reasons for updating a business plan

Sample Plans
WHY UPMETRICS?

Upmetrics AI Assistant: Simplifying Business Planning through AI-Powered Insights. Learn How

400+ Sample Business Plans

Customers Success Stories

Business Plan Course

Strategic Canvas Templates

E-books, Guides & More

Business consultants

Entrepreneurs and Small Business

Accelerators and Incubators

Educators & Business Schools

Students & Scholars

AI Business Plan Generator

Financial Forecasting

AI Assistance

Ai pitch deck generator

Stratrgic Planning

See How Upmetrics Works →

Small Business Tools

Entrepreneurs & Small Business

Accelerators & Incubators

Business Consultants & Advisors

Strategic Planning

Why You Should Keep Updating Your Business Plan?

Free Business Plan Template

Sudeshna Ray

December 21, 2023

When I first started my business, the art of planning wasn’t something I was highly concerned about. It was always about quality control of products, marketing, and a hundred other things but not planning. But, as I gained a foothold in my business venture, it was pretty clear – along with detailed analysis and implementations at the beginning, it is also essential to accommodate the growing needs of the business.

Understanding Business Plan Document

A business plan is a document that will contain details about your analysis, strategies, business goals, etc. However, professional business plans cannot be kept static. Instead, they should be dynamic documents with factors that change periodically. Adapting to these dynamic changes equates with regular business plan updates. This can be a critical factor in raising capital as well as executing the opportunities at hand.

Statistically, 90 percent of start-ups are destined to fail within a few years of their formation. While a lot of these failures might be due to other problems, a major role is played by a redundant business plan.

Something relevant two years ago might not necessarily be the same today. This is what makes updating business plans critically crucial for driving long-term growth.

Why Update Regularly?

The first question that arises is why specific updates need to be made in a well-formulated business plan . Is it not possible to have a plan that remains relevant for a longer duration?

Moreover, some might wonder if changing the plan structure halfway could have a negative impact. These are all valid questions that might arise while managing any new business or start-up.

There are several pivotal benefits of iterative updates to a prospective business that helps it grow.

1. Keeping up with the Demands of the Customer Base

The first and most obvious reason is to keep up with the needs of your customers. A business’s focal driving factor is an increase in demand. If you aim at creating what is in demand, a natural consumption process will be initiated.

Many businesses make the blunder of never altering products that – worked once. It is natural to justify – “don’t fix what isn’t broken” . However, in the case of businesses, demands change constantly – whether one likes it or not!

For instance, a brand focussing on selling typewriters and related products might once have had the best sales. The same brand will consequently face typical challenges that any business is prone to.

They might face challenges from a competitor who sells a similar model at a lesser price. This will drastically affect their demand ratio. A constant update in the plan will highlight this issue and measures can be taken to resolve the same.

Over the years, such a typewriter brand might face a lack of demand due to the growth of technology. With more people investing in keyboards and printers, typewriters would be less in demand. At this stage, the brand can update its strategy by expanding to other office products, perhaps even printer ink, to profit from the very cause of its obstacle!

2. Accommodating and Expanding Market Requirements

update market requirements in business plan

There are prominent benefits of updating your business with a market expansion strategy. What does this mean?

With ever-increasing products and services in every domain, expanding your product to a new market can help pump up your sales. If yours is a brand making educational videos, you cater to that market.

You can benefit greatly by either creating a test series or making a robust study material bundle available for sale. Introduce new products and services to increase sales in the existing services by expanding across new areas.

This can only be made possible when your business plan is updated constantly to seek such opportunities.

3. Keeping up with the Competitors

The competitor’s streak in a business is a cut-throat one! You can come up with the best product and rise to fame – only for a similar design to be introduced by a competitor to snatch your glory.

Even when this might not be intentional, with hundreds of products being made in a genre, it is no surprise that some of them will offer close similarities.

Any business with an ardent desire to thrive needs to keep up with its competitors. Updating the plans and strategies helps to analyze the competition and implement new changes that will make the brand stand apart.

Want to Perform Competitive Analysis for Your Business?

Discover your competition’s secrets effortlessly with our user-friendly and Free Competitor Analysis Generator!

4. Making Changing Technologies and Suppliers Inclusive

The same is true for updates on technology and supplies. No one wants to use products or rely on services that use outdated technologies – No matter how good the product!

Just like every buyer wants to keep up with the times – with the latest gadgets, styles, and products; businesses need to keep up with these changing trends.

Especially if your product is in the form of software, regular updates need to be a part of the plan by default!

The constant review of where you’ve been and where you want to be are vital in the deployment of what will ultimately be a successful business venture. — Peter Strauss , founder, The Strauss Law Firm

What to Update in Your Business Plan?

The next thing to talk about is what exactly is to be updated. Is it the strategy that needs a tweak? Or do the actual technical aspects of the business need to be kept a tab on?

The answer to that is – both. No business prospers solely on any one aspect. The demand of the market and customers are equally important as the inclusion of the latest technologies and strategies that suit your business.

Some constant checks need to be kept on integral aspects.

1. Analyze strengths and weaknesses

Start by analyzing your strengths and weaknesses. Updating your business strategy is like updating your closet – decide what you want to keep, what to switch, what is working with people, and what isn’t.

Usually, a SWOT analysis is done to understand these aspects. This helps to pinpoint the strengths – weaknesses – opportunities, and threats to your business.

2. Cater to customer queries and satisfaction

Once a thorough analysis has been done, you will have a clear idea of what your customers tend to like and dislike . The next step is to cater to these queries such that all areas can be fine-tuned for complete customer satisfaction.

Discard ideas that are no longer relevant. This might be in the form of packaging your products or how it is being marketed — Pitch in some ideas that are more likely to stand out to the customers.

3. Analyze a prospective sales forecast

A sales forecast is a vital tool to make any significant business updates. Updating the sales and financial forecast gives a lot of perspectives to understand what returns are likely to be collected on the investments made.

Sometimes making drastic changes to your plans can backfire during implementation. Implementing the updates gradually can help analyze iterations instead of taking the plunge at a go.

4. Incorporate market changes

We have already discussed the importance of market changes. Whether you want to expand across markets or cater to some finer requirements within the concerned market – all these changes can make a significant impact on sales.

The graphs below show the changing trends in the publishing industry.

Images Source – Submittable

The market requirements correspond to some factors which are constantly altered. While other factors might be outdated in decades or years, the market accommodates novel ideas in months. With one new addition that is slightly more convenient, your product or service will be too old within months! Thus, keeping up with the market is of prime importance.

Some Interesting Factors

Before you can draft a business plan, some factors need to be considered. Even though it is advisable to carry out updates along the way, some key elements need to be considered from the get-go!

1. Draft realistic goals

Any plan is made with an ideal “goal” in mind. A lot of rides on how well you draft goals for your business. The factor of realism is a crucial one. A good plan can be followed through – and that is only possible if the goals are realistic in the first place.

Having an unrealistic or ambiguous goal is a fatal flaw for any business to have! Before the structuring of any plan for future updates it, a realistic and clear-cut goal must be established.

2. Demarcate clear-cut designations

At some point in the planning process, different aspects of the business need to be designated to different teams or individuals. This demarcation should be kept in mind while the plan is being structured.

After all, what is the use of making a detailed plan when those required to execute it aren’t kept in the loop? In some cases, their input might be significant in dealing with some practical problems that arise. These issues can be nipped in the bud by ensuring transparent communication before and during the planning.

3. Follow up!

Last but not least, a thorough follow-up at every stage is integral! When a business plan is drafted or updated at any stage, some prompt measures are advisable to follow up with these changes.

This can initiate prompt communication among different teams. Regular reviews, course corrections, and adaptations to the updates are instrumental in reaping the benefits of the iterated updates.

Thus, updating business plans is as significant as having a solid plan in the first place. Keeping up with the trends of the times is your best bet to keep your business afloat. A plan is only significant if it is kept relevant to the growing needs of the market.

Updating your business plans is of great significance to grow and keep being relevant through the years!

Build your Business Plan Faster

with step-by-step Guidance & AI Assistance.

About the Author

Avid writer and content marketer, Sudeshna Ray, has created content for diverse premises including technical niches, business and marketing, finances, creative character sketches, and much more. Engineer-turned-Writer-turned-Marketer, she has explored several aspects of performance, lead generation and establishing a brand presence in the digital domain.

How to Write a Business Plan Complete Guide

Table of Contents in Business Plan – Example, Template

17 Reasons Why do you Need a Business Plan?

Reach your goals with accurate planning.

No Risk – Cancel at Any Time – 15 Day Money Back Guarantee

Popular Templates

Everything that you need to know to start your own business. From business ideas to researching the competition.

Practical and real-world advice on how to run your business — from managing employees to keeping the books.

Our best expert advice on how to grow your business — from attracting new customers to keeping existing customers happy and having the capital to do it.

Entrepreneurs and industry leaders share their best advice on how to take your company to the next level.

Business Ideas
Human Resources
Business Financing
Growth Studio
Ask the Board

Looking for your local chamber?

Interested in partnering with us?

Run » finance, 8 signs it's time to update your business plan.

You should update your business plan more frequently than you might think. Here are eight signs it’s time to update your business plan.

Woman working inside her home at a desk on a laptop.

Updating your business plan ensures that the information is up to date and in line with the changing goals of your organization. Here are eight situations where it’s necessary to update your business plan .

It’s been over a year since you updated it

Your business plan is never finished — you should constantly be reviewing and updating it. How often you update it is up to you, but it’s a good idea to schedule regular periods to review and update your plan.

For instance, you could do a minor review quarterly and then conduct a major review at least once per year. This will give you an opportunity to see what’s changed and if there are any outdated items.

You’ve added new products or services

Your company’s products and services are an integral part of your business plan, so when they change, your business plan should change as well. That's because adding new products or services affects your sales projections and how you manage company resources.

[Read more: How to Communicate a Product Discontinuation to Customers ]

The competition is changing

Paying attention to what your competitors are doing can help you determine when it’s time to shift your own business strategy. For instance, let’s say a competitor has copied your product or service or is undercutting you on price. You should take the time to evaluate their strategy and decide whether you want to do anything in response.

[Read more: 6 Steps to Market Your Business in a Competitive Market ]

The market is changing

Anytime there are changes in the market, you should adjust your business plan accordingly. For instance, businesses that relied on in-store traffic to make sales had to make adjustments during COVID.

Current issues like inflation or fears of a recession could affect a customer’s ability to buy your product or service. Any factors that could negatively affect your revenue warrant reviewing your business plan.

When you started your business, it may have just been you and one or two other employees. If your company has experienced substantial growth since then, it’s time to review your business plan.

You’ve experienced a financial change

It’s a good idea to update your business plan anytime you experience a significant financial change, whether good or bad. For instance, landing a major client is a great problem to have. But serving that client may require more time and resources than your team initially planned for.

Likewise, if a long-term customer cancels a major contract, that will affect your future revenue. Each of these scenarios requires you to revisit your business plan and develop a new strategy.

You’re going through internal changes

Internal changes can require you to update your business plan as well. For instance, let’s say you switch to a new tech platform to make your business more competitive. Or maybe you’ve recently switched vendors to deal with supply chain issues.

Losing a key staff member can also deal a major blow to your business. Perhaps that person had strong relationships with many of your customers, so you need to rethink how your business will operate without them.

[Read more: How to Talk to an Employee About Poor Performance ]

Your company has grown substantially

And when you update your business plan, it’s a good idea to involve several key employees. Getting buy-in from your employees helps ensure the implementation will be successful.

