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IIMK BPP Guidelines PGPLSM - 2024

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0% found this document useful (0 votes)
74 views9 pages

IIMK BPP Guidelines PGPLSM - 2024

Uploaded by

blogwalabanda
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Business Plan Proposal (BPP)

Background
The main purpose to develop a Business Plan (BP) is to have a successful business. A good BP is
a document that helps raise funds for investment in a new business conceived and so needs to
address the long term needs of the business and devise strategies that enhance both the overall
performance of the company and also bring personal satisfaction.

The Business Plan Project (BPP) is a 1-credit compulsory graded component of the PGP LSM
Programme at IIMK, in term V. As part of this, students are required to develop BP in groups such
that they experience the step-by-step process of developing a plan for a start-up business. The
finished project report is an operating tool to help manage a business and enables one to achieve
greater business success.

Standard Practice Guide


1. Formation of Groups and submission of Proposal of the Business Idea: BPP shall be a
group project, comprising maximum six students in each group. Group members should preferably
represent multiple functional area expertise and are required to pool in their experience to draw up
the BP. The group needs to submit a Proposal of Business Idea. The format of the Proposal of
Business Idea is available in Appendix 1. Each group should submit this proposal latest by Sept
30, 2024.
2. Finding BPP Mentors: Based on the proposal of the business idea, the BPP Batch
Coordinator (IIMK LIVE) will allot a mentor to the student groups.
3. Intermediate Meetings between BPP Batch Coordinator (IIMK LIVE) and Student
Groups in Class: BPP batch coordinator (IIMK LIVE) shall hold in-class discussions with student
groups during the course of BPP in progress to ensure that students are working with good
motivation and quality. Moreover, the group has to send every fortnight a report on the activities
of the group to the mentor of the project. In this matter, the BPP coordinator (IIMK LIVE) will
advise the groups to submit a simple progress report to their respective mentor. Failure to adhere
will invite a penalty at the rate of -1% marks per day delay basis. BPP co-coordinator (IIMK LIVE)
may also request a group to change their topic in case there is an overlap of the topic with other
groups.
4. Intermediate Meetings between BPP Student Groups and mentors: The group has to
submit one interim report to the mentor and the PGP LSM Office. The structure and format of the
BPP report can be found in Appendix 2 and 3. The interim report should also include a statement
of group cohesion and contribution of each group member to the BPP (signed by each member).
Based on the interim report, the mentor will advise the group on improvements to be made. The
mentor shall also give the evaluation of the interim report in an evaluation sheet to the BPP Batch
Coordinator (IIMK LIVE).
5. Submission of final BPP report and two videos: After incorporating the changes as
suggested by the mentor, the final BPP report (with approval from the mentor) shall be submitted
to the mentor and the PGPL SM office, along with the two videos (details about the two videos
can be found in the structure of the BPP on page 4). The mentor should also give the evaluation of
the final BPP report in an evaluation sheet to the BPP Batch Coordinator. Each group should
submit the BPP final report latest by Nov 7, 2024. A standard template of the cover sheet is
included in the Annexure for reference. The final BPP report should also include a statement of
group cohesion and contribution of each group member to the BPP (signed by each member).
6. BPP Presentation: Each BPP group will be required to make a presentation on their
project (maximum of 10 slides in PowerPoint format) before a panel by the end of term V All the
group members need to be compulsorily present during the final presentation. Absentees will be
treated as having not completed the course and no grades will be awarded. The presentation will
be for a maximum of 20 minutes, which will also include both the video being played followed by
10 minutes of Q&A.
7. Evaluation: On the basis of the on-going performance and final report, 50% of the
evaluation will be done by the respective mentor. The remaining 50% of the evaluation will be
done by the expert panel. In this BPP more weightage in grading is given to validating your
business plan, identifying customer personas, market sizing/ estimation, Industry and competitor
Analysis. More details on evaluation are made available in Appendix 3.

