing. Use case studies to illustrate the climb from obscurity to prominence. Make it clear that investing in SEO is not a cost but a growth catalyst. How do you do it? Use our SEO proposal template. It's designed for engagement and interactive storytelling.
Gain clients with a captivating and persuasive SEO Proposal – design a strategic, data-driven, and results-focused proposal quickly.
Think of this as plotting a direct route to sales growth. Your opening? It highlights the inefficiency of their current advertising efforts compared to the precision targeting Google Ads offers. Your PPC proposal should map out a campaign that targets their ideal customers with laser focus, promising better conversion rates at a lower cost. Include projections to illustrate the potential return on ad spend, turning skepticism into anticipation- as this Google Ads proposal template neatly demonstrates.
Craft a winning PPC strategy with the comprehensive PPC Proposal Template – efficiently develop targeted and result-oriented campaigns
Begin your influencer marketing proposal by introducing yourself, your brand, and your audience. Then, demonstrate your understanding of the target brand's needs and how your content and audience can help service those needs. Drill down into the metrics that will define success for them here: people interacting with the content, website visitors, sales, new followers, etc. Showcase success stories as evidence that this approach isn't just trendy; it's transformative.
This influencer marketing proposal template helps you create a data-driven, results-orientated proposal in a fraction of the time.
Showcase your expertise in influencer marketing with our dynamic Influencer Proposal Template. Designed for accuracy and impact, it enables you to create a data-driven, results-oriented proposal tailored to your potential partner's goals.
You're the artist envisioning a brand's rebirth. Start your branding proposal with a critique of the current brand identity and its market perception. Propose a rebranding strategy that promises to not just change looks but revitalize the brand's story, making it resonate with today’s audience. Include mood boards, success stories, and market research to back your vision. Paint a picture of the future where their brand isn’t just seen but felt deeply by its audience. Our brand identity proposal template helps highlight the unique approach to identity, positioning, and messaging that you bring to the table.
Win clients with a compelling and persuasive brand strategy – craft a clear, consistent, and impactful brand proposal quickly.
Position your sponsorship proposal as a win-win partnership that elevates both parties. Begin with an analysis of the potential partner’s audience and how it overlaps with your client’s target market. Propose a sponsorship deal that feels less like a transaction and more like a collaboration towards a shared goal. Highlight past sponsorship successes as proof of concept, ensuring the partner feels confident in the mutual benefits. Our sponsorship proposal template helps you create a detailed, goal-orientated and mutually beneficial pitch in minutes.
With your content marketing proposal , you're the storyteller proposing a saga that captures and holds the audience's attention. Start with the harsh reality of their current content's performance—or lack thereof. Lay out a content strategy that spans blog posts, videos, and social media, all designed to engage and convert. Use metrics from past campaigns to underscore the value of quality content, positioning it as the cornerstone of digital marketing success. Qwilr’s content marketing proposal template helps your team close impactful, high-value clients and expand your business.
Drive content success with our Content Marketing Proposal Template – win high value clients by presenting a comprehensive content offering.
With your email marketing proposal , you’re connecting your knowledge of email marketing to the potential client's needs. Showcase your content plan, focussing on segmentation and personalization methods aimed at deepening relationships and driving sales. Present data from successful email campaigns to illustrate the potential for increased open rates and conversions. Our email marketing proposal template can be the shortcut to your success.
Win clients with an engaging and convincing Email Marketing Proposal – craft a targeted, data-driven, and results-oriented proposal in no time.
Here, you're the digital renovator, promising a website that wows and works hard. With your website design proposal , it's no surprise that aesthetics are important. Use rich media, interactive elements, and high-quality images to heighten engagement. Show mockups or case studies to illustrate the transformative power of good design, framing the website not just as a cost but as an investment in the brand’s digital footprint. Our website proposal template will help you land clients while showcasing your expertise.
Adopt the role of a sales strategist, advocating for a method that spins ordinary conversations into sales opportunities. Highlight the inefficiencies in their current sales approach with empathy. Introduce SPIN Selling as a proven methodology focussing on Situation, Problem, Implication, and Need-payoff questions, promising to elevate your sales professionals to the trusted advisors the modern buyer prefers. Use success stories to cement the credibility of this approach and our SPIN selling template to help you do it all in a fraction of the time.
For these, position yourself as a sales transformation guru. Each proposal should dissect the current sales process, revealing gaps and missed opportunities. Present MEDDPICC/MEDDIC as comprehensive frameworks that ensure thorough qualification and a deeper understanding of customer needs, leading to more predictable and successful sales outcomes. Bolster your case with testimonials and metrics from businesses that have seen significant improvements after adopting these methodologies. Our MeddPicc and Meddicc proposal templates can prove invaluable allies here.
Here, you're advocating for a bold, assertive approach to sales that challenges prospects’ preconceptions. Begin by illustrating the limitations of their current sales strategy with real-world examples. Introduce the Challenger Sales model as the game-changer, emphasizing its focus on teaching, tailoring, and taking control of the sales conversation. Highlight the success stories of companies that have embraced this model, showcasing impressive results. Qwilr’s Challenger Sales Methodology template embraces this solution-focussed sales approach.
Imagine guiding your client toward a collaborative sales strategy that maps out the path to a closed deal. Start with the pitfalls of traditional, one-sided sales plans. Present the Mutual Action Plan as a partnership between seller and buyer, creating a shared roadmap towards decision-making. Highlight its benefits—increased transparency, alignment, and a higher rate of successful closures—backed by case studies of successful implementations. Look how this Mutual Action Plan template fosters collaboration with its shared goals, milestones, and commitments.
With Qwilr, gone are the days of one-size-fits-all PDF templates that blend into the background noise of your prospect's inbox. Here’s how Qwilr’s proposal software turbo-charges your efficiency and creativity:
The best proposal software should not just be a tool but a member of your team- one that works tirelessly to ensure your proposals stand out and deliver results. Qwilr isn't just a step toward more effective proposals; it's a leap into a future where your proposals do more than speak for you—they impress, they engage, and (most importantly) they close deals .
