Entrepreneurship Management Strategic Planning, Succession Management & Challenges

Strategic Planning Strategic planning encourages focus, focus, that so many of us desperately need. One have to define the target audience and develop a plan to achieve it. If done correctly, then must also defined goals to follow a clear direction to achieve these goals, and a number of measures for how to make progress. These clear way reduces the burden on business, customers and suppliers. Everyone knows what to expect and what is expected of them.

Dimensions For entrepreneurial business, strategic plan has four dimensions: Products and Services Markets Financial Services Structure

Dimensions Products and services include special offers, new models or extensions and new business areas. The markets may be geographic, demographic or may differentiate clients, improve sales and profits. The financial element is often overlooked, even by large organizations. The financial component includes total sales, sales by product line and a total profit margins and product line. Structure is what will make the business look like so that one can achieve goals. Add employees or partners with the skills to fall to reach the goals, the management and reporting structure of them, and the relationships with suppliers and customer base.

Succession Planning Succession planning is a process for identifying and developing internal people with the potential to fill key business leadership positions in the company. Succession planning increases the availability of experienced and capable employees that are prepared to assume these roles as they become available. Taken narrowly, "replacement planning" for key roles is the heart of succession planning. Effective succession or talent-pool management concerns itself with building a series of feeder groups up and down the entire leadership pipeline or progression.

Objectives of succession planning These objectives tend to be core to many or most companies that have well-established practices: Identify those with the potential to assume greater responsibility in the organization Provide critical development experiences to those that can move into key roles Engage the leadership in supporting the development of high-potential leaders Build a data base that can be used to make better staffing decisions for key jobs Improve employee commitment and retention Meet the career development expectations of existing employees Counter the increasing difficulty and costs of recruiting employees externally

Succession Management Fundamental to the succession-management process is an underlying philosophy that argues that top talent in the corporation must be managed for the greater good of the enterprise. Merck and other companies argue that a "talent mindset" must be part of the leadership culture for these practices to be effective. Companies that are well known for their succession planning and executive talent development practices include: GE, Honeywell, IBM, Marriott, Microsoft, Pepsi and Procter & Gamble

Succession mgt. in family business POLITICAL SCENARIO: This is the case of a company linked to a large family, where it is expected that through inheritance, the property was spray quickly, possibly faster than the growth of own business, resulting in a dividend per head lower and lower. Identifying suitable members in the family can incorporate to address and possibly distinguish who may occupy the general direction afterwards. OPENESS: When members of the next generation are numerous and among them is not possible to identify a person who possesses the characteristics necessary to assume leadership positions with expertise in family business. FOREIGN MANAGEMENT: This scenario occurs when family members who control the business are not many, and yet, not having any of its members with a natural profile of leadership succession when they choose to appoint a non-family CEO. NATURAL SUCCESSION: Families seeking to preserve its legacy business are the most favorable conditions in the presence of a stage of natural succession. This is the case of a company controlled by a few families, few heirs who in turn have identified among them a worthy successor, a strong name also is associated with the adequacy enough to drive its growth.

Challenges faced by entrepreneurs A common denominator for all entrepreneurs is the challenge of starting a business, be it through inventing something, looking for a new idea within a business, finding the right opportunity to break into a business or buying into a franchise. All entrepreneurs are also faced with financing their entrepreneurial venture. Even entrepreneurs usually are faced with financial hurdles within corporate rules. Many different skills are involved in operating a business. Operating a business involves employees, marketing, advertising, sales, communications, public relations, legal needs, government regulations, equipping the office, risk management, disaster planning, crisis management, insurance, technology, hardware, software, the internet, and the financial aspects of the company - bookkeeping, managing debt, taxes, etc. Without a strong technical basis, there is no business. Above and beyond this, however, is the conceptual aspect of management: ethics, leadership, growth philosophy, and even the exit strategy of the company.

Challenges faced by entrepreneurs The basic problems that small business entrepreneurs face are: Restriction in range of the products Low reputation Deficiency in capital Inadequate business management An increasing dependence on the local market

Managing challenges Keep all the issues simple and manageable Minimize cost on a regular basis and keep economizing Find ways to improve efficiency constantly Evaluate facts and opportunities objectively and logically Aim at increasing profits Concentrate on every task on hand Don’t become slack in running the business Follow a flat organization by spreading authority Identify and improve on shortcomings Share the benefits of success with clients and customers Measuring progress against individual aspects of the company like a marketing campaign, brand awareness, profits and debts Make a numerical projection that even if approximate can give you a clarity of the business growth

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