Structure of Business Plan


This detailed document is developed to act as a guideline for developing the BPP. While students
are free to refer to any sources, the report should strictly adhere to the structure of the Business
Plan stated here. The following components need to be part of a BP:
1. Executive Summary - An Executive Summary is a clear and concise condensation of a
business persuading the reader to spend time understanding the business whether he/she is a
venture capitalist or a banker. This section is written last after completing the plan document. The
Executive Summary should capture if the business concept makes sense, if the business has been
thoroughly planned, if management is capable of handling the plan, if a market exists for the
business and if the business incorporates competitive advantage with realistic financial projections.
The length of the summary should ideally be one side of a page (A4 size) and should not cross two
sides of such a page.
2. Company Information - This section essentially captures the business to be in and the
objective/mission of the company in pursuing the business with a name given to the company. To
identify the business as a legal entity e.g., partnership or limited company may also be highlighted
here including the names in the management of the company, location of the business/headquarters
and the milestones achieved so far (if any).
3. Industry Analysis and Market Sizing - This section should highlight major players in the
industry including its trends and strategic opportunities existing in the industry. Most of this
information should be supported with data and evidence. There needs to be a mention of the growth
rate of the industry and also its sensitivity to economic cycles and macro-economic changes like
recession. The industry level information on buyers and suppliers in the industry, regulations (if
any) and financial characteristics of the industry need to reflect here. The primary focus here is to
define the target market and to make an estimate of the potential size of the market, psychographics
and purchase pattern, including future and emerging trends, if any. Here the BP needs to be clear
about specific customer needs to be met by the product being sold and the distribution channel and
other means to reach these customers. With regard to market sizing the BP should have Total
Addressable Market (TAM), Serviceable Addressable Market (SAM), Serviceable Obtainable
Market (SOM) estimations in detail.
4. Customer Validation - Customer validation is an essential phase of the product
development process (i.e., the steps needed to take a product from concept to market availability.)
It tests assumptions and hypotheses about the customer problem, target market, and
product. Insights gained from the validation phase can then be used to iterate the product and find
the right market fit. Validation also connects the product with viable prospects and paves the way
to building meaningful products people need. Details of the customer validation carried out and its
outcome, customer responses, acceptability should be detailed out in this session.
5. Marketing Plan - Here the focus is on reaching customers and delivering not only product
and service but also expected value to the customers. The Marketing Plan needs to capture
● How to make customers aware of products and services?
● Message conveyed to customers about product, service or company
● Specific methods used to reinforce the message through advertising and media planning
● Plans/strategies for securing sales
● Essentially this section focuses on the 4Ps of marketing namely Product, Price, Place and
Promotion.
6. The Competition - It is important to know who the competitors are, what their sizes are
and how much market share they control. By understanding competitors’ strengths and
weaknesses, a BP can highlight relative competitive position and also the competitors’ product
and service features that customers prefer. This will help identify ways and means to beat such
competition either by describing weaknesses or novel ways to deliver superior value. It is
important to understand what first mover advantage competitors have. The objective is to identify
how a fair market share can be obtained for the new business and also to create barriers for new
competitors. Essentially this section focuses on Porter's Five Forces Analysis.
7. Operations - This section of the BP focuses on how the business is run internally.
Beginning with the geographic location of facilities including headquarters, plants, warehouses,
branch offices, showrooms (if any), etc. It can include details of production plan including levels
of automation, capacity utilization and productivity targets besides issues of inventory control,
supply and distribution, order fulfilment and customer service. There has to be mention of R&D
activities to be undertaken (indicative spending on R&D). Issues pertaining to environmental
norms, safety and insurance regulatory issues (if any) need to be incorporated in this section. A
sub-section may be added on technology choice keeping in mind technology development trends
in the industry. Critical purchasing and vendor/supplier development issues may also be included
in this section.
8. Personnel - While concerning the recruitment and retention of employees with the right
skills and experience in the organization this section focuses on developing the Human Resource
Policies of the organization including meeting statutory government regulation of Provident Fund
and Pension of employees.
9. Financial Plan and Analysis - This section should give the accounting numbers
supporting the BP decisions. It should include projected balance sheet, income statement, and cash
flow statements. Ideally it should also include accounting principles adopted for depreciation,
break-even analysis, sources and uses of funds and capex.
10. Risks and contingencies - The purpose of this section is to identify possible sources of
risks of failure and to develop contingency plans for them. A preliminary analysis of the risks
being faced can be done using the SWOT analysis (i.e., Strength and Weakness of the organization
as matched against the Opportunity and Threats in the business environment). Some of risks
include:
● Market Risk: Market will not respond to the business product or service if there is no need
for the product or the market is not mature for it.
● Competitive Risk: Possibility that competitive position will change dramatically, new
competitors will enter, and the basis of competition will change.
● Technology Risk: The technology currently prevalent in the industry and adopted by the
business becomes completely obsolete soon. What is the possibility of quickly adapting to the new
technology?
● Execution Risk: Failure to quickly roll out products to meet launch dates and sales targets.
It could be due to either internal operational or external license/permit reasons.
● Capitalization Risk: Miscalculation of funds requirement leading to cost and project capital
over runs.
11. Elevator Pitch Video - A mandatory requirement for successful completion of the BPP is
creation of two videos: one of 60 seconds duration (elevator pitch) and the second with the aim to
attract a venture capitalist (approximate duration not exceeding 3 minutes). This should include
the problem, the solution and sell your mission.
12. Appendix - Provide additional supporting documents that reinforce the BP. This section
shall include:
● Letters of intent/expression to do business by potential clients
● Endorsement from credible sources highlighting that the company is capable and
product/service is desirable
● Photos of product, location, displays, etc. to highlight existence of a real business
● Market research results highlighting possibility of success of proposed business
● Resume of possible key managers/leaders of the company/promoters
● Technical information (if any) including expertise of key managers in the technology
● While the above is not an exhaustive structure of a BP, students are advised to include as
much relevant details as possible into their plan. Thinking through more of the details of the BP
and including them in the plan will not only make it more robust but help secure funding and
launch of the business.
● Each group member has to mention her/his contribution to the BPP (200 words maximum).
Each member should clearly mention the domain she/he has voluntarily assigned himself to the
BPP. Member has to briefly mention apart from his domain of expertise, areas he/she has provided
contribution and what are the new learning he/she obtained. The sheet has to be signed by all the
group members.
13. Bibliography - This section should include major references, citations, etc

