The executive section of the business plan should cover at least the following items:
- Summary of the business plan
- Executive team
- Business purpose and vision
Summary of the business plan
Write this section last, after you’ve completed the rest of the business plan. That way you have something to summarize. The summary can be a paragraph or a few paragraphs. Try to keep it to one page or at most two pages.
If you’re not sure what to write in the summary, start by writing one short paragraph for each of the major sections of the plan. For each paragraph, use the following structure: 1) first sentence identifies the section being summarized; 2) one or two sentences, each with a highlight or excerpt from that section; 3) how the plan described in that section will help the business succeed. Once you have something written down, take a break and then edit when you return.
Executive team
The purpose of this section is to convince the reader that your team (or just you) is the right team to start this business and that you can do it. Whether the reader is a new employee, new executive, bank loan officer, investor, or journalist — you need the reader to believe in you, and the first step towards that is for the reader to get to know you. This section can’t do that all by itself but it’s a start.
This section should have a brief profile of each member of your executive team (or just yourself if you’re going solo). For each executive, write their name and position. Then write a short professional introduction and then highlight any aspect of the executive’s experience, knowledge, skills, connections, or aspirations that is important to the business.
A professional introduction is a paragraph that someone would say when introducing that person as a speaker at an event. It can include where they are from, the most significant roles they held, the most significant awards they’ve received, and their professional interests or current focus.
If you have a nice photo of each executive you can include it here. If you include photos, make them consistent in size and layout and also in the content of each photo. Use yearbook-style photos that are shoulders and up with the person facing the camera.
Business purpose and vision
This section helps whoever is reading your business plan get to know you a little more, why you’re starting this business, and why you’re going to make your best effort to succeed. You can write a single line here with your business purpose or you can elaborate. Here is a suggested outline for this section:
First, start with a paragraph for your origin story. What came before you decided to start this business and before you found the business purpose?
Second, write your business purpose. This might be one or two sentences.
Third, write your business vision. If it’s long, condense it to one or two paragraphs.
Third, invite the reader to join you.
Compass
Return to create a business plan.
Continue to Business Plan – Personnel.