There are two types of 'business plan' ― "Internal Business Plan" and "External Business Plan." Get them confused and you will suffer frustration.

I'll briefly describe the purpose of each. As I do, I suggest you select the one that best meets your need. It could be you need a combination of both.

Let's start with the Internal Business Plan:

The purpose of an Internal Business Plan is to get you (and your team) clear on WHAT your business or organisation seeks to achieve ― and HOW you will go about achieving it.

Clear organised thinking for business success is another way of putting it.

“It’s the plan that we use to get our act together” is the way one of my client describes it.

Another client puts it this way, "we use an internal business plan to get our ducks in a row."

The visual to your right illustrates the typical business functions that an Internal Business Plan would address.

On the next page I will outline the purpose of the External Business Plan.