You’re trying to obtain funding

You'll need to provide a detailed business plan if you’re trying to obtain funding from a bank or investor. When an investor looks at your business plan, they should understand what your company does and your future financial projections.

Your business plan should include:

An executive summary.
An explanation of your total available market.
A description of how you plan to use the funding.

This may sound complicated, but it isn’t if you follow a free business plan template .

CO— aims to bring you inspiration from leading respected experts. However, before making any business decision, you should consult a professional who can advise you based on your individual situation.

CO—is committed to helping you start, run and grow your small business. Learn more about the benefits of small business membership in the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, here .

Subscribe to our newsletter, Midnight Oil

Expert business advice, news, and trends, delivered weekly

By signing up you agree to the CO— Privacy Policy. You can opt out anytime.

For more finance tips

What is enterprise resource planning, choosing an enterprise resource planning tool for your small business, 10 benefits of erp systems for small businesses.

By continuing on our website, you agree to our use of cookies for statistical and personalisation purposes. Know More

Welcome to CO—

Designed for business owners, CO— is a site that connects like minds and delivers actionable insights for next-level growth.

U.S. Chamber of Commerce 1615 H Street, NW Washington, DC 20062

Social links

Looking for local chamber, stay in touch.

Why Is it Necessary to Update the Business Plan?

Why is it necessary to update the business plan? Updating your business plan is essential to keep all your information up to date. 3 min read updated on February 01, 2023

Why is it necessary to update the business plan? Updating your business plan is essential to keep all your information up to date. It might need updating to show a change in physical location, alter your business goals, add a new business partner, or similar adjustments.

Reasons to Update Your Business Plan

There are a number of important reasons you may need to update your business plan. Some of these include:

You need to seek financing. A lender will require proof of an updated business plan in order to make their decision on whether or not to approve your loan.
There is stronger or new competition you need to worry about losing customers to.
You are about to start a new financial period. It's best to choose a regular interval, like annually or quarterly. If you are in an industry that changes often, you may want to update your business plan every month.
Your business has undergone a management change.
Your business develops a new technology, product, skill, or service. When major changes like these occur after your initial business plan, it's important to update it.
Your old business plan does not reflect your current state anymore. Perhaps it's not a well-drafted business plan, it is no longer relevant, or things have drastically changed.
Your business has reached a threshold, like reaching a sales goal or employing a certain amount of people.
There has been a significant change in your market . A shift in client tastes, altered regulatory climates, or consolidation trends among customers are some elements that can be the trigger for an updated plan.

Don't make your business plan update a robotic-type task where you simply address any necessary routine changes. Challenge yourself to take a hard look at your plan to understand whether the contents are still applicable or not. Is your new location not performing as well as you anticipated? Are your profit margins higher than expected? Look at different aspects of your business plan and address questions like these — both the positive and negative aspects of your current business situation.

You'll find that in large corporations that have strict planning routines that require regular updates, the managers spend a portion of their time thinking about plan updates or a new business plan altogether. That research then is disseminated to senior managers through the distribution of the new business plan, which keeps them informed. It is also useful information for lower level employees to understand how the business is performing, especially if they are directly judged or compensated based on past performance.

When to Update Your Business Plan

You should update your business plan when:

You have a new location or change your existing one.
You have a new owner or add a new partner .
You have a financial snag like falling revenue, a decline in sales figures, you don't meet your financial projections, or important customers are leaving.
There is competitive disruption, like a technological advancement, that ends up disrupting your business model.
You need to secure financing so investors can see your updated business plan.
You are growing at a fast pace.
Your company's goals are not being met or you are falling behind. You should have SMART goals — Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound.
You are experiencing a pivot in your business.

These are all important events that should trigger you to update your business plan. Situations like a fast-growing business can actually create problems if you don't update your business plan. You could suffer a decline in customer satisfaction or employees may suddenly feel overwhelmed and start making mistakes, miss deadlines, or overlook key quality control elements.

When your business is experiencing competitive disruption, it can cause upheaval in your operations. This is when you need to take a look at your competitors' business and then look at yours to see how you can differentiate yourself. This may call for changes to your product, marketing strategy, or customer service.

When you hit a financial snag, don't wait until the next annual report to address a large financial loss. Reassess your market now and get some customer feedback. Perhaps you need to change how you deliver your product to consumers or alter your brand positioning.

If you need help with updating a business plan, you can post your legal need on UpCounsel's marketplace. UpCounsel only accepts the top 5 percent of lawyers to its site. Lawyers on UpCounsel come from law schools such as Harvard Law and Yale Law and average 14 years of legal experience, including work with or on behalf of companies like Google, Menlo Ventures, and Airbnb.

Hire the top business lawyers and save up to 60% on legal fees

Content Approved by UpCounsel

LLC Business Plan Template
Sample of a Good Business Plan
Service Business Plan
Purpose of Business Plan Sample: Everything You Need To Know
Do I Need a Business Plan
Business Plan for Existing Company
Creating a Business Plan
Business Plan Contents Page
Details of a Business Plan
Business Plan for New Company

Updating Your Business Plan for Improved Success

Related blogs.

Strategies for Identifying Your Target Market
Exploring the Benefits and Risks of Franchising
Funding Your Business Plan: The Different Options
Exploring How New Technologies Are Transforming Businesses
Tips for Managing Cash Flow in Your Business

Introduction

It's important to maintain an active and up-to-date business plan to ensure that your business meets its goals and objectives. An updated plan allows you to take advantage of new opportunities and adjust your strategy to emerging challenges and changes in the market. Understanding when to update your business plan also helps you stay focused and keep your business on track.

Updating your business plan can lead to a variety of benefits, including increased clarity and control over your goals, improved clarity over business decisions and plans, and better pricing and capital use. Here are a few reasons why you should consider updating your business plan:

Reasons for Updating Your Business Plan

Changes in the market
New products or services
Changes in personnel
Rapid growth or contraction
Setting or revising goals

The Benefits of Updating Your Business Plan

Increased Clarity and Control over Business Goals
Improved Clarity over Business Decisions and Plans
Better Pricing and Capital Use
Identifying Opportunities for Investment and Expansion
Creating Transparency for Owners, Investors, and Decision Makers

What is a Business Plan?

A business plan is a written document that outlines a company’s goals and how it plans to achieve them. It serves as a roadmap for setting and achieving objectives over the course of the business, and it serves an important function in gaining the trust of potential investors and partners. A business plan may be updated periodically as the business’s situation changes.

The Components of a Business Plan

A typical business plan includes the following components:

Executive summary
Business overview
Market analysis
Product description
Marketing and sales plan
Operational plan
Management team
Financial plan

How to Write an Effective Business Plan

An effective business plan should provide an overall snapshot of the business, including an explanation of what the business does, how it functions, and what its goals are. It should also include detailed information about the business's financing needs and current financial situation. Additionally, the business plan should detail the organization’s customer segments and its competitors. Finally, the plan should include a timeline for when certain goals are to be achieved and a description of the strategies to be used to reach them.

When to Update Your Business Plan

When running a business, it’s important to stay on top of the latest market trends and changes to ensure your business not only survives, but thrives. As such, it’s essential to know when to update your business plan. Here are a few of the most common scenarios when a business plan should be updated.

Growing Pains

Any successful business will eventually hit the limits of a static business plan's capabilities. Whether it's capital needs that exceed current projections or an inability to take advantage of newfound opportunities, updating your business plan to address new issues is key to long-term success. Having an updated business plan can make all the difference when trying to secure additional funding or materials to facilitate a new project.

Market Changes

Business plans can quickly become outdated when the market changes. As a business's customer base evolves, or as new competitors enter the scene, the target demographics and expected returns of your business plan may be in need of realignment. Most businesses encounter market changes at some point and such changes should be anticipated, planned for, and reflected in all relevant business documents.

The Need to Reallocate Resources

In a competitive market, businesses must always be prepared to quickly respond to changes, and that includes reallocating resources. When changes have a significant potential to impact a business’s bottom line, an updated business plan is essential for ensuring that the best interests of the business are served and that all decisions are grounded in evidence. Having an updated business plan helps keep top management focused on the long-term goals of the business and the best interests of all stakeholders.

What to Include in a Business Plan Update

An assessment of the current market.

When updating your business plan, it's important to assess the current market. This is especially important if the market or industry has undergone significant changes since you last updated your plan. Consider what changes have occurred, such as increased competition, changes in consumer demand, technological advancements, or any other relevant changes that may have had an effect on your business.

Updated Financial Forecasting

When you update your business plan, you should also update your financial forecasts. Throughout the year, revisiting and adjusting your financial forecasts is essential as it will give you a better understanding of your current financial situation and the direction in which your business is heading. Be sure to take into account any changes in the market and in your business that could impact your finances.

Considerations for Growing the Business

When it comes to updating your business plan, it's also important to consider how to grow your business. Consider what new products or services you can launch, any new markets you could enter, any partnerships that could benefit you, and any other opportunities to expand your business. Don't forget to include a timeline for any new ventures and list any resources that you'll need in order to achieve your goals.

Assess the current market
Update financial forecasts
Considerations for growing the business

5. Steps for Executing a Business Plan Update

There are several steps for executing a business plan update, which include gathering your team, analyzing market data, re-evaluating your financial model and adjusting your strategies. Each of these steps is important in order to ensure your business plan is up to date.

A. Gather Your Team

The first step in executing a business plan update is to gather your team. This includes your employees and other stakeholders that are involved in the business. Having a team in place will help you to effectively analyze the data and make decisions.

B. Analyze Market Data

Once your team is assembled, the next step is to analyze market data. This includes collecting data about potential customers, changes in the industry, the performance of competitors, and other relevant information. Gathering this data will allow you to make informed decisions when updating your business plan.

C. Re-evaluate Your Financial Model

Once you have gathered and analyzed your data, it’s time to re-evaluate your financial model. You should make sure that all of your financial projections and assumptions are still valid and up to date. You may need to make adjustments based on changes in the market or shifts in customer behavior.

D. Adjust Your Strategies

The final step in executing an updated business plan is to make adjustments to your strategies. This includes changes to the focus of your marketing efforts, adjustments to your product or service offerings, and any other changes you may need to make in order to stay competitive. This is the most important step in ensuring your business plan is up to date and reflects the current market.

Developing an Action Plan

Creating a business plan is only the first step in becoming a successful entrepreneur. Once the plan has been established, it is essential to follow through on the action items outlined within it. This includes setting short-term and long-term goals, determining roles and responsibilities, and tracking progress.

Creating Short-Term Goals

Short-term goals refer to any tasks that need to be completed within the next few months. These goals are relatively easy to establish, given the information included in the business plan. Short-term goals should be concrete, measurable, and achievable within the designated time frame.

Making Long-Term Plans

Long-term plans are to be established beyond the next few months and typically have a lead time of 1 to 5 years. These goals require more strategic thinking and should not be tackled in haste. Consider the core objectives and plans outlined in the business plan and build a roadmap to get there, with interim milestones in between.

Establishing Roles and Responsibilities

Determining the roles and responsibilities of each team member is a critical component of developing an action plan. Clear expectations help the team stay organized and on track. To ensure the team is capable of making progress, designate realistic and measurable goals that each team member is accountable to.

It is important to review and update your business plan regularly, to ensure it remains relevant and in line with current market trends. By creating an action plan and setting short-term and long-term goals, your business is one step closer to realizing its full potential.

A regularly updated business plan is essential for any successful business. Updates keep businesses on track and ensure they remain competitive in an ever-changing market. Additionally, they provide guidance on how to develop long-term strategies and benchmarks to measure progress.

