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This
information is to be used by semi-finalist teams submitting second-round
entries. Teams preparing first-round Concept Overviews should refer
to the Concept Overview template on the Gigot Center web site for
further guidance.
The
purpose of the Social Venture Plan (also sometimes referred to as
Business Plan) is to demonstrate the details of the proposed venture.
A strong business plan illustrates the current status, the expected
needs and the projected results of the new venture. It demonstrates
the feasibility of the venture, the potential problems that may
arise, the competition's strengths and weaknesses and how and when
the goals of the venture will be accomplished. Submission
requirements at this stage of the competition include a written
business plan and PowerPoint presentation. |
Entry
Submission Guidelines
(Packets due to the Gigot Center
by 5:00pm EST on February 23, 2007) |
Entry
Submission Instructions |
Second
Round submission packets should include the following:
- One cover
sheet that includes team name and team members. (If any team members
have been added since the first round, waivers will need to be
signed and submitted for each additional member to ensure eligibility.)
- Nine hard
copies of the Social Venture Plan PowerPoint presentation, printed
in slide format; eight stapled and one attached only by paper
clip or binder clip
- Nine hard
copies of the Social Venture Plan written document; eight stapled
(or bound if too large to be stapled) and one attached only by
paper clip or binder clip
|
Written
Document Guidelines |
Social
Venture or business plans must be no longer than 25 pages, with
appendices not to exceed 15 pages (40 pages maximum total entry).
Each plan must have a cover sheet, include a table of contents and
provide an executive summary.
The
social venture/business plan outline below should be used for guidance
only. While many of the sections apply to most ventures/businesses,
each plan will differ based on the industry and business model.
Not all sections in the outline will be relevant for every venture/business,
so work with your teammates to determine the areas that are most
relevant to your individual business opportunity.
While
Business Plan Pro (Social Enterprise Edition) has been made available
to competition participants, teams are not required to use this
software in order to be eligible for the competition.
For
a complete list of free online resources that can assist you in
preparing a business plan, please visit the "Entrepreneur Resources"
section of our Gigot web site. |
PowerPoint
Submission Guidelines |
This
year's Notre Dame Social Venture Plan Competition is requiring a
PowerPoint element to accompany the written social venture/business
plan. This document provides a template for creating that presentation.
The format should be very straightforward—no animations or effects
should be included—although graphical elements may be used to the
extent that they illustrate key elements about your idea. The slides
will be distributed to judges on paper. Feel free to use more than
one slide for a given topic, but presentations must be limited to
15 slides. Judges will only receive the first 15 slides.
The format below should be used as an outline for the PowerPoint
submission. It is also a valid example of an outline for your written
social venture/business plan. Ideally preparation of this presentation
will lead to a foundation of your social venture/business plan and
will make that process much easier for you and your team. Please
refer to the submission examples provided in the participant area
of the Gigot Web Site.
|
Slide
|
Key
Questions to Answer |
What
Judges Consider |
“Best”
Answer |
1
|
Social
Venture/Business Concept
(what is your idea?) |
What
is your idea/venture? Give a general non-technical
overview of what the idea/venture is and what it does.
Why should people be interested in this? |
Uniqueness/freshness
of idea. Is it the logical next step to satisfy customer needs
in this market? Does it answer a “real” social need? |
Plausible
new way to address a meaningful market issue / answers a “real”
social need |
2
|
Customer
Problem |
What
are the current unmet needs does your idea/venture address?
What does the customer want and why do they want it? |
Is
the problem real or transitory? |
Significant,
growing problem that customers have shown a willingness to
pay $ to solve |
3
|
Your
Solution |
How
can you fix the problem? What makes this better than
what the customer is doing now? Why has nobody done
this before? |
Is
the proposed solution disruptive or evolutionary? Why
is the time right for this solution now? |
Your
solution solves the problem in a unique and sustainable way.
|
4
|
Target
Customer
(who needs it, and why) |
Who
is the customer that is going to be attracted to your product?
How much does your product/service mean to them? What
is the size of your customer base? |
Potential
size of market being addressed: niche or mass market? Quick
to accept new solutions, or not? Based on what? |
Sizable
market with clear, rational reasons to consider new ways to
solve problems |
5
|
Primary
Competitors |
Discuss
your competition: who is in this market space? What
prevents them from blocking your entry into the market?
Have you considered the competition? If there is no
direct competition, what are target customers doing now in
the absence of your product/service? |
How
is the company positioned vis-à-vis known competition?
How can a startup win in this environment? |
Major
competitors are not focused on this opportunity for obvious
reasons; underserved market demanding a unique solution
|
6
|
Competitive
Advantage |
What
advantages do you have over your competition that will allow
you to succeed? What will prevent the competition from
stepping in and forcing you out of the space? |
How
sustainable is the business? |
A
strong set of advantages that will offer some protection to
this venture / business moving forward |
7
|
Current
Status |
What
stage is your technology and/or venture/business at? What
has been done to this point? Any customers? |
How
far along is this venture/business? Has the venture
taken its first steps? |
A
venture not waiting for approval but has already begun finding
proof of concept |
8
|
Go
to Market Strategy |
Is
there a channel that can allow this venture to get its solution
to target customers profitably? What are the channel's requirements
and is the venture prepared to meet these requirements? |
What
has changed to allow a startup to enter? Does this channel
accept startups? How and why? |
Clear
indicators of past channel acceptance of startups |
9
|
Milestones
|
What
are key milestones that will need to be met for your venture
to be successful? |
What
are the next steps and what will they require? |
Next
steps are thought out and achievable |
10
|
Management
Credentials and Involvement
(why you?) |
What
experience do you have in this area? Why are you interested
in this idea/venture? Is there anything unique about
your involvement in this project or can anyone pull this off?