The path to creating proposals that not only capture attention but also win hearts (and deals) is intricate yet immensely rewarding. Explore Qwilr’s Proposal Software to create proposals that stand out and deliver real results. Let's make every proposal your stepping stone to success.
Marissa Taffer | Founder & President of M. Taffer Consulting
Marissa Taffer is the Founder & President of M. Taffer Consulting. She brings over 15 years of sales and marketing experience across various industries to a broad range of clients.
How long should a business proposal be.
A proposal should be as long as necessary to convey your value proposition clearly and compellingly. That said, aim for brevity and relevance. If you can say it powerfully in five pages, don't stretch it to ten.
In a world of black and white, be a burst of color. Use visuals, infographics, and even videos if your platform allows it. Tailor your proposal to speak directly to your prospect's needs and pain points. And don’t forget the power of a compelling story—people remember stories far longer than specs and numbers.
Overlooking the 'why.' It's easy to get caught up in the what and the how (what you're offering and how you'll do it), but if you forget to explain why it matters to them, you've lost before you've begun. Always link your services or products back to their benefits.
Yes, but with a twist. Pricing should be transparent but also flexible. Use interactive pricing tables that allow your prospects to adjust scope based on their budget.
Imagine planting a seed and not watering it… Follow-ups with your prospective client are crucial. They show you're genuinely interested in their business and open the door for feedback or questions. Timing is key, though—wait a day or two, not an hour (and definitely not a week!)
Key takeaways What is a project plan? A project plan outlines the project’s scope, objectives, and schedule; it details what needs to be done, when, and by whom. The plan includes significant deliverables, methods to achieve them, team roles, stakeholder feedback, and milestones. This transparency makes sure everyone involved understands their role and how it…
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Published Date:
Table of contents
Key takeaways
Jan. 8, 2024: Irene Casucian reviewed the information on this page for accuracy, refined the page layout, and added elements to improve the visual flow of information. She also created a downloadable project plan template.
What is a project plan.
A project plan outlines the project’s scope, objectives, and schedule; it details what needs to be done, when, and by whom. The plan includes significant deliverables, methods to achieve them, team roles, stakeholder feedback, and milestones. This transparency makes sure everyone involved understands their role and how it contributes to the overall goal.
A project plan is the tangible output of the second phase of project management , project planning . This phase involves identifying and arranging each task necessary to cover the project’s scope, achieve deliverables, and meet the project’s goals. A comprehensive project plan developed in this phase is instrumental in tracking dependencies, staying updated on the status, and maintaining productivity throughout the project.
A well-prepared project plan requires several key elements that will outline the project’s goals and define the stakeholders ‘ individual roles. Incorporating these key elements into a project plan is essential for effective project management and a higher success rate.
Element | Description |
---|---|
A concise overview summarizing the project’s purpose, scope, and significance. | |
Specific, measurable objectives aligned with broader business aims. | |
Roles and duties of team members and stakeholders for accountability. | |
Specific activities and expected tangible outcomes of the project. | |
Outline of available and required human, financial, and material resources. | |
Identifying potential risks and strategies to manage them. | |
Significant stages in the project timeline for tracking progress. | |
Schedule of tasks and milestones for time management. | |
Financial estimates, budget allocation, and financial management plans. | |
Methods and frequency of communication within the team and with stakeholders. |
Step 1: define the project’s overall goals and objectives.
Identifying your project’s overall objectives and goals will help you measure the project’s success and keep your team aligned with the overarching mission. In this step, you should determine the desired outcome of your project that would represent its success.
By clearly understanding what the project aims to accomplish, project managers and teams can better identify the necessary tasks and establish the project scope .
When defining your project goals, apply the SMART standards for a solid foundation. Make your objectives specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. This approach guarantees a clear, focused, and actionable framework for your project.
To measure success effectively, align your success criteria with the project’s key deliverables and outcomes, and make sure they are based on its intended result. Confirm that these criteria are quantifiable and accurately reflect the impact and value your project aims to deliver. Such alignment is essential for accurately assessing the project’s performance and its effectiveness in achieving the intended results.
To identify project milestones, break the project down into key tasks and outcomes and specify significant progress points or phase completions as milestones. Consider dependencies when establishing a realistic workflow. Additionally, identify potential risks that can impact task completion and define deliverables clearly as measurable results expected from each project phase.
Your project’s stakeholders include any individuals or groups related to the project. To assess if someone is a stakeholder in a project, determine how much they influence, impact, or have an interest in the project’s outcome. Consider if their involvement is direct, if the project’s results affect them, or if they can influence the project’s direction or success.
Examples of stakeholder groups include:
Once you have determined your stakeholders, you can define their roles and responsibilities. This can help you structure your project team, identify members who are directly responsible for its success, and make sure they are assigned the correct tasks to carry out the project appropriately.
When assigning roles and responsibilities, utilize a RACI chart (Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed) to clarify the involvement of each stakeholder in the project. This provides clear communication and accountability and prevents overlaps or gaps in responsibilities.
Creating a schedule and timeline for each task can provide visibility into the execution process and keep each team member productive.
Consider how much time is required to complete each task necessary for your project milestones. You can even break down tasks into smaller subtasks to make them more manageable. However, be mindful of factors that can cause delays such as:
When creating a project schedule, visual tools like Gantt charts and Kanban boards help you map out task dependencies and timelines. A useful project management tool you can use for this step is Trello. Trello offers an intuitive platform for creating Kanban boards. It allows easy visualization and management of tasks through customizable columns and cards for streamlined project workflow.
To generate an estimated project budget, you must consider all of the necessary project resources, including personnel, labor, materials, and equipment. Establishing a project budget will help you make wise spending decisions throughout the project execution phase to avoid overspending.
A communication plan should show how information is shared among stakeholders. For instance, in a software development project, the communication plan might specify that the development team shares a beta version of the software with the client for feedback every two weeks. It’s a systematic approach to making sure that the client receives consistent updates about the project’s progress. Having a communication plan in place will also outline the channels of communication and frequency to all necessary parties.
Leverage collaboration tools , such as Slack , that integrate with your project management software to receive real-time updates and interactions among team members and stakeholders.
Compile all related planning information and documentation as you plan your project. Some of these vital documents include:
Having these reports in one place will serve as a reference during the project’s execution.