Updating a business plan can present several challenges. It requires an ongoing evaluation of both internal and external markets to identify opportunities and keep up with industry trends. Additionally, it requires consistent data collection and thorough analysis to support the numbers included in the plan. However, the preparation and execution of regular business plan updates can provide immense benefits, including better understanding of current market conditions and strategic planning opportunities.

The value of a well-prepared and regularly updated business plan cannot be understated. Business plans should be updated at least annually and whenever a significant change in the business occurs. Regular updates serve as important checkpoints for any business and provide a solid foundation for strategies, tactics, and decisionmaking.

Fundrising Ready

MAC & PC Compatible

Immediate Download

The surprising truth about profitability in the appliance store industry: a deep dive into the numbers, why investing in an alcohol treatment center is more profitable than you think, counting the profits: a closer look at the profitability of accounting agencies, the art of boosting profits in your a la carte restaurant: a comprehensive guide, airbnb: unpacking the profitability of one of the world's most successful companies., the untold story of how car washes are making a fortune: discover the profit potential today, pedaling to profit: unveiling the lucrative world of bicycle couriers, thirsty for success discover the untapped profit potential of running a beer bar, the beauty within profits: discovering the lucrative world of beauty salons, unlocking the profit potential: how to make your beach hotel more profitable, leave a comment.

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Please note, comments must be approved before they are published

Home > Blog > Small Business Success > The Importance of Updating Your Business Plan
By Laura Drechsler
Mar 5, 2018
4 mins read

The Importance of Updating Your Business Plan

A business plan is a formal document that guides you through each stage of starting and managing your business. However, some business owners make the mistake of creating a business plan and then never looking at it again. But it is vital to treat it like a living document. Updating your business plan regularly can help provide greater clarity on the different aspects of your business and lead it to further growth.

Business Plans: What They Are and Why They Change

If you don’t already have a business plan in place, you may be falling behind. Business plans serve as a roadmap for everyone involved in a company. This includes employees, investors, and the founders. Even within a smaller business, it can be difficult to keep everyone aligned with the group’s primary goals and their methods used to achieve them. A business plan serves as a reference when this confusion arises.

You also need to establish a plan for how to use it and when to update it. The first version of a business plan will serve as a valuable internal tool. Your business plan should plot a course for the first months of the firm’s life. Like most plans, though, things don’t always turn out the way they’re supposed to. Employees come and go, competitors shift their strategy, and unexpected roadblocks arise. To succeed, a business needs to constantly adapt to these inevitable changes. That means its official business plan must be routinely revised.

Updating Your Business Plan

According to Ernst and Young advisor Jeffrey Tannenbaum, you should be updating your business plan at least once per year. This gives business owners and their teams a chance to evaluate their performance in accordance with their prior year’s goals. Based on your evaluation you can make necessary changes and take advantage of new growth opportunities. That often requires tapping into small business financing to bolster working capital and move forward with new projects.

However, as Tannenbaum and others often warn, this shouldn’t be the only time in a year when business leaders strategize and set objectives. Many companies set monthly and quarterly target goals for revenue, expenses, and other key performance indicators. They also benefit from setting firm deadlines for their goals and constantly monitoring and analyzing their progress. If things start slipping, strategic changes need to be made as soon as possible instead of waiting for the next planning session. Again, a short-term business loan can be the perfect tool to launch new projects without sacrificing daily operations.

Managing Change and Uncertainty

As you continue utilizing and updating your business plan, you might grow frustrated with the process. What’s the point of having a business plan at all if it’s constantly changing, and assumptions rarely prove to be correct?

Tim Berry, a guest writer at Entrepreneur.com, explains this conundrum in brief.

“You have to realize your business plan is wrong,” Berry wrote. “All business plans are wrong. Plans are about the future – and nobody gets the future right very often, so keep the plan fresh and watch closely as reality moves forward.”

Berry’s point is that the content of a business plan isn’t as important as how it’s used in structuring and managing your business and how it’s revised. In the process of updating your business plan, you should examine why certain past projected assumptions were incorrect and adjust future projections accordingly. An updated plan should account for what your business has learned to create a better picture of where it needs to improve.

Managing a business boils down to managing uncertainty. Whether it’s an unexpected opportunity, immediate need for employee growth or an unplanned financial cost, a partnership with a dependable small business lender like QuickBridge helps fill in the gaps. Get in touch today and learn how we are making small business loans better and helping small business owners find certainty in even the most uncertain situations.

You are leaving QuickBridge.com

You are now leaving the Quickbridge website, and are being connected to a third party website. Please note that Quickbridge is not responsible for the information, content, or product(s) found on third party websites.

Return to QuickBridge.com

10 Indications It’s Time to Update Your Strategic Plan – Why, When & How

10 Reasons to Update Your Company's Plan - Why, When & How

If you’re wondering when to update your company’s strategic plan, here are ten indicators it may be time:

Someone wrote “Update Me” in the dust on the printed version of your plan.
You vaguely remember creating your plan about the same time you bought your first fax machine.
When asked if they’ve ever seen your company’s strategic plan, your employees laugh and reply, “Strategic plan? This company has a strategic plan? I don’t believe it!”
You ask eight different employees to identify the top three projects the company is working on and you get eight different answers.
Projects and project budgets drift and are regularly “cannibalized” by new projects.
There are regular turf battles across departments on whose project is more important.
Your company no longer does what your mission statement says you do.
Your current company vision is similar to: As a premier company, we will provide exceptional services so that we may exceed our customers’ expectations.
The economy has changed. Regulations have changed. There are new competitors and new business models challenging your products and services.
Another year has passed.

You probably need to update your strategic plan, right? However, before you dust off your old one, stop and ask yourself a very basic but important question:

“What do I need this plan to do for my company?”

“Do I need an updated plan to share with my bank or an investor to support my request for credit or capital? Do I need an updated plan to reshape the focus and direction of the company given changes in our industry, the economy, or other factors? Do I need an updated plan for my team to use as our roadmap over the next few years? Or, do I need to update my plan because it’s SO out of date!”

Whatever your reason for realizing an update to your strategic plan is in order: Great! However, you need to be clear and honest with yourself and your team going into the planning process. Whatever the reason: to gain financing, or to guide strategic and business operations , if you want your plan to actually be of use to you, you need to be clear in how you intend to use it, and then it needs to become one of your primary management tools that you consider every day – and I do mean every day. It’s not doing you or your company any good if it’s dormant in a computer file. An effective plan takes time, dedicated thought, and coordinated planning to develop. Updating your plan doesn’t have to be painful. However, it needs to be purposeful and then it becomes incredibly useful. First, I’ll share why and when to update your plans and then I’ll share how to update them and manage them.

A strategic plan projects where the organization needs to go or where it wants to go over the next 3-5+ years. An organization’s business operations plan outlines more specifically, what will occur each year of the strategic planning period. These plans are more internally targeted as the audience is more often the board, management team, and employees. Stakeholders and others may also review the plans, but with these types of plans, you’re not focused on “selling” your qualifications to anyone. Again, the purpose of a strategic plan is to clarify where your organization needs to be 3+ years into the future to ensure its viability and success – i.e., your company’s big goal; its vision, and then broadly outline, how you will get there. The business operations plan then details the goals (projects & major initiatives) that need to be accomplished to move your organization toward its vision.

Given the rapid changes in technology, the economy, regulations, etc., my clients are now limiting their strategic plans to roughly only 3+ years out even though they may have a 30-year vision. Business Operations plans serve as a roadmap for management on what needs to happen and when to ensure there is a well-orchestrated coordination among all departments, projects, budgets, and resources to move the organization forward year-by-year. When created effectively, strategic and business operations plans become critical management planning and tracking tools that effective leaders reference regularly.

Now you know when and why you would update your company’s plan. Now you can click here to find out how to update and manage your plan .

Liz supports clients with strategic and succession planning, as well as leadership training and executive coaching. Learn more about me on LinkedIn!

(As printed in the PA Business Woman Magazine MMX)

Liz Weber CMC CSP

Liz Weber coaches, consults, and trains leadership teams. She specializes in strategic and succession planning, and leadership development.

Liz is one of fewer than 100 people in the U.S. to hold both the Certified Management Consultant (CMC) and Certified Speaking Professional (CSP) designations.

Contact Liz’s office at +1.717.597.8890 for more info on how Liz can help you, or click here to have Liz’s office contact you.

Subscribe to Feed

How (and Why) to Continually Update Your Business Plan

“New year, new business plan.” Well, that’s not the exact saying, but in an increasingly competitive business world, it’s a nice catchphrase as we quickly approach the second month of 2020.

Truthfully, you should always update your business plan to reflect your company’s current standing in the marketplace, finances, personnel, technology and more. These things change rapidly in virtually every industry, so it’s vital to stay in tune with what your business is and isn’t doing well.

This time of year offers a natural opportunity to take a look at your business and update your plan accordingly. As we enter a new decade, here are some considerations and tips for refreshing your business plan.

StartupNation exclusive discounts and savings on Dell products and accessories: Learn more here

Analyze your finances.

Your financials play an important role in updating your business plan. Think back to last year: when you began 2019, you likely made financial forecasts for the year. If you managed your business responsibly, you frequently updated those projections based on actual results. The adjustments you made throughout the year should help you to make more accurate, better informed projections for the year ahead.

There are many factors that may affect your financial analysis for the new year:

Missed goals: If you frequently missed goals last year, adjust the goals or timelines to be more realistic in the coming year. Then, pay attention and take note of any underlying problems that may cause you to miss goals. Maybe the goals are too ambitious, or maybe your overhead is too high.
Losing money: Speaking of overhead, if you’re losing money, you need to adjust your financial forecast accordingly and reduce operating costs as much as possible.
New hires: More employees may help you accomplish more, but they will also affect your cash flow, so be sure to adjust expectations.
Technology: If new or emerging tech can help lower your operating costs, assist customers better or reduce the time it takes you to do something, take note.

While these factors may influence your initial projections for the year, you should still visit your plan every month and make adjustments accordingly.

Entrepreneur Tim Berry recommends tracking your financials in three tables : your business plan’s original projections, another with actual results, and a third with the difference between the plan and actuals, called a variance. This way, you can proactively change your business plan and refocus your financial projections based on early year success (or failure).

If scaling your business is a priority this year, you may also want to include a funding section in your business plan. Whether you plan to apply for a business loan or you’re approaching investors, you’ll need cash flow reports, profit and loss reports, budgets and projections on hand and ready to go. All of these documents will be essential to getting that influx of capital. Do not make projections based on that capital before you’ve secured the funding.

Likewise, if your business doesn’t have any credit history, you should open a business credit card and pay off the balance regularly to build strong credit in 2020. That can help when applying for additional funding down the road.

Related: How to Create a Fundable Business Plan

Talk to your customers.

Customers are any business’s lifeblood, and a new year represents an excellent chance to check in with them. Again, you should always be in touch with your customers and actively gathering feedback to improve your product or service, but a new calendar year is a great opportunity to send out a survey or set up some time to speak with your best customers directly on a one-on-one basis.

Whether you failed to retain customers or noticed that some of your biggest customers cut back on their business with you, you need to understand why. A business plan should illustrate how your product or service can satisfy a customer need or solve a customer problem. It should demonstrate how you can drive demand.

A good business plan emphasizes the customer, so you can’t effectively update your business plan without current customer feedback. Check in at the beginning of the year so you’ll know what you can do better.

You should try to identify the following:

Have competitors cut into your market share?
Are customer expectations not being met?
Is your product not satisfying the need it’s supposed to?
Have changes in your field changed how customers want to shop for or use your product?

Customer feedback may profoundly affect your business plan. It will also help you understand how to target and convert potential customers in 2020.

