Patricia: The Business Growth Plan was extremely valuable because without that, I would have been doing things without actually knowing the reasons why. Clarice: It's of huge value because it allowed me to envisage our growth and put it into practice. It was like a cake recipe, in that I was putting together each of the ingredients and watching it transform – initially in written form, and then in practice. Every time I had any questions, I turned to it as a place where I could find answers to the doubts I had that were arising over time. Madge: I once thought that business plans are written for investors to see, or they are simply left there. After training, I truly understood that it needs to be implemented accordingly. We can only understand our market, our competitors, and where are the funds we need by planning. Therefore, a business plan is an important tool with which we build a great company in the next three to five years. Kalyani: For me, the Business Growth Plan really helped me to scale up my business. The entire team sits down and make a Business Growth Plan for the next three years and we keep revisiting the Business Growth Plan every six months to see what worked and what didn't work. These women are discussing how their Business Growth Plan benefited their business. Which of the following have you previously prepared for your business? A financial plan, a business plan, any other plan, never had a written plan. Often, business owners write a plan while applying for external finance or preparing a presentation to external stakeholders. However, growing a business is about more than the finances alone. There is a whole range of aspects that must be considered when growing a healthy, successful business. Your marketing plans, operational plans, people management plans, all need to be considered. By documenting and articulating these consistently, you will have greater control in implementing them. This is where the Business Growth Plan comes in. A Business Growth Plan, or BGP, is written by you, for you. It will allow you to systematically plan your business's future. The BGP summarizes the various aspects of your business, with specific focus on your new business opportunity. In your Business Growth Plan, you will record your opportunity, your teams and leadership style, your sales and marketing strategies, your finances and your next steps for the next three months, six months, and beyond. The BGP is not only for your personal benefit, it's also a valuable document for communicating clearly and consistently with internal and external stakeholders. Writing your Business Growth Plan will help you: Present a clear and strong statement of your business opportunity to your funders. It will enable them to see the attractiveness of your offering, and why they should invest in your business. Plan a systematic and coherent approach for your customers or clients for your business opportunity. Create energy in your team. A plan ensures alignment of all your people to the business objectives and goals. Attract supply chain partners. You can provide them with a clear statement of what you would need from them, and how they can succeed with you. You'll develop your Business Growth Plan at relevant stages, you will collate information and write content in your growth plan. Remember, the Business Growth Plan is your document to guide your business growth. Make sure that you develop, update, and refine it as you progress.