Utilize a centralized digital platform, like Sharepoint , where stakeholders can store, update, and access all project documentation. This approach serves as a reliable reference and streamlines the management and tracking of the project’s progress.
Learn more about Sharepoint and other document management tools in our video overview:
Project plan examples.
Using an appropriate project plan format is essential to keeping stakeholders well-informed. Here are some of the widely-used project plan formats:
Using spreadsheets for project planning is beneficial due to its simplicity and widespread use, especially suitable for small-scale projects with straightforward tasks. Its customizable nature is excellent for simple initiatives like office events or basic marketing plans.
However, a significant drawback of using spreadsheets in project planning is the limited visualization options. While spreadsheets can manage data, they fail to offer comprehensive visual representations essential for a holistic view of project progress. Lastly, the risk of human error in data entry and formula setup in spreadsheets is high and can lead to critical miscalculations affecting the entire project plan.
For more complex projects, Smartsheet is an ideal upgrade. It merges the simplicity of a spreadsheet with advanced project management features such as real-time collaboration, automated workflows , and app integration. More than just a basic spreadsheet tool, Smartsheet is particularly effective for large-scale projects like detailed marketing campaigns or cross-departmental efforts, offering comprehensive task tracking and resource management in a user-friendly format.
Slideshow presentations for project plans provide a visually engaging method to simplify complex information. They effectively break down project components into understandable segments, using visuals, charts, and bullet points to highlight key information and timelines for team members and stakeholders.
However, the downside is that slide shows can oversimplify complex projects and potentially leave out critical nuances. They also require significant preparation time and may not be the best medium for detailed, data-heavy projects.
Microsoft PowerPoint is an excellent choice for creating slide show presentations as part of project plans. It’s user-friendly and offers many templates and design tools. That’s why it’s suitable for beginners and seasoned professionals. PowerPoint’s ability to integrate with other Microsoft Office tools, like Excel for data representation, enhances its utility in project planning.
Gantt charts create a clear visual timeline of a project’s schedule and progress by displaying various project elements’ start and finish dates. This approach helps identify potential bottlenecks and overlaps and facilitates better resource allocation and time management. However, Gantt charts can become cumbersome for complex projects with numerous tasks and dependencies.
Gantt charts are particularly effective in construction projects, event planning, and software development, where timelines and task dependencies are critical.
TeamGantt is an effective PM tool that creates clear visual timelines for project schedules and progress tracking. By allowing users to input various project elements, including tasks, milestones, and dependencies, and then assigning start and finish dates to each, TeamGantt generates an intuitive Gantt chart.
This chart visually represents the project timeline, displaying how different tasks and phases overlap and interconnect over the project duration. The color-coded bars and easy-to-read format make it simple to understand the sequencing of tasks and the project’s overall progress at a glance.
Mind maps differ from other project visualization methods by showing a radial, non-linear format ideal for brainstorming and capturing the holistic view of a project. They emphasize the creative mapping of ideas and relationships. They promote the free flow of ideas and easy visualization of relationships between different aspects of a project. Mind maps can also help identify key components, dependencies, and potential challenges at the early stages of a project.
Moreover, using a mind map before presenting a Gantt chart can help ease the transition from creative brainstorming to detailed scheduling, resource allocation, and progress tracking.
Lucidchart is an excellent software solution for creating mind maps that can be converted into detailed reports. Its intuitive, drag-and-drop interface is ideal for conceptualizing project plans.
Lucidchart also stands out because it integrates with various tools like Google Workspace and Microsoft Office. This integration can facilitate the transition from a visual mind map to a comprehensive written report.
Work breakdown schedule development.
Using a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) in project planning offers distinct advantages and some drawbacks. The primary benefit of a WBS is its ability to break down a complex project into manageable components. It is then easier to allocate resources, assign responsibilities, and track progress. This hierarchical project decomposition guarantees that every part of the project is apparent.
However, the main disadvantage lies in its potential rigidity; a WBS can become overly prescriptive, limiting flexibility and adaptability to changes or unforeseen challenges. Additionally, creating a comprehensive WBS can be time-consuming, and if not done meticulously, it may lead to gaps or overlaps in project planning.
monday.com includes a work breakdown feature to help teams organize complex projects into manageable tasks. Each task is separated into more minor subtasks assigned to the appropriate individuals. The chart also displays additional information, such as the deliverables, end dates, and schedules based on interdependencies.
Project and documentation management in project planning has its own advantages and disadvantages. With this process, you can make sure that all project-related documents are organized, up-to-date, and easily accessible. This approach is essential for maintaining consistency and clarity throughout the project lifecycle. Yet, the downside includes the possibility of information overload, where team members might get overwhelmed by the sheer volume of documents.
Agile teams use Jira for planning and managing their projects. Here, you can see some of the information regarding risks and dependencies compiled within Jira. This method of organizing this information can be helpful, as the platform can act as a single source of truth to keep team members updated on the status of specific tasks. It also makes it easy for teams to communicate with external stakeholders about factors impacting the project.
Effective project planning is the cornerstone of successful project execution. It involves several key aspects contributing to a project’s smooth functioning and success. Some of these benefits include:
Remember, an effective project plan is not just a document; it’s a strategic tool that integrates various critical elements to secure the project’s success.
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By: Author Tony Martins Ajaero
Home » Business Plans » Technology Sector
Are you about starting an IT consulting business? If YES, here’s a complete sample IT consulting business plan template & feasibility report you can use for FREE to raise money .
If you thinking starting an IT consulting business plan is uppermost on your mind, then you have got to be ready to take the necessary steps required in building a great business. There are various things that is required to be done; chief amongst them is the writing of business plan.
1. industry overview.
When we talk about consulting services, we are perhaps talking about getting practical advice from expects. The consulting industry is indeed a broad industry that covers a wide range of services such as management consulting, strategy consulting technological consulting, marketing consulting, human resource consulting, training consulting, tax consulting, and any other business activities that involves giving advice and expertise et al.
In essence, consulting firms are hired to proffer solutions to the challenges that organizations faces. Organizations don’t just hire consultants for the sake of hiring consultants, but they do so simply because they expect them to help tackle their business challenges and deliver solutions as required.
