Executive Summary of the Business Plan

An executive summary of a business plan is an overview. It aims to summarize the main points of the document for readers, saving them time and preparing them for the upcoming content.

What is an executive summary of a business plan?

Think of the executive summary as a pre-organizer for the reader. Above all, it should be clear and concise. But it should also compel the reader to read the rest of the business plan.

This is why the executive summary is often referred to as the most important part of the business plan. If it doesn’t grab the reader’s attention, the plan will be ignored and not read – and that’s a disaster if you wrote your business plan as part of an attempt to secure funds to start your new business. (Securing funds to start is not the only reason to write a business plan; there are other important reasons as well.)

Note: Because it summarizes the entire plan, it is common to write the executive summary at the end (and writing it last can make it much easier).

What information should the executive summary include?

The information you should include varies somewhat depending on whether your company is a startup or an established business.

For startups:

• Business opportunity. Describe the need or opportunity. Exploit the opportunity. Explain how your company will serve the market.
• Target market. Describe the customers you will target.
• Business model. Describe your products or services and what will make them attractive to the target market.
• Marketing and sales strategy. Briefly outline your plans for marketing your products and services.
• Competition. Describe competitors and your strategy for gaining market share. What is your competitive advantage, e.g., what will you offer customers that your competitors cannot?
• Financial analysis. Summarize the financial plan, including forecasts for at least the next three years.
• Owners/employees. Describe the owners and key team members and the expertise they bring to the venture.
• Implementation plan. Outline the timeline for moving from planning to opening your business.

For established businesses:

• Mission statement. Clearly state the purpose of your business. In a few sentences, describe what your company does, its core values, and its business philosophy.
• Company information. Provide a brief history of your company – describe your products or services, when and where you were founded, who the owners and key employees are, and statistics such as the number of employees and locations.
• Highlights of company achievements. Describe how the company has evolved and grown, including year-over-year revenue increases, profitability, market share growth, number of customers, etc.
• Financial summary. If the purpose of updating the business plan is to seek additional funding for expansion, provide a brief financial summary.
• Future goals. Describe your goals for the company. If you are seeking funding, explain how the additional funding will be used to grow the business or increase profits in other ways.

How can I write an executive summary for my business plan?

Start by following the list above and writing a sentence or two about each topic (depending on whether your company is a startup or an established business). Don’t go beyond that!

The easy way to write the executive summary:

If you are having trouble getting started, the easiest way to write the executive summary is to review your business plan and pull a sentence or two from each section of the plan you have already written.

If you compare the list above with the sections outlined in the business plan outline, you will see that this can work quite well.

Then conclude the executive summary of your business plan with a sentence or two that answer the question the reader is asking: “Why is this a successful business?”

For example, an executive summary for a pet care company could end with the following sentence: “The professional in-home care we will provide for pets will surely be loved by cat and dog owners throughout the West Vancouver area.”

Tips for writing an executive summary for a business plan:

• Focus on summarizing. The business plan itself will provide the details, and whether it’s for bank managers or investors, your plan readers don’t want to waste their time. Be sure to use strong and positive language. Don’t weaken the executive summary with weak language. Instead of writing “Dogstar Industries may be in a great position to win government contracts,” write “Dogstar Industries will be in a great position.”
• Make it

Briefly – no more than two pages. I resist the urge to fill the executive summary of the business plan with details (or calls to action). The purpose of the executive summary is to present the facts and entice the reader to read the rest of the business plan, not to tell them everything.

• Make your business plan executive summary polished. Read it out loud. Does it flow or does it sound choppy? Is it clear and concise? Once it sounds good to you, ask someone else who knows nothing about your business to read it and provide suggestions for improvement.
• Tailor it to your audience. If the purpose of your business plan is to attract investors, for example, the executive summary should focus on the opportunity your business provides for investors and why this opportunity is special. If the purpose of your business plan is to secure a loan for a small business, focus on highlighting what traditional lenders want to see, such as industry management experience and the fact that you have both collateral and strategies to mitigate lender risk.
• Put yourself in the shoes of your readers. Read your business plan executive summary again. Does it spark interest or enthusiasm in the reader? If not, why? Also, try giving it to a friend or relative to read, who is not involved in the business. If you did a good job on the executive summary, the neutral third party should be able to understand it.
• Remember that the executive summary will be the first thing your readers read. If it is poorly written, it will also be the last thing they read, as they will set aside the rest of your business plan without reading it.

Source: https://www.thebalancemoney.com/executive-summary-of-the-business-plan-2948012