Operational Plan

Legal Environment
Describe the following:

• Licensing and bonding requirements
• Permits
• Health, workplace, or environmental regulations
• Special regulations covering your industry or profession
• Zoning or building code requirements
• Insurance coverage
• Trademarks, copyrights, or patents (pending, existing, or purchased)
  

Personnel

• Number of employees
• Type of labor (skilled, unskilled, and professional)
• Where and how will you find the right employees?
• Quality of existing staff
• Pay structure
• Training methods and requirements
• Who does which tasks?
• Do you have schedules and written procedures prepared?
• Have you drafted job descriptions for employees? If not, take time to write some. They really help internal communications with employees.
• For certain functions, will you use contract workers in addition to employees?
  

Inventory

• What kind of inventory will you keep: raw materials, supplies, finished goods?
• Average value in stock (i.e., what is your inventory investment)?
• Rate of turnover and how this compares to the industry averages?
• Seasonal buildups?
• Lead-time for ordering?
  

Suppliers
Identify key suppliers:

• Names and addresses
• Type and amount of inventory furnished
• Credit and delivery policies
• History and reliability
  

Do you have backup suppliers for critical items)?

Can you foresee any shortages or short-term delivery problems?

Will your supply costs be steady or fluctuating? If fluctuating, how would you deal with changing costs?

Credit Policies

• Do you plan to sell on credit?
• Is it really important that your business sell on credit? Is it customary in your industry and expected by your clientele?
• If yes, what policies will be in place for extending credit: who will get credit and how much?
• Whap procedures will be in place for determining creditworthiness of new applicants?
• What type of terms will you offer your customers (how much credit will you extend, when will you require payment)?
• Do you plan to offer prompt payment discounts? (Only offer if it is usual and customary in your industry.)
• Do you know what extending credit costs your business? Have you calculated the costs into your product and services prices?

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