|
Who
leads? Past experience or plans to supplement with outside
mentors or advisors? |
A
realistic appraisal of team skill set; no oversell—honest
reflection of strengths and weaknesses |
11
|
Business
Model
(how do you make $$ and/or how do you remain viable) |
Financial
benefits, how much are people going to be willing to pay for
this product/service? Do you save them money or create
additional value, or both? How do you capitalize on
this added value? |
Reasonable
ramp-up plans; significant margins that should improve through
scale-up |
Demonstrated
traction; customers have already paid for this solution from
this venture |
12
|
Financials
|
What
do you expect the financial results to be going forward? Estimate
up to 5 years of financial data and provide some basis for
the estimates. |
How
quickly will this venture be profitable/ sustainable?
How valid are the assumptions used to create these numbers?
|
Transparent
numbers that reflect optimism; a quick turnaround from
an investment standpoint |
|
Example
Outline for Business Plan
While this is an example outline provided
by the Gigot Center it is not the only valid outline or the correct
outline for your plan. Feel free to use this in conjunction
with other resources to create the best fit outline for you and
your plan. |
I.
Executive Summary
- Description of the social
venture/business concept and the business objectives
- Mission/Vision
- The opportunity and strategy
- The target market and
projections
- The competitive advantage
- The economics, profitability
and harvest potential
- Management
- The offering
- Risks
|
II.
Social Venture/Business Description
- General description of
the venture
- Industry background
- Landscape fit
- Goals and potential of
the business and milestones
- Uniqueness of the product
or service
- Value proposition
|
III.
Market Analysis
Industry
Description
- Industry
Size
- Industry
status (growing, mature, in decline)
- Growth
potential
- Geographic
locations
- Trends
and entry barriers
- Profit
potential
- Sales
patterns and gross margins
Target
Market
- Primary
target markets
- Secondary
markets
- Demographics
- Customer
needs analysis
Product/Service
Differentiation
- Unique
features
- Potential
for innovation
Competitors
- Direct
and indirect
- Market
share
- Description
- Strengths
and weaknesses
- Emerging
- Substitute
products
Competitive
Advantage
- Proprietary
protection
- Other
competitive advantages
|
IV.
Operational Analysis
Technical
Description of Product/Service
- Uses, design, prototype
- Issues of obsolescence
Distribution
Channels Status of Development and Related Costs
- Current status of development
- Tasks to be completed,
time and cost to complete
- Potential difficulties,
resolution
Government approvals
Manufacturing
or Operating Requirements and Associated Costs
- Manufacturing cycle
- Materials requirements
- Inventory requirements
(also retail/wholesale business)
- Production requirements
(also retail/wholesale or service)
- Labor requirements (all
businesses)
- Maintenance and quality
control requirements (all businesses)
- Financial requirements
(all businesses)
|
V.
Marketing Plan
Pricing
- Venture
versus competitors
- Value
chain
Purpose
of Marketing Plan
- Target
market
- Unique
market niche
- Business
identity
Marketing
Tools
Media
Plan
- Uses and
costs of specific marketing tools
Marketing
Budget
- Individual
costs and total costs as a percentage of sales
Sales
Plan
Services and Warranty Policies |
VI.
Management Segment
- Management team, its background
and its gaps
- Organizational structure
- Legal Structure
- Board of Directors
- Management compensation
and ownership, if pertinent
- Other investors: employment
and other agreements and stock options and bonus plans, if pertinent
- Other shareholders, rights
and regulations, if pertinent
- Personnel plan
|
VII.
Financial Segment
Financial
forecast
- Projected
Profits and Losses
- Projected
Cash Flow
- Break-even
analysis and charts
- Cost controls
- Budgeting
plans
- Actual
income and balance sheets
- Pro forma
balance sheet
- Pro forma
cash flow analysis
- Business
Ratios
- Highlights
- Important
Assumptions
|
VIII.
Critical Risk, Problems, and Assumptions Segment
- Potential problems
- Obstacles and risks
- Alternative courses of
action
|
|
IX.
Harvest Segment
- Transfer of asset, if
applicable
- Continuity of business
strategy
- Identify successor
|
X.
Milestone Schedule Segment
- Timing
and objectives
- Deadlines
and milestones
- Relationship
of events
|
XI.
Proposed Company Offering, if applicable
- Desired Financing
- Offering
- Capitalization
- Use of Funds
- Investors Returns
|
XII.
Appendix or Bibliography |
|
This
structure was developed from with the following resources:
- Entrepreneurship: A Contemporary
Approach, by Donald Kuratko and Richard Hodgetts (the fifth edition)
- Hurdle: The Book on Business
Planning, by Tim Berry (1999. Page 162)
- New Venture Creation,
by Jeffrey Timmons (Irwin, 1994. Page 420)
|