Lynne Franks on how to communicate your vision through your business plan.
Mission statements
Although mission statements setting out the company's values as well as aims weren't an essential part of any of the business plans I came across in my research, when I was forming Globalfusion, I developed mine before I did anything else.
I was full of many different ideas when I decided to start a new business in the United States. Not having a business partner or senior management team to talk things over with at that time, I worked with independent 'creative manager and mentor' Raymond Davi, who gave me some terrific feedback and structure for my vision.
One of the first things that I developed with Ray was getting my mission statement clear, not only to include the big picture of my new business, but to incorporate my values into the basic structure.
I had made various notes before my first session with Ray. By talking them through with him, and using his method of putting all key thoughts onto large poster-size paper with bright-coloured pens, all around the room, I was able to put my statement together in a way that read well and resonated with my inner thoughts.
Write your own
Write down the values you most want present in your SEED enterprise. Using this list, write a paragraph describing how those values fit into the mission for your business. Your mission statement isn't as detailed as an executive summary; rather, it's a brief declaration of your creative concept and vision.
Background, goals, and products
In your business plan you need to write a page on each of the above subjects.
The background of the company should cover when the business was founded, who the directors are, even if you've covered this on other pages, and any other facts which you may think are appropriate.
The goal of your business is basically your vision - do you want to be the biggest and the best at whatever you want to do? Do you intend to be a leading e-commerce company, selling environmentally friendly stationery, or the creator of a mail-order company, selling textiles and jewellery from global artisans? What is your big picture and what are your goals in getting there?
Finally, of course, you need to explain your products or services in a clear understandable way, on their own page. State why they are different from anything else already on the market and how you intend to distribute or retail them.
