A Better Business Plan with Lean Planning

It’s better planning that’s efficient and practical. It’s not just a plan, it’s a process. Its benefits include managing, optimizing, and steering a business.

Planning cycle for better business planning
The PRRR cycle in lean business planning
  • It’s not a traditional formal plan document. The lean plan includes strategy, key tactics, milestones, tasks, responsibilities, performance metrics, tracking, and regular review and revision. It’s something that benefits every business.
  • It’s easy to do because it doesn’t bother with extras. Don’t do the executive summary. For you or you own team, you don’t need it. Don’t describe the market. Don’t describe the team. Just plan it. Know it, yes; but analyze it or prove it, no.
  • It’s not voided by change — it exists to manage change better.
  • It’s just big enough to run the business. You write a few things down for yourself and your team, then track results, then review and revise. The process is steering your business.

It’s about getting what you want from your business. Forget the big formal business plan document of decades ago. Forget the fact that the plan will be wrong. Keep it simple. Do only what you need. Write it down and keep track of it so you can look back in a few weeks to check what you thought would happen and compare that to what actually happened. Your business plan is wrong, but it’s vital to good business management.

Use the planning process like a GPS for your business — the plan as destination and route, and monthly plan review for constant course corrections.

Do a lean business plan — keep it lean and simple — then track results and review and revise regularly.

So Get Going. Start Planning. Start Managing

Just do it!

Use this website for step-by-step directions. Free.

Get the book

E-book or paperback. Free to $7.95.

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Lean business plan content at bplans.com

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Change doesn’t void a well-managed planning process. On the contrary, the process manages change.

Make your business plan just big enough to run your business.

Experts Say This is a Better Business Plan:

“Forget the old-fashioned business plan. It’s not just for startups, or investors; it’s to run your business better. Faster, easier, more focused, and quicker to change. Tim Berry’s Lean Business Planning is a methodology, not just a plan. It’s about getting the right things done. A must for every business owner and startup.”

Susan Solovic, THE small business expert, NYT best-selling author

“In order to thrive today your business must be nimble. Throw out traditional business planning and embrace Lean Business Planning and set your business free to dominate.”

John Jantsch, author of Duct Tape Marketing and The Referral Engine

“If you’re serious about really running a business, you need this book. It’s about getting what you want from your business, getting the right things done, and adjusting quickly to change. Forget the old-fashioned business plan. This is faster, easier, and better. And you’ll be grateful for using this proven system”

Melinda Emerson “SmallBizLady.” Bestselling author, Become Your Own Boss in 12 Months, 2nd edition

1 thought on “A Better Business Plan with Lean Planning

  1. Joanne Webber

    Hello,

    Thank you for sharing your insightful business planning knowledge. I am interested in learning more about business planning and the Lean Planning. Is there a template to easily plug in information and how much? I am not a business owner but I am interested in learning about this and am doing some project work for a small business in the natural health sector.

    Thank you,
    Joanne

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