As a consulting firm, if you good at developing coaching skills, process analysis, technology implementation, strategy development, or operational improvement services, then with little push, you will have more jobs than you can handle.
The IT Consulting industry comprises of businesses that offers IT related consulting services such as writing, testing and supporting custom software; planning and designing integrated hardware, software and communication infrastructure; and on-site management of computer systems and data processing facilities.
Players in this industry may also go the extra mile to offer services such as packaging software and off-site data processing and hosting services.
The IT Consulting industry is a thriving sector of the economy of the united states of America and they generates a whooping sum of well over 3 billion annually from more than 459,808 registered and licensed IT consulting firms scattered all around the United States of America.
The industry is responsible for the employment of well over 2,143,418 people. Experts project the IT consulting industry to grow at a 2.2 percent annual rate. It is important to state that IBM is the market leader in the IT consulting industry in the United States of America – that have the largest market share own by an establishment in the industry.
In the United States of America, the distribution of IT consulting firms generally reflects its population distribution with increased consulting density near technological centers and key demand markets, including financial service companies, large corporations and government clients. Most IT consulting companies are located in the Southeast, closely followed by the Mid-Atlantic and the West.
The Southeast contains the largest number of IT consulting firms, with 23.7 percent of industry establishments. Many IT consulting firms are in this region because 25.6 percent of the US population resides in this region. The State of Virginia accounts for the largest proportion of industry establishments in this region with 6.5 percent in 2015.
The IT consulting industry is a high-paying industry especially if you have been able to cut your teeth in the industry. It gives you the opportunity to work with high and low profile clients and if you are able to proffer IT solutions to business challenges you will be greatly rewarded. In most cases, if you are lucky to be among the few experts in the industry, you will have the privilege of choosing who to work for and the amount you want to charge.
Generally, IT consultants are skilled at conducting research and of course analyzing the results they got from the research. IT Consultants go as far as gathering any related data that will help them come up with workable solutions for the organization they are working for; they ensure that they identify behavioral patterns, production bottle – necks, the market trends and of course customers preference.
With that and other factors, they will be able to create standard operating processes and systems that can help the organization achieve its goals and objectives.
As an IT consulting firm, your core responsibility is to improve your client’s business by effecting changes in response to your analysis; you should be able to change the fortune of the business within an agreed time – line. Corporations are willing to pay expensive fees as long as they are going to get results.
No business person will be willing to pay you for an IT consulting service if you don’t have a track record that shows that you know what you are doing. It is one thing to convince a client to patronize your IT consulting services and it another thing for you to deliver solutions as agreed.
Lastly, one good thing about the IT consulting industry is that there is readily available market for their services simply because organizations naturally would want to improve their performance annually; corporations always seem to want more success. So if you are well positioned and you know how to deliver results, you will always smile to the bank.
Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP is a standard and world – class IT consulting firm that will be located in New York City, New York. We have been able to secure a standard office facility in a busy business district in New York City.
Our services will cover areas such as; providing information technology expertise for consumers, writing, modifying, testing and supporting software to meet the specific needs of our client, Planning, design and integration of computer or network systems, on-site management and IT functions, computer systems design, development, and integration, computer application design and development, IT technical support services, IT infrastructure and network design services, IT technical consulting services and other related IT consulting and advisory services.
We are aware that businesses these days require diverse and sophisticated approaches. This is why we will position our IT consulting firm to offer a wide range of IT consulting services as requested by our clients. Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP is a client-focused and result driven IT consulting firm that provides broad-based experience at an affordable fee that won’t in any way put a hole in the pocket of our clients.
We will offer a complete range of IT consulting services to our local, state, national, and multi-national clients and we will ensure that we work hard to provide the required services and business solutions needed by our clients to accomplish their business goals and objectives.
At Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP our client’s best interest will always come first, and everything we do will be guided by our values and professional ethics. We will ensure that we hold ourselves accountable to the highest standards by meeting our client’s needs precisely and completely.
We will cultivate a working environment that provides a human, sustainable approach to earning a living, and living in our world, for our partners, employees and for our clients.
Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP will at all times demonstrate her commitment to sustainability, both individually and as a firm, by actively participating in our communities and integrating sustainable business practices wherever possible.
We will ensure that we hold ourselves accountable to the highest standards by meeting our client’s needs precisely and completely. We will cultivate a working environment that provides a human, sustainable approach to earning a living, and living in our world, for our partners, employees and for our clients.
Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP is founded by Dr. Rendell Downey and his son Clement Downey. The organization will be managed by Dr. Denzel Graham – Douglas, he graduated from University of California – Berkley (First Degree), Brock School of Business at Stamford University (MBA), and University of Harvard (PhD.).
He has extensive experience in a diverse range of IT consulting, and his IT consulting practice is concentrated in the areas of helping both big corporations and start – ups position their business for growth, sustainability and expansion by leveraging on workable IT solutions.
Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP is going to offer varieties of services within the scope of the IT consulting industry in the United States of America. Our intention of starting our IT consulting firm is to make profits from the industry and we will do all that is permitted by the law in the United States of America to achieve our aim and ambition.
Our business offering are listed below;
Our Business Structure
Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP, is an IT consulting firm that intend starting small in New York City, but hope to grow big in order to compete favorably with leading IT consulting firms in the industry both in the United States and on a global stage.
We are aware of the importance of building a solid business structure that can support the picture of the kind of world class business we want to own. This is why we are committed to only hire the best hands within our area of operations.
At Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP, we will ensure that we hire people that are qualified, hardworking, creative, result driven, customer centric and are ready to work to help us build a prosperous business that will benefit all the stake holders (the owners, workforce, and customers).
As a matter of fact, profit-sharing arrangement will be made available to all our senior management staff and it will be based on their performance for a period of five years or more as agreed by the board of trustees of the company. In view of the above, we have decided to hire qualified and competent hands to occupy the following positions;
Legal Secretary
Business Analyst
Business Developer
Front Desk Officer
Chief Executive Office / Lead Consultant:
Human Resources and Admin Manager
IT Consultant
Client Service Executive
Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP engaged the services of a core professional in the area of business consulting and structuring to assist the firm in building a solid IT consulting firm that can favorably compete in the highly competitive IT consulting industry.
