What should be the nature of the relationship between business plan and IS plan?
One of the most common sets of activities in the management is planning. Very simply put, planning is setting the direction for something -- some system -- and then guiding the system to follow the direction. There are many kinds of planning in organizations. Common to these many kinds of planning are various phases of planning and guidelines for carrying them out as effectively as possible.
Before we distinguish the nature of business plan and Information System Plan let us first define its category to understand further its uses and essence.
What is Business Plan?
As I surf the net I found some definitions of business plan and according to wikipedia business plan is a written proposal addressed to potential lenders or investors. Typically, it describes a new business and tells why it is deserving of financial support (Earl C.). The first step beyond coming up with an idea for a business is to try and organize the idea. When organizing the idea the first consideration is the business plan. The business plan is a written organized bound book about your possible business. Before even writing the plan there is a great deal of information that must be gathered. This information will tell the person writing the plan more about the business and also create a good base to writing an industry analysis which will also let that person know how well that particular business is doing in the world.
In addition to that answer.com also provide a definition to business plan which state that business plan is a document that summarizes the operational and financial objectives of a business and contains the detailed plans and budgets showing how the objectives are to be realized.
Because the business plan contains detailed financial projections, forecasts about your business's performance, and a marketing plan, it's an incredibly useful tool for business planning. A document prepared by a company's management, detailing the past, present, and future of the company, usually designed to attract capital investment.
And lastly A business plan is a formal statement of a set of business goals, the reasons why they are believed attainable, and the plan for reaching those goals. It may also contain background information about the organization or team attempting to reach those goals.
Business Importance
The business goals may be defined for for-profit or for non-profit organizations. For-profit business plans typically focus on financial goals, such as profit or creation of wealth. Non-profit and government agency business plans tend to focus on organizational mission which is the basis for their governmental status or their non-profit, tax-exempt status, respectively although non-profits may also focus on optimizing revenue. In non-profit organizations, creative tensions may develop in the effort to balance mission with "margin" (or revenue). Business plans may also target changes in perception and branding by the customer, client, tax-payer, or larger community. A business plan having changes in perception and branding as its primary goals is called a marketing plan.
What is Information System Plan?
A process for developing a strategy and plans for aligning information systems with the business strategies of an organization.
Now after defining each plan, let us review each nature, importance and its strategy.
-Business Plan-
Here are five good reasons why you should write a business plan:
1) To test the feasibility of your business idea.
Writing a business plan is the best way to test whether or not an idea for starting a business is feasible, other than going out and doing it. In this sense, the business plan is your safety net; writing a business plan can save you a great deal of time and money if working through the business plan reveals that your business idea is untenable. Often, an idea for starting a business is discarded at the marketing analysis or competitive analysis stage, freeing you to move on to a new (and better) idea.
2) To give your new business the best possible chance of success.
Writing a business plan will ensure that you pay attention to both the broad operational and financial objectives of your new business and the details, such as budgeting and market planning. Taking the time to work through the process of writing a business plan will make for a smoother startup period and fewer unforeseen problems as your business becomes established.
3) To secure funding, such as bank loans.
You're going to need both operating and startup capital to start a new business and you have no hope of getting any money from established financial institutions such as banks without a well developed business plan. And established businesses often need money, too, to do things such as buy new equipment or property, or because of market downturns. Having a business plan gives you a much better chance of getting the money you need to keep operating or to expand.
4) To make business planning manageable and effective.
A business plan is essential if you're thinking of starting a business, but it's also an important tool for established businesses. Viable businesses are dynamic; they change and grow. The company's original business plan needs to be revised as new goals are set. Reviewing the business plan can also help you see what goals have been accomplished, what changes need to be made, or what new directions your company's growth should take.
5) To attract investors.
Whether you want to shop your business to venture capitalists, or attract angel investors, you need to have a solid business plan. A presentation may pique their interest, but they'll need a well-written document they can take away and study before they'll be prepared to make any investment commitment.
Be prepared for your business plan to be scrutinized; both venture capitalists and angel investors will want to conduct extensive background checks and competitive analysis to be certain that what's written in your business plan is indeed the case.
Writing a business plan is time-consuming, but it's essential if you want to have a successful business that's going to survive the startup phase. If your business doesn't have one, maybe it's time to start working on one. The process of writing a business plan can do wonders to clarify where you've been and where you're going.
-Information System Plan-
Information Technology strategy which determines the ‘how’ it is done, in terms of technology policies, a technology framework or architecture which drives, shapes and controls the IT infrastructure.
Strategic Information Systems Planning Methodologies
The task of strategic information systems planning is difficult and often time organizations do not know how to do it. Strategic information systems planning is a major change for organizations, from planning for information systems based on users’ demands to those based on business strategy. Also strategic information systems planning changes the planning characteristics in major ways.
For example, the time horizon for planning changes from 1 year to 3 years or more and development plans are driven by current and future business needs rather than incremental user needs. Increase in the time horizon is a factor which results in poor response from the top management to the strategic information systems planning process as it is difficult to hold their attention for such a long period.
Other questions associated with strategic information systems planning are related to the scope of the planning study, the focus of the planning exercise – corporate organization vs. strategic business unit, number of studies and their sequence, choosing a strategic information systems planning methodology or developing one if none is suitable, targets of planning process and deliverables. Because of the complexity of the strategic information systems planning process and uniqueness of each organization, there is no one best way to tackle it.
After we define business plan and information system plan we can now give the relationship of the two. In my own notion no matter how small your business is, creating a business plan is always a good idea. A business plan that includes thorough market research and analysis about your industry will help you identify your vision, costs, goals and obstacles. If you intend to seek financing for your business, you must have a business. The primary job of a business owner is to manage and run a business. The term manage implies the task of planning and execution.
The process of business planning helps reduce risks. he relationship of the business plan and the Strategic Information System Plan are the business plan is only focusing in the attainment of the goals of the business in short it gives more attention to the business side while the Strategic Information System Plan focuses in improving the management side and to improve the performance of the business. For me the Business Plan and the Strategic Information System are very essential in a business and these two factors can lead you to the right path of business. As a conclusion, if you don’t have goal in your life why you are still living now? We live in this world to reach our own goals and make your goals as your inspiration. Don’t wait for your goal you must work for it.
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business_plan
http://viu.eng.rpi.edu/publications/strpaper.pdf
http://sbinfocanada.about.com/cs/businessplans/a/bizplanwhy.htm
