business planning for the future
DESCRIPTION
TRANSCRIPT
Business Planning for the Future
Kolette Taber
Canadian Life & Health Insurance Association
Rebecca Jones
Dysart & Jones Associates
SLA June 2000
Approach
• Integrate models, techniques & application• Describe the theory as a case study
• Provide business planning outline• Describe basic templates for you to consider
Business Planning is BIG
• Myriad of courses, contests, outlines, models
• Critical for funding & support
• Basic premise, without being trite:– B - Business– I - investors’ interest– G - growth
Best article you can read
• “How to Write a Great Business Plan,” Harvard Business Review, July-August, 1997, pp. 98+
• Entrepreneurial mindset
– Context*
– Opportunity*– People– Risk & Reward
Purpose of a Business Plan
• The acid test– Should this business or venture exist?– Is there a future for it? A market? Is this
market growing? – Does it have viable strategies?– Do the people involved know
what they are doing?Set the Context
Clarify the Opportunity
Context
• Essentially, this is your homework, your background research
Context: Scans & Swots
• Scan the horizon– environment in which you operate– trends
• regulatory, industrial, suppliers, competitors• list competitors & suppliers by name
– size, market share, growth, track records, potential
– what are THEIR directions? THEIR learnings?
Context: Scans & Swots
• SWOT - no matter how it hurts– how do you compare with suppliers & competitors?– How are you perceived as a information solution by
your market, both current & potential client groups?– What’s your market size? Market share?– What are your internal capabilities?– What’s your track record with your stakeholders?
Strengths
Weaknesses
Opportunities
Threats
Internal & External
Opportunity• Purpose:
– Why should your business exist?
• Direction:– Where is it headed?
• Market:– Who is its market?
• Portfolio of Services & Products:– What does it offer this market?
• Capabilities:– How will it deliver these?
Opportunity: Purpose
• Mission, mandate, role, schmole– what business are you in?– what will be missing if this business does
not exist?– what gap are you filling?
Use the approach that fits
your culture
Opportunity: Direction
• Vision
• “By 2002 we will be ….”
The Preferred Future
Opportunity: Direction
– Long-term strategies, Imperatives, Priorities• short-term, near-term, annual strategies,
objectives, goals, targets– “To get there, we’ll be concentrating on:”
• 1• 2• 3
– “This year, we will:”• x,y,z
Opportunity: Market
• Begin to address their “oh yeah’s?”
• Describe distinct primary & secondary target markets– client groups
Opportunity: Offerings
• Products & Services– list clearly & succinctly– show where these fit on the target
segments’ radar screen– why are these offerings compelling for
these client groups? Why will they purchase these, over others?
Capabilities
• Resources required to produce & deliver products & services to those client groups & meet specific strategies– Finances - revenue, expenses, cash flow– Personpower – Capital– Marketing– Customer support & retention
What’s lurking in their minds?“I just don’t think the dogs will eat the dog
food.”• The back up comes up front
– context setting– primary market research– where DO you fit
in your clients’ range of information solutions?
– what ARE your entry barriers?
Size your universeSegment
Target
The Plan: Sample #1
• Summary
• Purpose & Strategies
• Client Groups
• Portfolio of Services
• Budget: Capital & Operating
• Personpower
• Appendices
The Plan: Sample #2
• Summary
• The Business: Background
• Management
• Products & Services
• Market
• Production & Supply
• Financial Performance
The Case Study
CLHIA
Opportunity
• Mission– focal point for information management in
CLHIA
• Vision– by 2002 to be heralded as an example of
excellence in information management within insurance industry
The planning tools
– CLHIA’s annual strategic review• identified key issues
– convergence, federal and provincial legislative reviews, M & A, demutualization and Y2K
• organizational structure• strategic priorities• financial plan
– Consultants’ report• highlighted strengths/weaknesses• recommendations
– mission– direction– strategic priorities (5)
Where do I start?
• Previous priorities – classification, file maintenance, purchasing, daily 9AM news
Gathering facts
• Industry Environment
– internal sources• strategic plan, briefing books,
correspondence,newsletters, circulars etc
– external sources• reports, government submissions, industry
intelligence
Gathering information
• RIL products/services– RIL procedures manual, staff interviews,
classification schedule, Inmagic textbases, accounts payable, vendors
• Identifying clients– gathered intermittent statistics– reviewed acquisitions– library & file collections– Dysart & Jones report
Gathering information • Competition/duplication
– Lawyer’s providing reference assistance, media relations distributing news releases, multiple copies in multiple locations
– personal observation, files, meetings, vendors
• Clients’ perception– initial information from focus groups– informal feedback from clients, insurance
librarians
Keeping up with the Jones
• Discussion lists • Literature• Conference attendance• Networking with peers• Meeting with vendors
– Particularly providers of electronic media monitoring and legal sources
At the end of the day…
• Still didn’t know how much money was being spent on information/information management
• How much duplication of effort
• Lacked meaningful statistics
Expanding the scope
• Developed capture mechanisms– purchased integrated library system– Excel worksheets – zero-based budgeting– reference activity database– GL reports
• Client perceptions – analysis of reference requests– staff performance review by management
committee– information audit
Success dependent upon
• Working within existing culture • Establishing immediate credibility
– “Since you arrived there hasn’t been one reference request unanswered”
• Employing technology to greatest effect– information management, performance
measurement, research– develop rapport with IT– eliminating / outsourcing low value tasks
Tackling the priorities
• Knowledgeable staff– Information Analyst– Part time clerical support
• Industry intelligence– build upon popular 9AM news – seek
one/two provider solutions
• Relocation = opportunity– profile/weeding/integration/migration
What does the Plan look like
• Annual planning cycle– budget guidelines (December)– CLHIA strategic review (January)– RIL strategic plan /budget (February)
• brag sheet
• review/revise strategic initiatives
• introduce new initiatives
– staff performance reviews (March)• tie individual accomplishments to corporate goals
• feedback from senior management
– mid-year financial forecast (September)
What does the Plan look like?
• Ongoing– leveraging access to internal knowledge to continually
enhance, adjust media monitoring activities; proactive approach
– collect information on pricing, relevant products & services – quarterly analysis of circulation & reference activities– quarterly dialogue with clients re serial renewals –
opportunity to discuss alternate delivery mechanisms – get feedback on service delivery/collection development
– revisit progress on 5 priorities quarterly
What’s changed
• Priorities– Perception of RIL changed from file room to information
provider – more research & analysis– Internet education– Focus on member services
• 25% of research requests • Committee participation
• Internet – members only site
– research tool /access point for information– greater acceptance of electronic information delivery
Contact us
• Rebecca Jones– www.dysartjones.com– [email protected]– 905/731-5836
• Kolette Taber– [email protected]– 416/359-2007