Part of what the team of business consultant did was to work with the management our firm in conducting a SWOT analysis for Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP. Here is a summary from the result of the SWOT analysis that was conducted on behalf of Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP;
Our core strength lies in the power of our team; our workforce. We have a team of creative, result driven and highly proficient IT expert, a team with excellent qualifications and experience various niche areas in the IT Consulting industry and other related industry. Aside from the synergy that exists in our carefully selected IT experts, our services will be measurable, result driven and guided by best practices in the industry.
As a new IT consulting firm in New York City – New York, it might take some time for our organization to break into the market and gain acceptance especially from top profile clients in the already saturated and highly competitive IT Consulting industry; that is perhaps our major weakness.
Another weakness is that we may not have the required cash to pump into promoting our business especially via main stream media (TV, Radio and Newspapers et al) the way we would want to.
No doubt, the opportunities available in the IT consulting industry is massive considering the number of corporate organizations and non – profits organizations who cannot successfully run their businesses without the professional assistance of IT firms. As a standard and world class IT firm, we are ready to take advantage of any opportunity that is available in the industry.
Some of the threats that we are likely going to face as an IT consulting firm operating in the United States are unfavorable government policies, the arrival of a competitor within our location of operations and global economic downturn which usually affects purchasing / spending power. There is hardly anything we could do as regards these threats other than to be optimistic that things will continue to work for our good.
Quite a number of distinct trends have emerged in recent time in the IT consulting industry which is why IT consulting firms are positioning their organizations to survive the peaks and troughs of an ailing economy.
As a matter of fact, most of these trends aid IT consulting firms and organizations to become more creative, competitive, efficient, and productive in a global market. Some other trends in the IT consulting industry could be attributed to changing demographics, attitudes and work styles.
No doubt, as the cost of IT consulting services continues to increase and as corporate spending falls, new IT consulting delivery methods will continue to emerge and gain momentum going forward. In addition, the market for IT consulting services has shifted from a sellers’ market to a buyers’ market. A market where IT consultants provide software solutions that will make it easier for their clients to run their businesses.
Lastly, it is now becoming trendy in the IT consulting industry for smaller IT consulting firms to merge with bigger IT consulting firms and for bigger IT consulting firms to acquire smaller IT consulting firms; mergers and acquisitions. Many IT consulting firms all over the United States are coming to the conclusion that the bigger the better for them.
Although Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP will initially serve small to medium sized business, from new ventures to well established businesses, but that does not in any way stop us from growing to be able to compete with the leading IT consulting firms in the United States.
We hope to someday merge or acquire other smaller IT consulting firms and expand our IT consulting services beyond the shores of the United States of America. As a full service business IT consulting firm, Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP have a variety of practice areas to help startups grow.
While we works with a variety of organizations and industries, Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP will also specialize in working with startups, real estate investors, and contractors, manufacturers and distributors, banks, lending and financial institutions.
Our target market cuts across people of different class and people from all walks of life, local and international organizations as well. We are coming into the industry with a business concept that will enable us work with the highly placed people and companies in the country and at the same with the lowly placed people and smaller businesses.
In other words, our target market is the whole of the United States of America and subsequently other parts of the world. Below is a list of the people and organizations that we have specifically design our products and services for;
Our Competitive Advantage
Surviving in the business world as an IT consulting firm requires more than, your expertise, knowing how to conduct your business but also how to network with key people that matters; decision makers that can decide who will get a contract or a business deal.
We are quite aware that to be highly competitive in the IT consulting industry means that you are not only expected to be able to deliver consistent and excellent services, but you must be result driven and able to meet set targets. No one would want to continue to hire your services if don’t always meet up with the target sales the organization intends to generate when they hired you.
Our competitive advantage lies in the power of our team; our workforce. We have a team of creative, result driven and highly proficient IT experts, a team with excellent qualifications and experience various niche areas in the IT Consulting industry and other related industry. Aside from the synergy that exists in our carefully selected IT experts, our services will be measurable, result driven and guided by best practices in the industry.
Lastly, all our employees will be well taken care of, and their welfare package will be among the best within our category (startups IT consulting firms in the United States) in the industry. It will enable them to be more than willing to build the business with us and help deliver our set goals and achieve all our business aims and objectives.
Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP is established with the aim of maximizing profits in the IT Consulting industry and we are going to go all the way to ensure that we do all it takes to attract clients on a regular basis and sign retainer – ship with most of our clients.
Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP will generate income by offering the following IT consulting services to corporate organizations and non – profits organization;
One thing is certain; there would always be corporate organizations, government agencies, non – profits and individuals who would need the services of IT consulting firms to help them improve their business system and processes.
We are well positioned to take on the available market in IT consulting industry and we are quite optimistic that we will meet our set target of generating enough income / profits from the first six month of operations and grow our IT consulting firm to enviable heights.
We have been able to critically examine the IT consulting market space and we have analyzed our chances in the industry and we have been able to come up with the following sales forecast. The sales projection is based on information gathered on the field and some assumptions that are peculiar to similar startups in New York City – New York.
Below is the sales projection for Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP, it is based on the location of our business and of course the wide range of our services and target market;
N.B: This projection is done based on what is obtainable in the industry and with the assumption that there won’t be any major economic meltdown and there won’t be any major competitor offering same IT consulting services as we do within same location. Please note that the above projection might be lower and at the same time it might be higher.
We mindful of the fact that there are stiffer competition amongst IT consulting firms in the United States of America, hence we have been able to hire some of the best business developer to handle our sales and marketing. Our sales and marketing team will be recruited base on their vast experience in the industry and they will be trained on a regular basis so as to be well equipped to meet their targets and the overall goal of the organization.
We will also ensure that our excellent job deliveries speaks for us in the market place; we want to build a standard IT consulting business that will leverage on word of mouth advertisement from satisfied clients (both individuals and organizations).
Our goal is to grow our IT consulting firm to become one of the top 20 IT consulting firms in the United States of America which is why we have mapped out strategy that will help us take advantage of the available market and grow to become a major force to reckon with not only in the United States but in the world stage as well.
Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP is set to make use of the following marketing and sales strategies to attract clients;
We have been able to work with our in house brand and publicity consultants to help us map out publicity and advertising strategies that will help us walk our way into the heart of our target market. We are set to become the number one choice for both corporate clients and individual clients in the whole of the United States and beyond which is why we have made provisions for effective publicity and advertisement of our IT consulting firm.
Below are the platforms we intend to leverage on to promote and advertise Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP;
Hourly billing for IT consulting services is a long – time tradition in the industry. However, for some types of IT consultancy services, flat fees make more sense because they allow clients to better predict consultancy costs. As a result of this, Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP will charge our clients a flat fee for many basic services such as IT consulting and advisory service et al.
At Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP we will keep our fees below the average market rate for all of our clients by keeping our overhead low and by collecting payment in advance. In addition, we will also offer special discounted rates to start – ups, nonprofits, cooperatives, and small social enterprises.
We are aware that there are some clients that would need regular access to IT consultancy and advisory services and assistance, we will offer flat rate for such services that will be tailored to take care of such clients’ needs. So also, there are some one – off jobs or government contracts which are always lucrative, we will ensure that we abide by the pricing model that is expected from contractors or organizations that bid for such contracts.
Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP, our payment policy will be all inclusive because we are quite aware that different people prefer different payment options as it suits them. Here are the payment options that we will make available to our clients;
In view of the above, we have chosen banking platforms that will help us achieve our plans with little or no itches.
In setting up any business, the amount or cost will depend on the approach and scale you want to undertake. If you intend to go big by renting a place, then you would need a good amount of capital as you would need to ensure that your employees are well taken care of, and that your facility is conducive enough for workers to be creative and productive.
This means that the start-up can either be low or high depending on your goals, vision and aspirations for your business. The materials and equipment that will be used are nearly the same cost everywhere, and any difference in prices would be minimal and can be overlooked.
As for the detailed cost analysis for starting an IT consulting firm; it might differ in other countries due to the value of their money. Starting an IT consulting firm can be cost effective; this is so because on the average, you are not expected to acquire expensive machines and equipment.
Basically what you should be concerned about is the amount needed to secure a standard office facility in a good and busy business district, the amount needed to furniture and equip the office, the amount needed to pay bills, promote the business and obtain the appropriate business license and certifications.
Basically, this is the area we are looking towards spending our start – up capital on;
Going by the report from the research and feasibility studies, we will need about $250,000 to set up a medium scale but standard IT consulting firm in the United States of America.
Generating Funding / Startup Capital for Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP
Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP is going to start as a private business that will be solely owned by Dr. Rendell Downey and family. He will be the sole financial of the firm, but may likely welcome partners later which is why he has decided to restrict the sourcing of his start – up capital to 3 major sources.
These are the areas we intend generating our start – up capital;
N.B: We have been able to generate about $100,000 (Personal savings $80,000 and soft loan from family members $20,000) and we are at the final stages of obtaining a loan facility of $150,000 from our bank. All the papers and document has been duly signed and submitted, the loan has been approved and any moment from now our account will be credited.
The future of a business lies in the numbers of loyal customers that they have the capacity and competence of the employees, their investment strategy and the business structure. If all of these factors are missing from a business (company), then it won’t be too long before the business close shop.
One of our major goals of starting Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP is to build a business that will survive off its own cash flow without the need for injecting finance from external sources once the business is officially running.
We know that one of the ways of gaining approval and winning customers over is to offer our IT consulting services and other related IT advisory and consulting services a little bit cheaper than what is obtainable in the market and we are well prepared to survive on lower profit margin for a while.
Tech Solutions® Consulting, LLP will make sure that the right foundation, structures and processes are put in place to ensure that our staff welfare are well taken of. Our company’s corporate culture is designed to drive our business to greater heights and training and re – training of our workforce is at the top burner of our business strategy.
As a matter of fact, profit-sharing arrangement will be made available to all our management staff and it will be based on their performance for a period of three years or more as determined by the board of the organization. We know that if that is put in place, we will be able to successfully hire and retain the best hands we can get in the industry; they will be more committed to help us build the business of our dreams.
Check List / Milestone
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A financial advisor is a catch-all term that includes financial planners and investment advisors. Most online advisors offer investment management — whether it's carried out by a human or a sophisticated computer algorithm — and financial planning services or tools.
The main types of online financial advisors are:
Online financial advisors allow you to ditch the in-person hassle and access expert financial guidance from your phone or home computer. Online financial advisors leverage investment technology and generally low-cost compared to traditional in-person consultants.
Not only does it make investing more affordable for many individuals, but clients can more easily adjust and monitor their investments on their own time. Robo-advisor and hybrid online advisors typically offer online dashboards and tools for convenient managing and monitoring.
For this list, we didn't consider online advisors that match clients and advisors for comprehensive financial planning services, such as Zoe Financial or Facet Wealth . Instead, we focused on tech-driven firms where you can access an automated and personalized portfolio and consult a professional for advice when needed.
Here are our top picks for the best online financial advisors as picked by Business Insider editors in 2024.
SoFi Automated Investing supports individual investment accounts, joint accounts, traditional IRAs, Roth IRAs, SEP IRAs, and 401(k) rollovers.
SoFi Invest is one of the best investment apps and the best investment apps for beginners. It's a great platform for US investors who are looking for an intuitive online trading experience, an open active or automated investing account, and assets like cryptocurrencies.
SoFi Automated Investing offers individual and joint taxable brokerage accounts , traditional IRA, Roth IRA, and SEP IRA.
SoFi stands out for its lack of advisory fees, free one-on-one consultations with CFPs, portfolio diversity, and goal-planning features. SoFi builds a personalized investment portfolio based on your risk tolerance, goals, and time horizon. Additional SoFi membership perks include loan discounts and career counseling.
What to look out for: SoFi doesn't have tax-loss harvesting features and limited portfolio diversity.
SoFi Invest review
Betterment offers individual or joint accounts, IRAs, trust accounts, and cash reserve or checking accounts.