Duration and Deadlines:

The BPP will commence in term V of PGP LSM. The following deadlines need to be strictly
adhered to:

Briefing on BPP 28 September 2024


Formation of groups and submission of proposal of the business idea (Soft 30 September 2024
copy in Virtual Classroom)
Interim BPP report submitted to faculty mentor for feedback (Soft copy in 15 October 2024
Virtual Classroom)
Interim feedback from faculty mentor to the student group 24 October 2024

Submission of final report to the faculty mentor for approval (via email to 28 October 2024
the faculty mentor) along with the two videos

Final soft-copy report submission (with faculty mentor’s approval attached) 30 October 2024
in a Virtual Classroom.
Final Hard copy report submission to PGP LSM office 07 November 2024

BPP presentation and evaluation Third Week of November


Detailed BPP Plan is given in the Appendix 4

Faculty Coordinator for BPP (2023-25):

IIMK LIVE

PGPLSM Office BPP Contact Details:

Mr. Asokan. P. T., [email protected]

References:
"Writing a Business Plan: The Basics" from Harvard Business School Press (Product #: 5344BC-
PDF-ENG)

"Creating Business Plans (HBR 20-Minute Manager Series)" from Harvard Business Review
(Product #: 16998- PDF-ENG) http://www.score.org/resources/business-plans-financial-
statements-template-gallery
Appendix 1: Format of the Proposal of the Business Idea

The following format is to be followed:


● Title of the BPP
● Name, roll numbers and contact details of group members
● Reason for group to choose the topic
● Competence of group members to draw up BPP in the subject
● Sources of information
● Expectations from mentor (Note: Student groups cannot expect the mentor to find
funding sources for their BP)
● Basic write up on the topic
● Alternative topic (if any) for the mentor to consider
The proposal will be in A4 size and not exceed two pages (4 sides) with one-inch margin on all
sides, 1.5 spacing and Calibri - 12-point font.