Sign Up: Receive the StartupNation newsletter!

Analyze your market.

As stated before, businesses must constantly adapt to stay relevant. That’s because the market isn’t static. Your competitors change, peoples’ tastes and preferences change, expectations change. You have to be a trendsetter rather than a follower.

As the calendar year changes, perform an audit of your industry and your niche in the marketplace. What are you doing better than anyone else? What should you do better than anyone else that you’re not doing now?

Some things to look at:

Changing competitors: If a major competitor dropped out of the picture, you should adjust your projections accordingly. Likewise, if a new competitor appears, your business plan should reflect the increased competition.
Segmentation: Change the way you perceive the market to get a fresh perspective for a new year. If you normally view your market by product type, try looking at it by channel or potential buyer. Divide by region, disposable income, occupation—new segmentation lets you develop fresh perspectives and, therefore, fresh approaches to the marketplace.
Existing problems: Identify what’s not working in your business. Your updated business plan should comment on those problems and come up with solutions.

Everything changes in business, often at a moment’s notice. New competitors rise, new marketing solutions emerge. Your business plan should reflect changes not just in your own business, but in the market at-large.

New goals, new costs and new competitors can all make 2020 significantly different from 2019. Whether you haven’t updated your business plan in a while or you’re constantly making adjustments, these tips can help you bring a fresh perspective to your plan.

business competition
business plan
financial projections
goal setting
market analysis

Why You Need to Create a Financial Framework for Business Success

How to Start a Loyalty Program in 5 Easy Steps

Level Up Your Digital Skills: Free This Week with Verizon Small Business

Health Insurance Startup Shows Power of Right Niche and Strong Pitch

14 Reasons Why You Need a Business Plan

Female entrepreneur holding a pen and pointing to multiple sticky notes on the wall. Presenting the many ways having a business plan will benefit you as a business owner.

10 min. read

Updated April 10, 2024

There’s no question that starting and running a business is hard work. But it’s also incredibly rewarding. And, one of the most important things you can do to increase your chances of success is to have a business plan.

A business plan is a foundational document that is essential for any company, no matter the size or age. From attracting potential investors to keeping your business on track—a business plan helps you achieve important milestones and grow in the right direction.

A business plan isn’t just a document you put together once when starting your business. It’s a living, breathing guide for existing businesses – one that business owners should revisit and update regularly.

Unfortunately, writing a business plan is often a daunting task for potential entrepreneurs. So, do you really need a business plan? Is it really worth the investment of time and resources? Can’t you just wing it and skip the whole planning process?

Good questions. Here’s every reason why you need a business plan.

1. Business planning is proven to help you grow 30 percent faster

Writing a business plan isn’t about producing a document that accurately predicts the future of your company. The process of writing your plan is what’s important. Writing your plan and reviewing it regularly gives you a better window into what you need to do to achieve your goals and succeed.

You don’t have to just take our word for it. Studies have proven that companies that plan and review their results regularly grow 30 percent faster. Beyond faster growth, research also shows that companies that plan actually perform better. They’re less likely to become one of those woeful failure statistics, or experience cash flow crises that threaten to close them down.

2. Planning is a necessary part of the fundraising process

One of the top reasons to have a business plan is to make it easier to raise money for your business. Without a business plan, it’s difficult to know how much money you need to raise, how you will spend the money once you raise it, and what your budget should be.

Investors want to know that you have a solid plan in place – that your business is headed in the right direction and that there is long-term potential in your venture.

A business plan shows that your business is serious and that there are clearly defined steps on how it aims to become successful. It also demonstrates that you have the necessary competence to make that vision a reality.

Investors, partners, and creditors will want to see detailed financial forecasts for your business that shows how you plan to grow and how you plan on spending their money.

3. Having a business plan minimizes your risk

When you’re just starting out, there’s so much you don’t know—about your customers, your competition, and even about operations.

As a business owner, you signed up for some of that uncertainty when you started your business, but there’s a lot you can do to reduce your risk . Creating and reviewing your business plan regularly is a great way to uncover your weak spots—the flaws, gaps, and assumptions you’ve made—and develop contingency plans.

Your business plan will also help you define budgets and revenue goals. And, if you’re not meeting your goals, you can quickly adjust spending plans and create more realistic budgets to keep your business healthy.

Brought to you by

Create a professional business plan

Using ai and step-by-step instructions.

Secure funding

Validate ideas

Build a strategy

4. Crafts a roadmap to achieve important milestones

A business plan is like a roadmap for your business. It helps you set, track and reach business milestones.

For your plan to function in this way, your business plan should first outline your company’s short- and long-term goals. You can then fill in the specific steps necessary to reach those goals. This ensures that you measure your progress (or lack thereof) and make necessary adjustments along the way to stay on track while avoiding costly detours.

In fact, one of the top reasons why new businesses fail is due to bad business planning. Combine this with inflexibility and you have a recipe for disaster.

And planning is not just for startups. Established businesses benefit greatly from revisiting their business plan. It keeps them on track, even when the global market rapidly shifts as we’ve seen in recent years.

5. A plan helps you figure out if your idea can become a business

To turn your idea into reality, you need to accurately assess the feasibility of your business idea.

You need to verify:

If there is a market for your product or service
Who your target audience is
How you will gain an edge over the current competition
If your business can run profitably

A business plan forces you to take a step back and look at your business objectively, which makes it far easier to make tough decisions down the road. Additionally, a business plan helps you to identify risks and opportunities early on, providing you with the necessary time to come up with strategies to address them properly.

Finally, a business plan helps you work through the nuts and bolts of how your business will work financially and if it can become sustainable over time.

6. You’ll make big spending decisions with confidence

As your business grows, you’ll have to figure out when to hire new employees, when to expand to a new location, or whether you can afford a major purchase.

These are always major spending decisions, and if you’re regularly reviewing the forecasts you mapped out in your business plan, you’re going to have better information to use to make your decisions.

7. You’re more likely to catch critical cash flow challenges early

The other side of those major spending decisions is understanding and monitoring your business’s cash flow. Your cash flow statement is one of the three key financial statements you’ll put together for your business plan. (The other two are your balance sheet and your income statement (P&L).

Reviewing your cash flow statement regularly as part of your regular business plan review will help you see potential cash flow challenges earlier so you can take action to avoid a cash crisis where you can’t pay your bills.

8. Position your brand against the competition

Competitors are one of the factors that you need to take into account when starting a business. Luckily, competitive research is an integral part of writing a business plan. It encourages you to ask questions like:

What is your competition doing well? What are they doing poorly?
What can you do to set yourself apart?
What can you learn from them?
How can you make your business stand out?
What key business areas can you outcompete?
How can you identify your target market?

Finding answers to these questions helps you solidify a strategic market position and identify ways to differentiate yourself. It also proves to potential investors that you’ve done your homework and understand how to compete.

9. Determines financial needs and revenue models

A vital part of starting a business is understanding what your expenses will be and how you will generate revenue to cover those expenses. Creating a business plan helps you do just that while also defining ongoing financial needs to keep in mind.

Without a business model, it’s difficult to know whether your business idea will generate revenue. By detailing how you plan to make money, you can effectively assess the viability and scalability of your business.

Understanding this early on can help you avoid unnecessary risks and start with the confidence that your business is set up to succeed.

10. Helps you think through your marketing strategy

A business plan is a great way to document your marketing plan. This will ensure that all of your marketing activities are aligned with your overall goals. After all, a business can’t grow without customers and you’ll need a strategy for acquiring those customers.

Your business plan should include information about your target market, your marketing strategy, and your marketing budget. Detail things like how you plan to attract and retain customers, acquire new leads, how the digital marketing funnel will work, etc.

Having a documented marketing plan will help you to automate business operations, stay on track and ensure that you’re making the most of your marketing dollars.

11. Clarifies your vision and ensures everyone is on the same page

In order to create a successful business, you need a clear vision and a plan for how you’re going to achieve it. This is all detailed with your mission statement, which defines the purpose of your business, and your personnel plan, which outlines the roles and responsibilities of current and future employees. Together, they establish the long-term vision you have in mind and who will need to be involved to get there.

Additionally, your business plan is a great tool for getting your team in sync. Through consistent plan reviews, you can easily get everyone in your company on the same page and direct your workforce toward tasks that truly move the needle.

12. Future-proof your business

A business plan helps you to evaluate your current situation and make realistic projections for the future.

This is an essential step in growing your business, and it’s one that’s often overlooked. When you have a business plan in place, it’s easier to identify opportunities and make informed decisions based on data.

Therefore, it requires you to outline goals, strategies, and tactics to help the organization stay focused on what’s important.

By regularly revisiting your business plan, especially when the global market changes, you’ll be better equipped to handle whatever challenges come your way, and pivot faster.

You’ll also be in a better position to seize opportunities as they arise.

13. Tracks your progress and measures success

An often overlooked purpose of a business plan is as a tool to define success metrics. A key part of writing your plan involves pulling together a viable financial plan. This includes financial statements such as your profit and loss, cash flow, balance sheet, and sales forecast.

By housing these financial metrics within your business plan, you suddenly have an easy way to relate your strategy to actual performance. You can track progress, measure results, and follow up on how the company is progressing. Without a plan, it’s almost impossible to gauge whether you’re on track or not.

Additionally, by evaluating your successes and failures, you learn what works and what doesn’t and you can make necessary changes to your plan. In short, having a business plan gives you a framework for measuring your success. It also helps with building up a “lessons learned” knowledge database to avoid costly mistakes in the future.

14. Your business plan is an asset if you ever want to sell

Down the road, you might decide that you want to sell your business or position yourself for acquisition. Having a solid business plan is going to help you make the case for a higher valuation. Your business is likely to be worth more to a buyer if it’s easy for them to understand your business model, your target market, and your overall potential to grow and scale.

Free business plan template

Join over 1-million businesses and make planning easy with our simple, modern, investor-approved business plan template.

Download Template

Writing your business plan

By taking the time to create a business plan, you ensure that your business is heading in the right direction and that you have a roadmap to get there. We hope that this post has shown you just how important and valuable a business plan can be. While it may still seem daunting, the benefits far outweigh the time investment and learning curve for writing one.

Luckily, you can write a plan in as little as 30 minutes. And there are plenty of excellent planning tools and business plan templates out there if you’re looking for more step-by-step guidance. Whatever it takes, write your plan and you’ll quickly see how useful it can be.

See why 1.2 million entrepreneurs have written their business plans with LivePlan

Tim Berry is the founder and chairman of Palo Alto Software , a co-founder of Borland International, and a recognized expert in business planning. He has an MBA from Stanford and degrees with honors from the University of Oregon and the University of Notre Dame. Today, Tim dedicates most of his time to blogging, teaching and evangelizing for business planning.

Transform Tax Season into Growth Season. Save 40% on Liveplan now.

Table of Contents

6. You’ll make big spending decisions with confidence
7. You’re more likely to catch critical cash flow challenges early

10 Min. Read

When Should You Write a Business Plan?

6 Min. Read

Business Plan vs Business Model Canvas Explained

Use This Simple Business Plan Outline to Organize Your Plan

12 Min. Read

Do You Need a Business Plan? Scientific Research Says Yes

The Bplans Newsletter

The Bplans Weekly

Subscribe now for weekly advice and free downloadable resources to help start and grow your business.

We care about your privacy. See our privacy policy .

Tax Season Savings

Get 40% off LivePlan

The #1 rated business plan software

Discover the world’s #1 plan building software

Salesforce is closed for new business in your area.