$0 to open, $10 to start investing ($100,000 for premium plan)
$4 per month (or 0.25%/year) for digital plan; 0.40%/ year for premium plan; 1%/year for crypto portfolios
Betterment is best for hands-off investors who want to take advantage of professionally built, personalized ETF and cryptocurrency portfolios. The platform offers CFP access, so it could suit those in search of additional guidance from human advisors.
Betterment Investing offers individual and joint taxable brokerage, traditional IRA, Roth IRA, SEP IRA, inherited IRA, and trust.
What stands out: Betterment is a robust trading platform offering premium plans with unlimited access to CFPs through phone or email. Investors can use the platform's goal-setting feature, ESG investing, automatic rebalancing, and easy-to-use financial dashboard.
What to look out for: Accounts with a $100,000 balance can upgrade to get advisor access, but the annual fee increases from 0.25% (an industry low) to 0.40%
Betterment review
Fund your first taxable investment account with at least $500 in the first 30 days of account opening and earn a $50 bonus.
$1 ($500 for automated investing)
$0 for stock trades. 0.25% for automated investing (0.06% to 0.13% for fund fees)
Wealthfront is one of the best robo-advisor options if you're in search of low-cost automated portfolio management, and one of the best socially responsible investing apps for features like tax-loss harvesting, US direct indexing, and crypto trusts.
Wealthfront Investing offers individual and joint taxable brokerage, traditional IRA, Roth IRA, SEP IRA, trust, and 529 savings plan .
Wealthfront is one of the best online financial advisors for college education savings and cryptocurrency trusts. You can borrow up to 30% of your investment balance at a low interest rate with a portfolio line of credit. Wealthfront also offers personalized recommendations with smart financial planning software.
What to look out for: On-staff financial advisors don't offer personalized advice
Wealthfront review
Ellevest offers two investing portfolios to fit your needs.
$1 - $240 (varies by portfolio)
$54 - $97 annually; $5 or $9/month
Ellevest is one of the best robo-advisors for goal-focused investing. It could be a good fit if you want automated investing and retirement accounts.
Ellevest offers individual taxable brokerage, traditional IRA, Roth IRA, and SEP IRA (all held at Folio Investments).
Ellevest is a comprehensive financial advisor and trading platform built around women's unique needs and challenges. Investors get access to an extensive library of content and advisor-led workshops. Additionally, Ellevest offers a socially responsible investment portfolio and monthly progress reports.
What to look out for: Financial coaching costs extra (but members get 30%- 50% off). Access to retirement account management requires an upgrade.
Ellevest review
Ameriprise Financial Services has been operating for 130 years Ameriprise Financial Services is licensed in all 50 states but only has 10 physical locations throughout the US; it's currently headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota
Varies by account
$500 annual advisory fee, 2% AUM
Ameriprise Financial Services is a brokerage and financial advisory firm best for experienced, passive investors interested in using the site's financial planning services, wealth management tools, and fiduciary advisor access.
Ameriprise Financial Investments offers three managed account options that can be opened as an individual brokerage account, traditional IRAs, Roth IRAs, Simple IRAs, SEP IRAs, 401(k)s, 403(b)s, 529 plans, and Coverdell education savings accounts (CESA).
Ameriprise Financial Investments is one of the largest registered investment advisors in the US and is best for experienced investors looking for advanced charting and investing features. You'll get access to fiduciary financial advisors for consultations or account management.
What to look out for: Ameriprise 's managed account fees are high, and it has a complex fee structure.
Ameriprise Financial Services review
Financial advisors providing financial advice often charge by the hour, typically between $100 to $300. Advisors creating a comprehensive financial plan tend to charge a flat rate between $1,000 and $3,000.
If you hire an advisor to manage your investment portfolio, you'll be charged a percentage of your account balance, typically between 1% and 3% annually. In comparison, that's much higher than the fees that the best robo-advisors charge; you get the added benefit of building a relationship with a trusted source who can adjust your strategy as needed, provide personal recommendations, and answer questions when they arise.
The best online financial advisor for you depends on your goals, risk tolerance, investments, and time horizon. If you're a new investor interested in passive investing, an online robo-advisor is likely a good place to start. On the other hand, if you're looking for professional insight and a customized financial plan, you're better off with access to a human advisor through phone or video calls.
You can also meet with an expert in person for financial guidance. So if you prefer to meet face-to-face, here are some tools to find some in your area:
Online financial advisors are generally trustworthy. The best advisors follow the fiduciary rule, meaning they operate in their clients' best interest and are fee-only. This means client fees are their only compensation, and they don't earn a commission when they invest in certain funds or buy financial products.
Not everyone needs a robo-advisor, but beginners or passive investors looking for a hands-off approach to stock trading may prefer how cost-effective and convenient robo-advisors are. Affordable financial advisors can be hard to come by, so robo-advisors are a great alternative for many people. However, a financial advisor may be better if you need specific advice on your finances or investment strategy or if you're too overwhelmed or confused by your money to plan for retirement or invest in the stock market.
The cost of an online financial advisor varies from platform to platform and advisor to advisor. The cost largely depends on the services, licensing, account balance, and complexity. Robo-advisors typically charge lower fees than human advisors.
We Reviewed the best online financial advisors using Business Insider's methodology for rating investment platforms . We compared a long list of Registered Investment advisors (RIAs), considering fees, investment selection, access, ethics, and customer service. The best online advisors have top marks in all five categories. Investment platforms are given a rating between 0 and 5.
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Writing an IT consulting business plan is a crucial step toward the success of your business. Here are the key steps to consider when writing a business plan: 1. Executive Summary. An executive summary is the first section planned to offer an overview of the entire business plan. However, it is written after the entire business plan is ready ...
IT Consulting Business Plan. Over the past 20+ years, we have helped over 500 entrepreneurs and business owners create business plans to start and grow their IT consulting firms. If you're unfamiliar with creating an IT consulting business plan, you may think creating one will be a time-consuming and frustrating process.
However, in general, you can expect to spend between $10,000 and $50,000 to start a consulting business. Here is a breakdown of some of the typical start-up costs for a consulting business: Business formation: $100 to $1,000. Website and domain name: $100 to $2,500. Marketing and advertising: $500 to $5,000.
