Lesson Element
Unit 1: The Business Environment
LO7: Understand why businesses plan
Business plan
Instructions and answers for tutors
These instructions cover the learner activity section which can be found on page 3. This Lesson Element supports Cambridge Technicals Level 3 in Business.
When distributing the activity section to the learners either as a printed copy or as a Word file you will need to remove the tutor instructions section.
The activity
The aim of this activity is for learners to think about a business they might like to run if they had the chance. This lesson relies on a college having an interview with a third party – a friendly bank manager, governor, member of the SLT, a university undergraduate, employer or local entrepreneur who would spend some time with learners.
Suggested timing
1 hour 15 minutes
Version 1 1 © OCR 2016
Activity
Learners should use the template http://www.tonynovak.com/two-page-business-plan-template.pdf to produce a draft business plan for a business they might like to run if they had the chance, and then discuss it with a local bank manager or ‘dragon’ to assess its viability. If it is not possible to find an external person, learners could interview each other to check the viability of their plans. Learners can work in pairs or on their own.
Questions for the learners to ask the visiting business person:
· What market research does your business carry out before drafting a new business plan?
· How does your business work out how much money it might need to put the plan into action?
· What skills does your business think are important in business? (Learners could carry out the personal skills audit and identify where they have any gaps.)
http://www.ocr.org.uk/Images/122649-unit-05-self-assessed-skills-audit-teacher-instructions.pdf
If you Google the following – ‘personal skills audit for self-employment OCR’ – there is a downloadable version.
This is a very open-ended task and learners should be encouraged to think creatively about the business idea they plan for – it is a safe way to explore enterprise. The questions that learners might ask of the visiting business person would undoubtedly vary depending on the type of business person they are meeting.
This activity could be followed up with learners carrying out a SWOT analysis on their own business idea. http://www.businessballs.com/swotanalysisfreetemplate.htm
Version 1 1 © OCR 2016
Lesson Element
Unit 1: The Business Environment
LO7: Understand why businesses plan
Learner Activity
Business plan
You should use the template available at this link http://www.tonynovak.com/two-page-business-plan-template.pdf to produce a draft business plan for a business you might like to run if you had the chance. Your tutor will organise a business person or ‘dragon’ to assess its viability. You should complete this work in pairs or on your own.
Activity
Working in pairs (or on your own if you prefer) think about a business you might like to run if you had the chance. Use the template http://www.tonynovak.com/two-page-business-plan-template.pdf to produce a draft business plan.
Make your plan as realistic as possible – you must be prepared to discuss your plan with a third party, such as:
· a local bank manager
· someone from business or ‘dragon’
· another teacher
· a governor
· a careers advisor
· another student.
Be prepared to answer questions about the viability of your plan, such as:
· what market research you would do, where your finance would come from etc.
· what skills have you got to have in order to run your own business? (Carry out the personal skills audit and identify the skills gaps)
http://www.ocr.org.uk/Images/122649-unit-05-self-assessed-skills-audit-teacher-instructions.pdf
If you Google the following – ‘personal skills audit for self-employment OCR’ – there is a downloadable version.
Questions to ask the external business visitor could be:
· What market research does your business carry out before drafting a new business plan?
· How does your business work out how much money it might need to put the plan into action?
· How should I finance my idea?
· What skills does your business think are important in business?
· Do you think my business plan is viable? If so, why? If not, why not?
You should think creatively about the business idea you plan for. The aim of the activity is for you to understand what planning is needed to be undertaken by an entrepreneur when setting up a new business.
You could follow up your interview by carrying out a SWOT analysis on your own business idea. http://www.businessballs.com/swotanalysisfreetemplate.htm
Version 1 4 © OCR 2016