Why Your Business Plan Needs to Be Updated

No change in your company should go forward without a revision to your business plan

Appeared in print as "A Blueprint for Success"
By Joan Koehne
November 2019
Money Manager

Order Digital Reprints

Filed under, sign me up, sign up digital, subscribe to print, interested in business.

Get Business articles, news and videos right in your inbox! Sign up now.

Small businesses are forever evolving to meet the needs of their customer base and remain competitive. Determining the right approach to adapt and grow can be the difference between success and failure.

One helpful tool to help address these changes is a business plan. A business plan is a blueprint that identifies obstacles and opportunities that businesses face. The plan includes carefully researched financial projections, budgets and cost analyses, plus marketing and operational strategies.

Contractors should update their business plan when considering:

Introducing new products or services
Opening a new branch
Bringing in new management
Changing ownership
Expanding a service area
Modifying the company’s vision
Securing a different type of financing

Dave Kaster, principal at Fidelis, has written over a thousand business plans for clients at his business advisory practice in Green Bay, Wisconsin. He’s also helped clients rewrite their business plans to flesh out new ideas and goals for the future.

“I think the biggest reason people want to change their business plan is if it doesn’t reflect reality,” Kaster says. The business plan of a startup becomes outdated as the company hires employees, adds assets and expands services. The plan no longer serves its purpose as a business model and guide. Some situations require a thorough overhaul of a business plan, while other circumstances require just small changes.

“If you’re just switching one loan for another to reset the cash flow, it’s just one change to the financial part.” This process can take place at a single meeting with a banker.

A change of ownership may or may not require a change in the business plan, depending on the individual coming on board.

“If you’re bringing in a new owner and he has worked for you for 15 years and wants to keep everything the same, then that doesn’t change the business plan much,” Kaster says. Bringing in an outsider is a different story.

“A business plan will have to change because you have different philosophies.”

Finances first

When updating a business plan, the first task is to create a financial plan.

“You have to figure that out first because it gives you the range and parameters of everything else,” Kaster says. A financial plan will define your budget, cash flow, sales numbers to meet, etc. You can develop a financial plan with your banker, accountant or financial planner.

“But don’t stop there. Once you figure out where your financial plan is going or how your finances are going to change, then you need to change your business systems to reflect the reality of that.”

For example, a contractor who purchases additional equipment to introduce a new service will need to determine how to achieve a return on the investment. This is where financial projections are helpful. If projections signify the equipment is profitable when used at least 10 hours a week, then business operations need to incorporate these additional 10 hours.

“That 10 hours a week reflects both on labor and sales. You have to change the employee mix and change your marketing process to get those 10 hours,” Kaster says. The domino effect might prompt additional changes, like extending into a new geographical area, complying with a new set of regulations or securing new certifications. An updated business plan can spell out these scenarios and serve as a useful guide.

He advises business owners to use a two-step process to prepare and evaluate financial data in their business plan. First, look at your historical finances.

“Find out exactly, on a percentage basis, what you spent on every part of your budget, how much every new customer is worth to you and how much every new customer costs you.” By looking at averages and thresholds, owners can get a clear picture of the company’s financial health.

Future growth

Second, business owners should make projections. As a starting point, you should calculate your fixed costs, like insurance, loan payments and utilities. These fixed costs aren’t dependent on the amount of business transacted, unlike variable costs that fluctuate with the volume of work performed.

“You have to decide when those variable costs are going to change or when the fixed costs are forced to change,” Kaster says. While this involves some guesswork, some direction can be provided by industry research and collaboration with financial advisors.

Once the financials are updated, it’s time to look ahead five to 10 years and envision how the business should look down the road. This gives you a goal to strive for. Big changes for the company, like opening a new branch or introducing a new product or service, should be carefully researched before jumping in headfirst. It’s important to find out what customers need and want through market research.

“Research online or hire someone to find current trends in the industry. Find out which businesses are doing things successfully — that’s who you want to model.”

Contractors can identify a need for a new product or service through online surveys and comments, feedback from customers, and reviews on the company website. If certain requests or complaints continue to surface, that’s a clear sign to introduce a product or service to address those issues.

When planning for a new product, service or service area, Kaster advises business owners to be aware of the domino effect. One change in the business leads to others. As a company grows, its operations need to grow along with it.

With fewer workers, an owner can get by using QuickBooks, handwritten checks, paper records and calling employees on their personal cellphones. When the workforce expands, it’s best to invest in an accounting program, communications system and other technology upgrades. All of these changes can be spelled out in an updated business plan.

Marketing is another area to revamp in a revised business plan.

“Generic marketing is OK, but once you’re over $2.5 million in sales, you better have a professional marketing program and formalized marketing for the business,” Kaster advises.

Marketing plans should include a description of the following:

Target market: Focus marketing on people most likely to buy a product
Market analysis: Determine the size of the market to ascertain if it can sustain business
Market segmentation: Group customers to understand how they’ll respond to marketing messages
Competition: Evaluate competitors’ strengths and weaknesses.

Kaster says no business plan is complete without an exit plan. Oftentimes a business is passed to a relative or employee, but what happens if this individual is no longer interested or capable of taking charge? An updated business plan should incorporate a new exit plan.

“I can guarantee that if you don’t plan for how to get out, then someone else is going to force you out in some shape or form,” he says.

Follow the vision

One more piece of advice: Follow the plan.

“If the business plan means nothing to the day-to-day running of your business, do you really want to research and change it if you’re not going to use it?” A business plan is only effective if it’s adopted and adhered to over time.

“I’ve seen so many businesses that spend a lot of money, hire a consultant and get a fantastic business plan, and then it just sits on the shelf and gathers dust,” he says.

Lastly, updates to any business plan should align with a company’s vision statement.

“If you have access to a new market, new product and new financing, then you have to test that up against your vision. If your vision changes, too, then you have to change your business plan. That is your single most important reason to exist — your vision statement.”

How to re-evaluate and update your business plan

Share "How to re-evaluate and update your business plan" on Facebook
Share "How to re-evaluate and update your business plan" on X
Share "How to re-evaluate and update your business plan" on LinkedIn
Share "How to re-evaluate and update your business plan" on Pinterest

How often do you go back and update your business plan?

Most, if not all, businesses are encouraged to draft a business plan when they decide to establish a startup.

A business plan acts as the foundation for which a company is built.

When you draft a business plan, you’re creating a document that allows you to evaluate the feasibility of the business from an objective standpoint and establish a common vision for the company as a whole.

Related: The best business plan templates

A look inside traditional business plans and lean startup plans

The plan might be a thick document, by way of a traditional business plan. A traditional business plan is often 30 to 40 pages long. Inside are the details, as much as one can predict, of the next three to five years in business.

Or, you might choose a much more simplified business plan. Some entrepreneurs draft lean startup plans . These plans are often no more than a page long and summarize the bare bones of the business.

Plenty of articles exist with tips for how to draft a business plan. There are even articles that advise how to write and/or design certain portions of a business plan, like a market analysis or tables and graphs for financial projections. Most of these articles tend to end with a disclaimer on how entrepreneurs are always able to go back and revise their business plans.

However, the details on how to do that are a little fuzzy. Where does one begin to update a business plan? Do you update certain sections, or the plan as a whole?

The best way to revise a business plan might be to go back to each section and review it knowing what you know now.

Let’s take a look at how this is done for traditional business plans and lean startup plans.

How to update your business plan — the traditional kind

We thought we’d start first with the longer, slightly more intimidating plan. Traditional business plans contain the following sections:

Executive summary

Business description, concept and strategy, industry analysis, market analysis, organization and management, financial projections.

Financing request (side note: often included when a business seeks funding from investors)

Read on to learn more about updating traditional business plans

An executive summary serves as the business plan synopsis. It gives the reader further insight into who you are, what your business offers or does and its industry, the location of your business, and its start date.

Additionally, this section covers why customers will choose to pick your offerings and how the business will make money.

Updating the business plan summary is fairly painless, especially since this part is only meant to be two pages in length. Revise accordingly if there have been any significant changes within your business.

If you have launched a new product that is a runaway bestseller, include more information about that product and its launch date. Did you relocate to a new city or state? Add that bit of information in too, along with its date.

This section further examines your offerings. It details what makes your products and/or services unique, how they work, and where the idea came from. It also sets a projected timeline for your business goals.

Much like revising the executive summary, you can detail any new, popular offerings in your business here.

Take a moment to review the projected timeline again.

Did you reach all of your goals on time, or find that it took a little longer to get there than anticipated? Make a note of this update in your business plan. Make a note if you have not yet reached any goals, and create a secondary timeline that better suits the needs of the business.

Update Business Plan Writing In Notebook

This section covers your brand’s competition. Review it again. You might find you’ve discovered other similar businesses in your field over time. Add them to this section and detail more about their offerings and company background.

Every business must understand who makes up its target audience.

Demographics are often shifting, so it’s a great idea to go back to this section and see how your audience has changed over time.

Even if your customer base has remained the same, you may want your company on the radar of a new demographic like Generation Z — those born in the mid-1990s and first decade of the 2000s.

The best way to revise this part of a business plan is to add any new sections that cover the target audience(s) you wish to reach next.

Just like you did with previous target markets, have a thorough understanding of the demographic and the manner in which your business will attract, capture and retain a new audience.

Related: Why a target audience matters (and how to find yours)

Who are the staff members currently employed by the business?

This section outlines each member of the organization, detailing their backgrounds and core responsibilities. It’s pretty easy to edit this part of a business plan — you can practically stand up in an office and do it with a head count.

If any members of management have left since you last worked on your business plan, state their final date or year employed with the business. If you have hired new individuals, detail who was hired, their role, and their previous work background before they joined the organization.

There is no need to update this business plan section if everyone maintains the same roles and responsibilities.

Related: Build your team — from hiring the best in-house talent to outsourcing

This might be the most revised portion of any business plan.

The financial projections are where you outline the cash flow of your business.

This section often includes tables that further detail the financial future of the company. These might include but are not limited to a look at projected profits and losses, an expenses budget, sales forecast and break-even analysis.

Try not to get stressed out when re-evaluating financial projections.

It’s perfectly OK for your business to earn its revenue gradually and maintain a steady, growing cash flow rather than realize instant overnight success.

However, if finances look a bit questionable — and you have been in business for a few years now — it might be time to consult with an accountant for professional help. I personally cannot provide financial advice. But you could meet with an accountant who will help you understand where your money is going and where you might cut costs.

Related: 5 key sections to include in your business plan's financial projections

Update Business Plan Couple Holding Piggy Bank

Financing request

A financing request requires little to no revision if you have already received funding from investors . This is, essentially, your request for capital from investors to run the company.

If you have already received it, simply update the section to ensure it accurately reflects where the money was spent and the manner in which it was spent. If not, you might want to review the funding request one more time. Is it enough, or do you need more/less money?

This is basically the kitchen sink of a business plan. A little bit of everything leftover from the business is tossed in here, from letters of incorporation to trademark registrations.

Did you forgot to add in an additional document, like a partnership agreement? Put it here and note in the appendix the date you added this any other miscellaneous paperwork.

How to update your business plan — the lean startup

Now that we’ve tackled the in-depth approach to updating business plans, let’s examine how to make revisions to startup plans. You’ll find the following sections inside a lean startup plan:

Value proposition

Key partnerships, resources, and activities

Customer segments, channels and relationships

Revenue streams.

Let’s take a closer look at each element.

This is a clear, articulate statement that sums up the value your business brings to its respective market. Take a moment to review your value proposition again, and ask these questions.

Has enough time gone by that you found your business has strayed away from its value proposition ?
Are you still on track with the values and beliefs you had from the offset?
Do you find your company has moved in another direction that embraces slightly different sets of values?