Sample Consulting Business Plan Text - This part includes actual text from a real consulting business plan example that you can use as-is or modify to fit your specific needs. Since many consulting businesses are established by solo practitioners, this consulting business plan example will focus on one-person firms. ...
Hiring plan. Mention the number of project managers, analysts, BD, administrative, and support workers needed for your business. Briefly describe the qualifications, skill sets, and experience for these roles and lay your hiring plan to hire employees. Refer to this example of a hiring plan for a consultancy by Upmetrics.
Explore a real-world information technology business plan example and download a free template with this information to start writing your own business plan. ... Consultants: $7,500 : Insurance: $25,000 : Rent: $15,000 : Software & IT (Web) $40,000 : SPI Buyout: $450,000 : Setup New Company/ESOP: $25,000 : Total Start-up Expenses:
An example of a document outlining your strategy for launching or expanding your consulting firm is a Consultant Business Plan Template. The essential elements include a summary of the company, team, sector, rivals, target audience, and an operations and marketing strategy. Use this template - free
Starting a consulting business can be an exciting endeavor. Having a clear roadmap of the steps to start a business will help you stay focused on your goals and get started faster.. 1. Develop A Consulting Business Plan - The first step in starting a business is to create a detailed consulting business plan that outlines all aspects of the venture. This should include potential market size and ...
Plan for Growth. A concrete growth strategy is crucial for the future success of your consulting business. Determine your targeted area of growth, invest in market research, set growth goals, plan your actions, and execute your strategy. This will help you navigate market fluctuations and ensure sustained business growth.
Additional Expenditure (Business cards, Signage, Adverts and Promotions et al) - $2,500. Miscellaneous - $1,000. Going by the report from the research and feasibility studies, we will need about $250,000 to set up a medium scale but standard IT consulting firm in the United States of America.
Consultant Business Plan Template . Used 4,999 times . An example of a document outlining your strategy for launching or expanding your consulting firm is a Consultant Business Plan Template. The essential elements include a summary of the company, team, sector, rivals, target audience, and an operations and marketing strategy.
When using the Business Plan Template for IT Consultants, you'll experience these benefits: Clear communication: Clearly articulate your goals, strategies, and target market to potential investors, partners, and clients. Effective planning: Create a roadmap for your IT consulting business, outlining your financial projections and key milestones.
Step 4: Integrate your ideal schedule into the one-page consulting business plan. With step number 3, you've mapped out what you want to include in your business plan in terms of client type and nature of consulting work. In step number 4, we will build your ideal schedule into the business plan for the next 12 months.
Consulting Business Plan Guide (Plus template!) A comprehensive, step-by-step breakdown of how to create a consulting business plan, why you need one, and how to use a business model canvas. You're in the right place if…. You have an idea for a consulting firm, and you're ready to take the next step You've started a business, and you ...
The following consulting business plan template gives you the key elements to include in a winning business plan. A consultant business plan template can be used to create a business plan for any type of consulting business including but not limited to: business consulting, management consulting, IT consulting, and Human Resources consulting ...
2.1 The Business. Hampton's IT Consulting will be an IT consulting startup owned by Ruby Hampton. The company will provide IT consultation services in and around the Brooklyn area. It will offer a wide variety of services ranging from simple consultations to system development, implementation and management.
Picking a niche and defining your ideal client is the foundation on which you'll build your business — and get clients. You shouldn't move on with your consulting business plan until you've defined your ideal client. Once you've done that, you can move on to the next part: Magnetic Messaging. 3. Magnetic Messaging.
The main goal of this IT consulting business plan template is to help you keep track of all the steps necessary to launch a reliable IT consulting business. These steps consist of: Draft an executive summary. Describe your company. Perform a market analysis. Outline the management and organization.
A business plan has 2 main parts: a financial forecast outlining the funding requirements of your IT services company and the expected growth, profits and cash flows for the next 3 to 5 years; and a written part which gives the reader the information needed to decide if they believe the forecast is achievable.
A consulting business plan is a tool that helps consultants develop their business. HubSpot's Consulting Business Plan Template provides tips that make it easy to learn how to write a consulting business plan with an effective structure: Executive summary; Company description;
Template details. Design style modern. Colors light. Size Letter (8.5 x 11 in) File type PNG, PDF, PowerPoint. Plan premium. Develop a modern consultant business plan and more with this editable Design Consultant Business Plan Template. This plan features icons, photos, and a modern color palette that you can personalize within minutes!
How to start a consulting business. Identify your strengths; Research the market; Set up your business; Choose a pricing strategy; Begin marketing; Grow your client base; Starting your own consulting business can be a lot of work. But it can be easier if you break down the initial process into the following steps: 1. Identify your strengths
A one-page business plan is a simplified version of the larger business plan, and it focuses on the problem your product or service is solving, the solution (your product), and your business model (how you'll make money). A one-page plan is hyper-direct and easy to read, making it an effective tool for businesses of all sizes, at any stage ...
Traditionally, a marketing plan includes the four P's: Product, Price, Place, and Promotion. For an IT business plan, your marketing strategy should include the following: Product: In the product section, you should reiterate the type of IT company that you documented in your company overview.
So, as we know why we need a business plan consultant, let's move ahead to the tips. 8 Tips for choosing the right business plan consultant. Are you too facing the issues in choosing the right business plan consultant? Well, there are many options online and offline for a consultant, so let's see how to choose "the one" for your ...
Tailor-Made Templates: Jumpstart your sales proposal process with business communications templates that are as flexible as they are beautiful. Customize to your heart's content, ensuring every proposal (and proposal template) reflects your unique brand and message.
What are the key elements of an effective project plan? A well-prepared project plan requires several key elements that will outline the project's goals and define the stakeholders' individual roles. Incorporating these key elements into a project plan is essential for effective project management and a higher success rate.
Additional Expenditure (Business cards, Signage, Adverts and Promotions et al) - $2,500. Miscellaneous - $1,000. Going by the report from the research and feasibility studies, we will need about $250,000 to set up a medium scale but standard IT consulting firm in the United States of America.
Online financial advisors leverage investment technology and generally low-cost compared to traditional in-person consultants. ... as picked by Business Insider editors in 2024. ... financial plan ...