Business Start Up Enterprise

Business Start up Enterprise
Question
Answered

Context Brief for Assessment

1. The business plan should be written as if it were to support an application for external funding.  This funding could be from a traditional Bank, Angel investors or a Crowdfunding scenario. (Please note that the current economic climate is making bank funding harder to obtain)
2. The venture is a small business. (A New Enterprise) It needs to be realistic!
3. The business should be based in Edinburgh, area/context/competition/neighbouring businesses. This is in addition to any written analysis of location issues.
4. The format/type of the business is discretionary. Part of the skill and analysis is to identify and develop a clear and opportunistic niche/USP
5. Students (business partners) should imagine themselves in a ‘realistic’ situation where the financial support of an external investor is crucial to the success of the venture.

Assessments Aims and Objectives

– To provide students with an understanding of the role of business plans in both the creation of a new business and business development.
– To enable students to understand the formats and the key requirements of a business plan.
– To enable students to present a plan with a focused objective (in this case financial borrowing) tailored to the requirements of the recipient.
– To allow students to present and defend their business proposal in as realistic a setting as possible.
– Encourage students to fully analyse the market place and develop a potentially viable business idea/proposition.

Learning Outcomes

– Demonstrate the ability to analyse and understand the concepts involved in a business plan.
– Demonstrate the ability to construct the fundamental elements of a business plan including, for instance, a basic cash flow projection (e.g. Monthly cash flow).
– Understand the need to present the plan in an appropriate format with the content directed towards the specific requirements and needs of the recipient.
– Understand the importance of being fully prepared to present and defend the business plan/proposal verbally.