Appendix 2: BPP Submission Format

The format of the final report is mentioned below:


1. Number of pages, minimum 25 pages, font size 12 (Calibri) with 1.5 spaces. All headings
& subheadings should be in Bold.
2. The final project report should be perfect hard - bound binded. Any other format of binding
is not acceptable. Two copies of the final report to be sent to the PGP LSM office as per the
deadline.
3. Project Report Format
a. Page-1: Group No., Title of the Project, etc.
b. Page-2: Declaration, with Name and Roll Number of the Group Members.
c. Page-3 Certificate - Name and Signature of the faculty mentor
d. Page-4 Table of Contents

DECLARATION
We hereby declare that this submission is our own work and that, to the best of our knowledge and belief, it
contains no material previously published in the print / online form or written by another person, nor material
which has been part of other projects, except where due acknowledgement has been made in the text.
Place: Date:
Group No.
Name Roll No. Signature
1
2
3
4
5

CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that the Business Plan Project entitled “___”
Submitted by ___ to Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode is a bonafide record of the work carried out
by them under my supervision and guidance.
Date:
Signature: Mentor: -

The rest of the report format should follow the structure of the BPP (Appendix 2) (Executive
Summary to Bibliography) including a statement of group cohesion and contribution of each group
member to the BPP (signed by each member).
Appendix 3: BPP Evaluation Pattern

Students’ final grade will be determined on the basis of the overall weighted score computed using
the percentage breakdowns outlined below. This will be adjusted for negative marks for any delays
that have been awarded to the group.
● Interim report evaluation by mentor: 25%
● Final report evaluation by mentor: 25%
● Final report evaluation by expert panel: 25%
● Final presentation evaluation by expert panel: 25%
The evaluation of a BPP will broadly be based on the following criteria:
● Format of the BPP
● Executive summary
● Coverage of headings/sub-headings as indicated in the ‘Structure of Business Plan’ above
● Extent to which the Market Sizing and Customer Validation is carried out and its details in
the Business Plan.
● Details including linkages and data support for a logical flow of the report
● Expert panel’s judgment of the feasibility of the BPP based on group presentation
● Incorporation of the suggestions made by the faculty mentor to the interim report in the
final report
● Adherence to deadlines
● Proof of group cohesion-contribution of each group member to the BPP
● Any other points as found applicable

Each BPP will finally secure a letter grade as for any course in the PGP LSM programme and the grade
will appear on the final grade sheet of the student.

Evaluation Pattern
Interim BPP Report Evaluation by mentor 25 marks
Final BPP Report Evaluation by mentor 25 marks
Final report evaluation by expert panel 25 marks
Final presentation evaluation by expert panel 25 marks
Total 100 marks

Grading:

Grading Scheme applicable for BPP is the same as per PGP grading policy.

Appendix 4: Detailed BPP Plan


PGP LSM BPP- Session Plan
Sessions Activity Date Time Speaker
Intimation to PGP LSM students on BPP
along with guidelines and the link to
1 Sep 28, 2024
update the proposal of business idea as
per Appendix 1
Session 1: Making an Effective Business Prof. Ashutosh
2 Sep 28, 2024 4.00 - 5.15 pm
Plan and Briefing on BPP Sarkar
Final date to submit the proposal of
3 Sep 30, 2024 Before 11.59 PM
business idea
4 Submission of First Progress Report Oct 04, 2024 Before 11.59 PM
Session 2: Customer Discovery, Market
5 Oct 03, 2024 8.30- 9.45 pm Mr.Vinod Keni
Sizing and Product Market Fit
Mr. Alok
6 Session 3: Startup Scale-up and Growth Oct 05, 2024 4.00 - 5.15 pm
Agarwal
Session 4: How to Make an Effective Mr. Chandu
7 Oct 10, 2024 8.30- 9.45 pm
Pitch Nair
Interim BPP report submitted to faculty
8 mentor for feedback (Soft copy in Virtual Oct 15, 2024 Before 11.59 PM
Classroom)
Mr. Nilay
9 Session 5: Art of FundRaising Oct 14, 2024 10.00-11.15 PM
Pratik
10 Submission of Second Progress Report Oct 21, 2024 Before 11.59 PM
Interim feedback from the faculty mentor
12 Oct 24, 2024
to the student group
Submission of final report to the faculty
13 mentor for approval (via email to the Oct 28, 2024 Before 11.59 PM
faculty mentor) along with the two videos

Final soft-copy report submission (with


14 faculty mentor’s approval attached) in a Oct 30, 2024 Before 11.59 PM
Virtual Classroom.
Final Hard copy report submission to
15 Nov 07, 2024
PGP LSM office
16 BPP presentation and evaluation November Third Week
17 Declaration of final score End of November
*Please note, dates of the sessions may slightly change based on the availability of the speakers. In
case if these is any change in the dates it will be intimated by PGP LSM Office

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