Whatever the case, it’s important to make any necessary changes to reflect where you are and where you plan to move forward next.

Key partnerships, resources and activities

Update Business Plan Partners Shaking Hands

Maybe you have all of the same partners who were with you when you started your business. However, it’s much more likely that you have one or two of the same business partners, but have accumulated new ones over time.

This is great news for the business, as it shows signs of innovation and growth.

Be sure that when editing this section, you include the dates and information about any and all current and past partnerships your business has had with other companies. If any specific strategies or activities have been proven to create value with your audience, make a note of that as well.

This is the lean startup plan’s equivalent of a traditional business plan’s market analysis. It identifies who makes up your audience, how you can reach them and the avenues your business will use to build a lasting relationship together.

During your revisions, you might decide to include additional sections on other audiences and demographics you wish to reach. If you have noticed there is a specific channel that has allowed you to best engage with customers, make a note of it.

For example, you might have had success with using platforms like Facebook to engage with customers, provide assistance and create a memorable customer experience. You might make a note of this in your revised business plan, including screenshots of satisfactory exchanges and detailing certain specifics (such as remembering little details about the customer, following their social media accounts, and choosing not to use canned responses when corresponding together to establish better transparency) in your strategies for building great customer relationships.

Editor’s note: If you need extra help building great customer relationships, GoDaddy Social can help! Our social pros will help manage your social channels to engage with your customers.

In a lean startup plan, your revenue streams are basically the ways the business is able to make money.

You won’t need to do much editing if these streams have remained the same. However, if your business has introduced new streams into its revenue, such as subscription fees or advertising, it’s a good idea to include more information.

Which streams did you include? When were they initiated? How successful have they been to date? Do you find there are too many, or too few, revenue streams for your business?

Related: How to create additional revenue streams

Why do I need to update my business plan?

Updating a business plan is not a fast process. It does take a bit of time and energy to complete. I

n some cases, you might find yourself doing some research in order to make the edits. You might not fully remember the work history of a former management member, for example, and need to revisit their resume for that information.

However, it is all time well spent — and actually a great return on investment for your company.

Every document associated with your business, from minutes to annual reports, should be as up-to-date and accurate as possible.

The same goes for a business plan. It might be a little time consuming depending on your business plan’s format, but once you’re done you’ll be excited for what you have left yet to achieve.

You might even find revisiting the plan to be an enjoyable trip down memory lane, as you recall your initial vision for starting a business and marvel at the milestones achieved along the way.

Remember that if you need any extra help, don’t be afraid to ask a legal professional for a bit of added guidance.

Products Used

20 Reasons Why You Need a Business Plan in 2024

Written by Dave Lavinsky

What is the Purpose of a Business Plan?

The purpose of a business plan is to provide a clear roadmap for the company’s future. It outlines the vision, goals, and strategies of the business, guiding entrepreneurs and stakeholders in understanding its operations and objectives. A well-crafted business plan template helps attract investors and funding by showcasing the potential for profitability and growth.

Top 20 Reasons Why you Need a Business Plan

1. to prove that you’re serious about your business.

A formal business plan is necessary to show all interested parties — employees, investors, partners and yourself — that you are committed to building the business. Creating your plan forces you to think through and select the strategies that will propel your growth.

2. To Establish Business Milestones

The business plan should clearly lay out the long-term milestones that are most important to the success of your business. To paraphrase Guy Kawasaki, a milestone is something significant enough to come home and tell your spouse about (without boring him or her to death). Would you tell your spouse that you tweaked the company brochure? Probably not. But you’d certainly share the news that you launched your new website or reached $1M in annual revenues.

3. To Better Understand Your Competition

Creating the business plan forces you to analyze the competition. All companies have competition in the form of either direct or indirect competitors, and it is critical to understand your company’s competitive advantages. And if you don’t currently have competitive advantages, to figure out what you must do to gain them.

Finish Your Business Plan Today!

Quickly & easily complete your business plan: Download Growthink’s Ultimate Business Plan Template and finish your business plan & financial model in hours.

4. To Better Understand Your Customer

Why do they buy when they buy? Why don’t they when they don’t? An in-depth customer analysis is essential to an effective business plan and to a successful business. Understanding your customers will not only allow you to create better products and services for them, but will allow you to more cost-effectively reach them via advertising and promotions.

5. To Enunciate Previously Unstated Assumptions

The process of actually writing the business plan helps to bring previously “hidden” assumptions to the foreground. By writing them down and assessing them, you can test them and analyze their validity. For example, you might have assumed that local retailers would carry your product; in your business plan, you could assess the results of the scenario in which this didn’t occur.

6. To Assess the Feasibility of Your Venture

How good is this opportunity? The business plan process involves researching your target market, as well as the competitive landscape, and serves as a feasibility study for the success of your venture. In some cases, the result of your planning will be to table the venture. And it might be to go forward with a different venture that may have a better chance of success.

7. To Document Your Revenue Model

How exactly will your business make money? This is a critical question to answer in writing, for yourself and your investors. Documenting the revenue model helps to address challenges and assumptions associated with the model. And upon reading your plan, others may suggest additional revenue streams to consider.

8. To Determine Your Financial Needs

Does your business need to raise capital? How much? One of the purposes of a business plan is to help you to determine exactly how much capital you need and what you will use it for. This process is essential for raising capital for business and for effectively employing the capital. It will also enable you to plan ahead, particularly if you need to raise additional funding in the future.

9. To Attract Investors

A formal business plan is the basis for financing proposals. The business plan answers investors’ questions such as: Is there a need for this product/service? What are the financial projections? What is the company’s exit strategy? While investors will generally want to meet you in person before writing you a check, in nearly all cases, they will also thoroughly review your business plan.

10. To Reduce the Risk of Pursuing the Wrong Opportunity

The process of creating the business plan helps to minimize opportunity costs. Writing the business plan helps you assess the attractiveness of this particular opportunity, versus other opportunities. So you make the best decisions.

11. To Force You to Research and Really Know Your Market

What are the most important trends in your industry? What are the greatest threats to your industry? Is the market growing or shrinking? What is the size of the target market for your product/service? Creating the business plan will help you to gain a wider, deeper, and more nuanced understanding of your marketplace. And it will allow you to use this knowledge to make decisions to improve your company’s success.

12. To Attract Employees and a Management Team

To attract and retain top quality talent, a business plan is necessary. The business plan inspires employees and management that the idea is sound and that the business is poised to achieve its strategic goals. Importantly, as you grow your company, your employees and not you will do most of the work. So getting them aligned and motivated will be key to your success.

13. To Plot Your Course and Focus Your Efforts

The business plan provides a roadmap from which to operate, and to look to for direction in times of doubt. Without a business plan, you may shift your short-term strategies constantly without a view to your long-term milestones. You wouldn’t go on a long driving trip without a map; think of your business plan as your map.

14. To attract partners

Partners also want to see a business plan, in order to determine whether it is worth partnering with your business. Establishing partnerships often requires time and capital, and companies will be more likely to partner with your venture if they can read a detailed explanation of your company.

15. To Position Your Brand

Creating the business plan helps to define your company’s role in the marketplace. This definition allows you to succinctly describe the business and position the brand to customers, investors, and partners. With the industry, customer and competitive insight you gain during the business planning process, you can best determine how to position your brand.

16. To Judge the Success of Your Business

A formal business plan allows you to compare actual operational results versus the business plan itself. In this way, it allows you to clearly see whether you have achieved your strategic, financing, and operational goals (and why you have or have not).

17. To Reposition Your Business to Deal with Changing Conditions

For example, during difficult economic conditions, if your current sales and operational models aren’t working, you can rewrite your business plan to define, try, and validate new ideas and strategies.

18. To Document Your Marketing Plan

How are you going to reach your customers? How will you retain them? What is your advertising budget? What price will you charge? A well-documented marketing plan is essential to the growth of a business. And the marketing strategies and tactics you use will evolve each year, so revisiting your marketing plan at least annually is critical.

19. To Understand and Forecast Your Company’s Staffing Needs

After completing your business plan, you will not be surprised when you are suddenly short-handed. Rather, your business plan provides a roadmap for your staffing needs, and thus helps to ensure smoother expansion. Importantly your plan can not only help you understand your staffing needs, but ensure your timing is right as it takes time to recruit and train great employees.

20. To Uncover New Opportunities

Through the process of brainstorming, white-boarding and creative interviewing, you will likely see your business in a different light. As a result, you will often come up with new ideas for marketing your product/service and running your business. It’s coming up with these ideas and executing on them which is often the difference between a business that fails or just survives and one that thrives.

Business Plan FAQs

What is a business plan.

A business plan is a document that details your business concept and strategy for growth.

A business plan helps guide your company's efforts and, if applicable, gives investors and lenders the information they need to decide whether or not to fund your company. A business plan template helps you to most easily complete your plan.

Why Do You Need a Business Plan?

A business plan provides details about your company, competition, customers and industry so that you make the best possible decisions to grow your company.

What is the Importance of a Business Plan?

The 3 most important purposes of a business plan are 1) to create an effective strategy for growth, 2) to determine your future financial needs, and 3) to attract investors (including angel investors and VC funding ) and lenders.

Why is a Business Plan Important to an Entrepreneur?

Business plans help entrepreneurs take their visions and turn them into tangible action plans for success.

Need help with your business plan?

Speak with a professional business plan consultant from our team.
Use our simple business plan template .
Check out our business plan examples .
Or, if you’re creating your own PPM, you can save time and money with Growthink’s private placement memorandum template .
Learn more about us via our Growthink Business Plan Review page

The World’s #1 Business Plan Template

Would you like to know the quickest and easiest way to create a winning business plan?

And how to use it to raise funding, improve your strategy, or both?

Well, we’ve developed the ultimate business plan template to help you do this. Simply click below to learn more.

Israel may have just hit a turning point in its war on Gaza — but not for the reason you think

Mass protests are taking place in Israel, and even its closest global allies are turning critical.
But these events aren't necessarily the most likely to prompt a change in Israel's invasion of Gaza.
Instead, a heated internal feud over the conscription of ultra-Orthodox Jews could prove decisive.

In Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, thousands flooded the streets in the past week in Israel's largest protests since the onset of the Israel-Hamas war six months ago.

While the demonstrations have been rife with calls for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to resign and for a new election, it's not these protests that should concern him most.

Instead, it's demonstrations by Israel's ultra-Orthodox Jews , fearful of mandatory conscription that they have long avoided, who may pose the biggest risk to Netanyahu's already fragile grip on power.

Netanyahu is not a popular figure in Israel.

Critics fault him for failing to secure the release of all hostages taken captive on October 7 and allege he's prolonging the war to keep himself in power .

In a recent poll of Israelis by the Israel Democracy Institute , most respondents (57%) said they thought Netanyahu had performed poorly since the start of the Israel-Hamas conflict.

He's also facing sharp criticism from international allies, with President Joe Biden calling the Israel Defense Forces' recent killing of aid workers in Gaza "unacceptable" and Secretary of State Antony Blinken suggesting that the US's support of Israel may reach its limit. On Friday, the IDF fired two officers involved .

Despite internal discord and international condemnation, Netanyahu has a history of enduring. He survived mass protests last year against his judicial-overhaul plan that seemed to herald his political end.

To prevent his downfall, and continue Israel's course in Gaza, Netanyahu has only one job: keeping his far-right coalition government intact.

Made up of hard-line, religiously conservative, nationalist lawmakers staunchly opposed to a two-state solution, this coalition is unlikely to be swayed by global outrage over Israel's actions in Gaza .

But protests by ultra-Orthodox Jews could spell disaster for him by exposing fractures in the far-right coalition government he has so far been able to maintain.

