Business planning · Guide 1How to Create a Business Plan in 15 Steps
A business plan brings together the opportunity, market, strategy and financial figures needed for more informed decisions. Explore the essentials and go deeper with the free Guide 1.
The 15 essential steps
A concise overview of the process, organised into four areas. The depth of each step should match the size of the business and the purpose of the plan.
1. Business and opportunity
- Executive summary — a concise account of the project and the decisions required.
- Explore 1. Business and opportunity — problem, solution and market context.
- Business model — how value is created, delivered and captured.
2. Market and strategy
- Explore 2. Market and strategy — dimensão, necessidades e tendências.
- Competition and positioning — alternativas e diferenciação.
- Explore 2. Market and strategy — products, services and customer benefits.
- Explore 2. Market and strategy — priorities and goals.
- Explore 2. Market and strategy — channels, customer acquisition and retention.
3. Operations and finance
- Organisation and operations — team, resources and processes.
- Investimento e financiamento — necessidades e fontes.
- Financial projections and cash flow — sales, costs and cash movements.
- Feasibility e rentabilidade — margens, equilíbrio e retorno.
4. Risk and execution
- Risks and scenarios — sensitivity analysis and response measures.
- Implementation and KPIs — actions, owners and indicators.
- Monitoring and decisions — review results and decide whether to proceed.
Three principles of a useful business plan
Validate assumptions
Validate demand, customers, prices and costs using documented data and sources.
Test feasibility
Prepare profit and cash-flow forecasts and compare risk scenarios.
Implement and monitor
Assign responsibilities, priorities, performance indicators and review milestones.
Before writing the plan, assess your business starting point
A business plan requires informed choices about organisation, markets, sales and finance. The 360° Business Assessment uses 25 questions to highlight established practices and areas needing further investigation.
Receive an immediate summary of priorities and an indicative need for external support: low, medium or high.
Take the 360° Business Assessment →No mandatory registration. This self-assessment is not a substitute for a business plan or a feasibility study.
Four complementary dimensions of the plan
- Management: objectives, decisions, processes and performance monitoring.
- Marketing: customers, markets and the value proposition.
- Explore Four complementary dimensions of the plan commercial planning and results.
- Finance: custos, margens e controlo económico.
Use the results to guide the next stages of business planning.
NATIVA: a complete business plan for a fictional company
Follow the 15 chapters of Guide 1 through a fictional Portuguese cosmetics brand. Explore the project’s strategic decisions, sales model and financial assumptions.
The fictional case study is available as a PDF, editable Word document and Excel financial model for educational use. Its figures are illustrative assumptions, not real sector data.
Need to develop your business plan?
Guide 1 — How to Create a Business Plan explains the 15 steps in depth and includes an illustrative case, financial formulas, exercises and a validation checklist.
Test the financial assumptions in your plan
Calculate contribution margin and break-even sales using price, cost and volume assumptions.
Open management calculatorsNeed a tailored Business Review and Business Plan?
Explore a consulting engagement that combines an SME assessment with a business plan and financial projections under a defined proposal.
Compare packages →