Watch: Why Israelis are protesting Netanyahu's judicial overhaul plan

Main content

Starting a Business
Growing a Business
Small Business Guide
Business News
Science & Technology
Money & Finance
Subscribers For Subscribers
ELN Write for Entrepreneur
Store Entrepreneur Store
Spotlight Spotlight
United States
Asia Pacific
Middle East
South Africa

12 Reasons You Need a Business Plan In the new book "Write Your Own Business Plan," business expert Eric Butow breaks down how a solid business plan can save your startup during those tough early days.

By Entrepreneur Staff • Sep 19, 2023

Running a business can be unpredictable, which is why having a solid business plan as a foundation is vital to surviving and thriving in the early days of your startup. Eric Butow, CEO of online marketing ROI improvement firm Butow Communications Group, has teamed up with Entrepreneur Media to write the second edition of our best-selling book Write Your Business Plan , providing you with a roadmap for success.

In the following excerpt, Butow explains how a well-thought-out plan can power your startup and help your vision come to life.

Business plans could be considered cheap insurance. Just as many people don't buy fire insurance on their homes and rely on good fortune to protect their investments, many successful business owners do not rely on written business plans but trust their own instincts. However, your business plan is more than insurance. It reflects your ideas, intuitions, instincts, and insights about your business and its future—and provides the cheap insurance of testing them out before you are committed to a course of action. There are so many reasons to create a business plan, and chances are that more than one of the following will apply to your business.

1. A plan helps you set specific objectives for managers.

Good management requires setting specific objectives and then tracking and following up. As your business grows, you want to organize, plan, and communicate your business priorities better to your team and to you. Writing a plan gets everything clear in your head before you talk about it with your team.

2. You can share your strategy, priorities, and plans with your spouse or partner.

People in your personal life intersect with your business life, so shouldn't they know what's supposed to be happening?

Order Write Your Own Business Plan Now and Get 1 Month of Free Access to Business Planning Software Liveplan Premium

Easy step-by-step business plan generator
Built-in financial c alculators
500+ sample plans and templates

3. Use the plan to explain your displacement.

A short definition of displacement is, "Whatever you do is something else you don't do." Your plan will explain why you're doing what you've decided to do in your business.

4. A plan helps you figure out whether or not to rent or buy new space.

Do your growth prospects and plans justify taking on an increased fixed cost of new space?

5. You can explain your strategy for hiring new people.

How will new people help your business grow and prosper? What exactly are they going to do?

6. A plan helps you decide whether or not to bring on new assets.

How many new assets do you need, and will you buy or lease them? Use your business plan to help decide what's going to happen in the long term and how long important purchases, such as computer equipment, will last in your plan.

7. Share your plan with your team.

Explain the business objectives in your plan with your leadership team, employees, and new hires. What's more, make selected portions of your plan part of your new employee training.

8. Share parts of your plan with new allies to bring them aboard.

Use your plan to set targets for new alliances with complementary businesses and also disclose selected portions of your plan with those businesses as you negotiate an alliance.

9. Use your plan when you deal with professionals.

Share selected parts of your plan with your attorneys and accountants, as well as consultants if necessary.

Write Your Own Business Plan is available now at Entrepreneur Bookstore | Barnes & Noble | Amazon

10. Have all the information in your plan when you're ready to sell.

Sell your business when it's time to put it on the market so you can help buyers understand what you have, what it's worth, and why they want it.

11. A plan helps you set the valuation of the business.

Valuation means how much your business is worth, and it applies to formal transactions related to divorce, inheritance, estate planning, and tax issues. Usually, that takes a business plan as well as a professional with experience. The plan tells the valuation expert what your business is doing, when it's doing (or will do) certain things, why those things are being done, how much that work will cost, and the benefits that work will produce.

12. You can use information in the plan when you need cash.

Seek investment for a business no matter what stage of growth the business finds itself in. Investors need to see a business plan before they decide whether or not to invest. They'll expect the plan to cover all the main points.

To dig deeper, buy Write Your Own Business Plan and get 1 month of free access to business planning software Liveplan Premium.

Entrepreneur Staff

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Most Popular Red Arrow

4 strategies to help you attract more local customers to your small business.

Increase your brand's visibility, traffic and sales with these local search marketing tips.

This Once Single Mom Had Negative $1,500 in Her Bank Account Before She Started a Lucrative Side Hustle — and Earned $100,000 Within 1 Year

Dixie Bagley did a friend a favor — and it turned into a high-paying business opportunity.

Prioritizing Your Employees' Well-being Is the Smartest Business Decision You Can Make — Here's How.

Take a look at these strategies for implementing a holistic approach to employee wellness and watch morale, productivity and job satisfaction skyrocket.

This U.S. State Is Trying to Pass a Law That Fines Your Boss for Emailing You After Hours

A "right to disconnect" law, Assembly Bill 2751, was introduced in February by Assemblyman Matt Haney of San Francisco.

Ensure Customer Loyalty By Hyperfocusing on These Customer Needs

Meeting the customer's needs doesn't always mean they'll come back. You have to know what makes them feel successful more than they do.

Serena Williams Launches a New Company That She's Been Working on for 6 Years

The products are packaged in tennis ball green.

Successfully copied link

Russia-Ukraine war latest: Major Russian attack completely destroys power plant; Moscow accuses British special forces of operating in Ukraine

A major Russian attack on energy infrastructure in Ukraine has left 200,000 people without power - and completely destroyed a plant outside Kyiv. Meanwhile, Moscow claims the UK's Special Boat Service is operating in Ukraine and helping troops there.

Thursday 11 April 2024 14:25, UK

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Russia launches major attack on Ukraine's energy infrastructure
Power plant completely destroyed
Moscow accuses British special forces of operating in Ukraine
The situation at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant
'They aren't ready to die' - the smuggler charging thousands to escape army conscription
The big picture : Everything you need to know about the war this week
Your questions answered: Is it too late to save Ukraine?
Live reporting by Emily Mee

As we've just reported, Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) has claimed the UK's Special Boat Service is operating in Ukraine and helping Ukrainian forces carry out attempted operations against Russian troops.

It's not the first time that the topic of British troops on the ground in Ukraine has cropped up.

The UK is a member of NATO, a Western military alliance that operates under the assertion that an attack on any member is an attack on all.

Ukraine is not a member of the alliance, so NATO members have been highly reluctant to be dragged directly into the war.

However, there was controversy last month when a leaked top-secret call between German air force officers suggested there are British soldiers "on the ground" in Ukraine.

The leaked recording was released by Russian media - which the Kremlin said demonstrated the direct involvement of the "collective West" in the war - but there has been little pushback on the call's authenticity.

During the conversation, one officer had said the UK was working with Ukraine on deploying Storm Shadow missiles against targets up to 150 miles behind Russian lines.

"When it comes to mission planning, I know how the English do it, they do it completely in reachback," the officer said.

"They also have a few people on the ground, they do that, the French don't."

Following the leak, former UK junior defence minister Tobias Ellwood said it had been embarrassing for Germany but Russia likely knew about the British presence given the intensity of its espionage activities.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz caused controversy when he appeared to confirm what was discussed in the leaked call.

Mr Scholz had been explaining why he wouldn't deliver Taurus missiles to Ukraine, saying it would require soldiers assisting on the ground and citing the UK and French approach with their own systems.

He said following the UK would make Germany a "participant in the war".

These comments were seen as endangering British military and diplomatic personnel on the ground.

The UK later confirmed the presence of a "small number of personnel" in Ukraine - but it did not say what tasks they were undertaking, beyond that they were helping with medical training.

A spokesperson for Rishi Sunak also said Britain has no plans for a large-scale deployment of troops to Ukraine.

"Beyond the small number of personnel we do have in country supporting the armed forces of Ukraine, we haven't got any plans for large-scale deployment," the spokesman told reporters.

British Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron has repeatedly said he opposes sending Western troops to Ukraine, even for training missions.

He argued placing foreign soldiers in Ukraine would provide targets for Russia.

Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) has claimed the UK's Special Boat Service is operating in Ukraine and helping Ukrainian forces carry out attempted operations against Russian troops.

The FSB, the main successor to the Soviet-era KGB, said it had foiled a plan by British special forces to land Ukrainian sabotage soldiers on the Tendrov Split, a sandbar in the Black Sea.

It said it captured a senior Ukrainian naval special forces soldier, and that the Ukrainian special forces unit was "supervised by a unit of the Special Boat Service (SBS) which indicates the direct involvement of Britain in the conflict".

The SBS is a special forces regiment of the British navy that traces its history to the early days of World War Two.

It has served in some of the biggest conflicts of the past 70 years including the Korean War, Northern Ireland, the Falklands War, Sierra Leone, Afghanistan and Iraq.

A spokesperson for the British defence ministry did not immediately respond.

For context: NATO members, including the UK, have said they have no plans to send ground troops to Ukraine.

This could bring them into direct contact with Russian forces, which the military alliance has been clear it wants to avoid.

Ukraine does not need soldiers from the West but it does need countries to provide it with more ammunition, former president of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko has told Sky News.

He said Russia had "10 times more mobilised manpower than Ukraine" but "this was not a war of manpower but a war of artillery shells, missiles, drones, the military warfare system and many others".

Mr Poroshenko said the West needed to be mobilised in terms of ammunition and weapons.

"This is not only our war, this is your war. Help us to carry on this joint fight," he said.

Asked about what the fighting morale was like currently, he said: "We should motivate our soldiers."

This meant giving them a chance to rotate and making it clear to soldiers that after a certain period of time on the frontline they could be taken off duty for months before going back to fight, he explained.

"The most important thing is we shouldn't fight by soldiers, we should fight by shells and tanks," he went on.

Speaking to the West, he added: "We ask you to compensate the lack of ammunition. We don't need your soldiers, we don't need anything else."

Russian forces outnumber Ukrainian troops up to 10 times in the eastern regions, a Ukrainian official has said.

"The enemy outnumbers us by 7-10 times, we lack manpower," Ukraine's general Yuriy Sodol, who is commanding the troops in Kharkiv, Donetsk and Luhansk regions, told parliament today.

The comments come after Ukraine's parliament passed a bill to overhaul its army mobilisation rules as Kyiv tries to generate fresh manpower to rotate its exhausted troops (see post at 10.18am).

The bill would oblige Ukrainian men between 18 and 60 years of age to update their personal data with the military authorities, allowing draft offices to see more easily who can be called up in any given region.

It must be signed by Volodymyr Zelenskyy before it becomes law.

Donald Trump has said it would be inappropriate for him to visit Ukraine for the time being as he does not hold office, his campaign team has told Reuters news agency.

The former US president is the presumptive Republican nominee - meaning he is almost certainly going to be fighting Joe Biden for the White House in November.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in an interview with Bild this week that he had invited Mr Trump to come to Ukraine to see the situation in his country, and that he had done so publicly and privately.

But the Trump campaign said there had been no "formal outreach" from the Ukrainian president.

"President Trump has said publicly it would not be appropriate for him to go to Ukraine right now since he is not commander in chief," the campaign's email read.

US presidential candidates often travel abroad during their campaigns to establish and improve international connections.

Plus, former vice president Mike Pence and former New Jersey governor Chris Christie had visited Ukraine during their campaigns for the Republican nomination.

Mr Trump himself visited Mexico in 2016 during his first presidential run to meet its then-president Enrique Pena Nieto.

The former US president has said previously he would not commit to providing Ukraine with defence assistance if he won the 2024 election.

The number of people killed in a Russian missile strike in the Odesa region has risen to five.

Russian forces struck the southern region yesterday evening, with four deaths reported at the time.

Among those was a 10-year-old girl.

A man who was injured in the strike died in hospital today, the prosecutor general's office said.

The Kremlin has responded to the announcement of a high-level conference in Switzerland aimed at achieving peace in Ukraine.

Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said any negotiations without Russia were "meaningless".

"President Putin has repeatedly emphasised that we remain open to the negotiation process," Mr Peskov said.

The two-day conference will be held in June.

Russia has already said it will not be taking part.

The two countries have signed a decade-long security agreement which would see annual Latvian military support for Ukraine at 0.25% of GDP.

"Latvia also made a 10-year commitment to assist Ukraine with cyber defence, demining, and unmanned technologies, as well as support for Ukraine's EU and NATO accession," Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on X.

He added: "I am grateful to our friend and partner, Latvia. This is precisely the specificity and predictability that our struggle for freedom and independence requires."

The Ukrainian president is in Lithuania today for a surprise visit, and is also expected to sign a security agreement with Vilnius.

Another two people have been killed in a Russian missile attack on the southern city of Mykolaiv, taking the total number of deaths to four.

Five people have also been injured, Ukrainian officials said.

"The enemy continues ballistic strikes on the south of Ukraine. Insidiously struck Mykolaiv in the middle of the day," southern military command said on Telegram.

Private houses, cars and industrial facilities were damaged, it added.

The midday attack followed Russia's overnight strikes, which also targeted the Mykolaiv region.

The Russian defence ministry has said it hit oil, gas and power facilities in Ukraine with "massive strikes" overnight.

We've been reporting this morning on the aftermath of the attacks, which completely destroyed a power plant outside Kyiv and left 200,000 people in Kharkiv without power.

Moscow said it had used high-precision long-range weapons and drones in the attacks.

"As a result, the work of Ukrainian military industry enterprises was disrupted, the transfer of reserves to combat areas was thwarted, and the supply of fuel to the squads and military units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine was hampered," it said.

Be the first to get Breaking News

Install the Sky News app for free

IMAGES

Creating a Business Plan: Why it Matters and Where to Start
7 Reasons to Hire a Business Plan Writer
The Importance of Updating Your Business Plan
How to Create a Business Plan in 1 Day [Updated 2022]
What Is A Business Plan And 10 Reasons Why You Should Have A Business
11 Important Business Plan Benefits & Purposes

VIDEO

1.2 Why create a business plan?
Day 9 of 30
How to create a Shop in Needly all in one application by updating Business Profile
Add or Update Cancellation or Void Reason
Minimizing Taxes with Estate Planning
How to Change TikTok Username 2024

COMMENTS

Why Should You Keep Updating Your Business Plan
There are several pivotal benefits of iterative updates to a prospective business that helps it grow. 1. Keeping up with the Demands of the Customer Base. The first and most obvious reason is to keep up with the needs of your customers. A business's focal driving factor is an increase in demand.
8 Reasons to Update Your Business Plan Right Now
1. A new financial period is about to begin. You may choose to update your plan annually, quarterly or even monthly if your business is in an industry that changes quickly. 2. You need financing ...
Updating Your Business Plan: A Guide for Growing Businesses
Depending on how quickly your business expands, you may need to update your plan on a monthly basis to account for new employees, markets or new products or services. The following list provides some of the most common reasons why you may need to adjust your business plan during a period of rapid growth: You want to refinance your business.
9 Signs It's Time to Update Your Business Plan
Related: 6 Reasons to Update Your Business Plan. Updating a plan usually is easier than starting from scratch. Instead of trying to figure out what your basic business concept is, you only have to ...
8 Signs It's Time to Update Your Business Plan
It's been over a year since you updated it. Your business plan is never finished — you should constantly be reviewing and updating it. How often you update it is up to you, but it's a good idea to schedule regular periods to review and update your plan. For instance, you could do a minor review quarterly and then conduct a major review at ...
Why Is it Necessary to Update the Business Plan?
Reasons to Update Your Business Plan. There are a number of important reasons you may need to update your business plan. Some of these include: You need to seek financing. A lender will require proof of an updated business plan in order to make their decision on whether or not to approve your loan. There is stronger or new competition you need ...
Updating Your Business Plan
The answer to that question is always. You should be updating your business plan every month, every week and every day; whenever things change, you update your plan. And things always change. You ...
Updating Your Business Plan for Improved Success
Updating your business plan can lead to a variety of benefits, including increased clarity and control over your goals, improved clarity over business decisions and plans, and better pricing and capital use. Here are a few reasons why you should consider updating your business plan: Reasons for Updating Your Business Plan. Changes in the market
10 Reasons to Update Your Business Plan
Joe Albano, PhD. Closing the gap between intention and action. 8y. If any of the 10 conditions you listed exist, your business plan needs more than updating. You do raise an important point. Too ...
The Importance of Updating Your Business Plan
In the process of updating your business plan, you should examine why certain past projected assumptions were incorrect and adjust future projections accordingly. An updated plan should account for what your business has learned to create a better picture of where it needs to improve. Managing a business boils down to managing uncertainty.
10 Indications It's Time to Update Your Strategic Plan
Liz is one of fewer than 100 people in the U.S. to hold both the Certified Management Consultant (CMC) and Certified Speaking Professional (CSP) designations. Contact Liz's office at +1.717.597.8890 for more info on how Liz can help you, or click here to have Liz's office contact you. Whether you're thinking strategic or business, if you're ...
How (and Why) to Continually Update Your Business Plan
Truthfully, you should always update your business plan to reflect your company's current standing in the marketplace, finances, personnel, technology and more. These things change rapidly in virtually every industry, so it's vital to stay in tune with what your business is and isn't doing well. This time of year offers a natural ...
14 Critical Reasons Why You Need a Business Plan
Here's every reason why you need a business plan. 1. Business planning is proven to help you grow 30 percent faster. Writing a business plan isn't about producing a document that accurately predicts the future of your company. The process of writing your plan is what's important. Writing your plan and reviewing it regularly gives you a ...
How to Update Your Business Plan
The Adjustments You Should Make Every 6-12 Months. Any change or anything you learn about your market or your customer is technically a moment in which the business plan could be updated. But you don't want to get bogged down in constantly managing business plan adjustments. Instead, schedule regular updates throughout the year.
What to keep in mind when updating your business plan
Add the business plan update to your to-do list for those days. 2. Include your team in the process. If you have any kind of team for your business, you must include them in this process. They are likely involved with the day-to-day functions of operating your business and can provide key insights into what the future of your company looks like ...
Updating Your Business Plan
Updating the competitive section of the business plan is critical to letting management and investors understand the new landscape and adapt accordingly. Management Team: As companies add management team members, it is important to update the plan with their bios. A fuller management team is a positive sign to investors that the company is ...
6 Reasons to Update Your Business Plan
Read more: 8 Reasons to Update Your Business Plan Right Now. Your customer changes. If your target customer has shifted, you might need to meet a different set of wants and need. If so, you'll ...
5 Reasons to Update Your Business Plan
By revising your business plan, it reflects how your business is doing. Here are five primary reasons why you should update the plan regularly. The shift in Target Audience. If your customer target shifts, you should update your business plan. The document needs to have information on how you'll find new customers and retain them.
Why Your Business Plan Needs to Be Updated
When updating a business plan, the first task is to create a financial plan. ... That is your single most important reason to exist — your vision statement." Popular Stories. April 08, 2024. 10 Steps to Easy Camera Locating April 08, 2024. Get Jetting with Jonesie: Jetting Through Traps and Sinks April 08, 2024. Product News: Milwaukee Tool ...
How to re-evaluate and update your business plan
Updating the business plan summary is fairly painless, especially since this part is only meant to be two pages in length. Revise accordingly if there have been any significant changes within your business. If you have launched a new product that is a runaway bestseller, include more information about that product and its launch date. Did you ...
20 Reasons Why You Need a Business Plan in 2024
Top 20 Reasons Why you Need a Business Plan. 1. To Prove That You're Serious About Your Business. A formal business plan is necessary to show all interested parties — employees, investors, partners and yourself — that you are committed to building the business. Creating your plan forces you to think through and select the strategies that ...
Israel at Turning Point in War on Gaza, but the Reason Is Unexpected
Critics fault him for failing to secure the release of all hostages taken captive on October 7 and allege he's prolonging the war to keep himself in power.. In a recent poll of Israelis by the ...
Will the total solar eclipse disrupt your cell service?
People traveling to see the eclipse should plan accordingly, including downloading maps and directions beforehand to have with them offline, in case of poor connection.
12 Reasons You Need a Business Plan
10. Have all the information in your plan when you're ready to sell. Sell your business when it's time to put it on the market so you can help buyers understand what you have, what it's worth, and ...
Russia-Ukraine war latest: Major Russian attack completely destroys
A major Russian attack on energy infrastructure in Ukraine has left 200,000 people without power - and completely destroyed a plant outside Kyiv. Listen to a podcast on how UK cars are ending up ...

Why You Should Keep Updating Your Business Plan?

Free Business Plan Template

Understanding Business Plan Document

Why Update Regularly?

1. Keeping up with the Demands of the Customer Base

2. Accommodating and Expanding Market Requirements

3. Keeping up with the Competitors

4. Making Changing Technologies and Suppliers Inclusive

What to Update in Your Business Plan?

1. Analyze strengths and weaknesses

2. Cater to customer queries and satisfaction

3. Analyze a prospective sales forecast

4. Incorporate market changes

Some Interesting Factors

1. Draft realistic goals

2. Demarcate clear-cut designations

3. Follow up!

Related Articles

How to Write a Business Plan Complete Guide

Table of Contents in Business Plan – Example, Template

17 Reasons Why do you Need a Business Plan?

Popular Templates

Interested in partnering with us?

It’s been over a year since you updated it

You’ve added new products or services

The competition is changing

The market is changing

You’ve experienced a financial change

You’re going through internal changes

Your company has grown substantially

You’re trying to obtain funding

Subscribe to our newsletter, Midnight Oil

For more finance tips

Welcome to CO—

Social links

Why Is it Necessary to Update the Business Plan?

Reasons to Update Your Business Plan

When to Update Your Business Plan

Updating Your Business Plan for Improved Success

Introduction

Reasons for Updating Your Business Plan

The Benefits of Updating Your Business Plan

What is a Business Plan?

The Components of a Business Plan

How to Write an Effective Business Plan

When to Update Your Business Plan

Growing Pains

Market Changes

The Need to Reallocate Resources

What to Include in a Business Plan Update

Updated Financial Forecasting

Considerations for Growing the Business

5. Steps for Executing a Business Plan Update

A. Gather Your Team

B. Analyze Market Data

C. Re-evaluate Your Financial Model

D. Adjust Your Strategies

Developing an Action Plan

Creating Short-Term Goals

Making Long-Term Plans

Establishing Roles and Responsibilities

Related Articles

The Importance of Updating Your Business Plan

Business Plans: What They Are and Why They Change

Updating Your Business Plan

Managing Change and Uncertainty

10 Indications It’s Time to Update Your Strategic Plan – Why, When & How

“What do I need this plan to do for my company?”

Liz Weber CMC CSP

Subscribe to Feed

You May Also Like:

How (and Why) to Continually Update Your Business Plan

StartupNation exclusive discounts and savings on Dell products and accessories: Learn more here

Related: How to Create a Fundable Business Plan

Sign Up: Receive the StartupNation newsletter!

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Related Posts

Why You Need to Create a Financial Framework for Business Success

How to Start a Loyalty Program in 5 Easy Steps

Level Up Your Digital Skills: Free This Week with Verizon Small Business