A business plan sets out key objectives, priorities and strategies for your business and is required to raise finance for your enterprise. Find out more about business planning, the key features for a successful plan and how to continue the momentum once the business plan has been written. Use our selection of books, articles, links and guides to help you identify best practice, techniques and tools to apply to your business.
Online books, guides and publications
eBooks
The library provides full text access to a selection of key business and reference eBooks from leading publishers.
How to prepare a business plan (The Sunday Times Business Enterprise Series)
Blackwell, Edward (5th ed. Kogan Page, 2008)
"Starting a new business venture is like going into a tropical forest on a treasure hunt. There are rewards to be won, in both material wealth and in personal satisfaction, but there are dangers lurking and you can easily lose your way. This book is written not only to help you convince your financial backers that you will succeed and come back with a bag of gold, but also to help you write your own guidebook for the journey."
Making the business case: Proposals that succeed for projects that work
Gambles, I. (Gower, 2009)
"This is a hands-on guide to producing an outstanding business case. It is written for anyone, novice or expert, who needs to get a business case done, whether for a defined project or a broader programme, and wants to do it right. Before you can get stuck into the task, you need to understand the idea of the business case, why it is so prevalent, and how it is being used."
You will need to be logged-in to the website to read these eBooks.
Briefings
Directors' Briefings and Start-Up Briefings are four-page guides written for the busy practitioner, director and entrepreneur providing concise, practical advice on core business issues.
Checklists
The How to do it guides from BHP Information Solutions are a collection of checklists providing a step by step approach to key business issues.
Disclaimer: These publications from BHP Information Solutions Limited are for general guidance only, for businesses in the United Kingdom governed by the laws of England. BHP Information Solutions Limited, expert contributors and the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (as distributor) disclaim all liability for any errors or omissions.
Online articles
The library provides access to a range of articles in full text from leading business, finance and management journals.
You will need to be logged-in to the website to gain full access to the range of articles available online.
Small Business Update
A selection of articles aimed at small businesses from Small Business Update magazine:
Useful links
Business planning (British Library)
The British Library's Business and Intellectual Property (IP) Centre incorporates services and information on business planning, including a wide range of essential information to help you plan and grow your own business.
Incorporation and names (Companies House)
Guidance from Companies House setting out the main requirements for incorporating a company in the United Kingdom. Includes guidance on choosing a name for your business.
Prepare a business plan (Business Link)
Practical advice on writing business plans provided by Business Link. Sections include: the audience for your business plan, what the plan should include, the executive summary, your business, its products and services, your markets and competitors, marketing and sales, your team's skills, your operations, financial forecasts and how to present your business plan.
Business planning guide: Practical application for SMEs (PDF 870kb/86 pages)
Publication by the IFAC Professional Accountants in Business Committee aimed at owners of small and medium entities (SMEs). It offers practical guidance and discusses the concepts and techniques of writing business plans, provides a business plan checklist and gives an example of a business plan.
Creating a business plan (BT Business Insight)
Useful advice on creating and updating your business plan from BT Business Insight which provides information on a wide range of business services and factsheets for starting, running and growing small businesses.
Free sample business plans (www.bplans.com)
A large collection of free sample business plans for a wide variety of business sectors. Each plan outlines the following sections: executive summary, objectives, mission, keys to success, company summary, products, market analysis summary, strategy and implementation summary, management summary, and financial plan.
Business plan (bizhelp24.com)
See a working example of a business plan at bizhelp24.com - use this as a basis for setting up your own business plan. The page covers the eight main areas of a business plan and what each should cover. It also provides an example plan in its entirety to view.
Business Planning (startups.co.uk)
The business planning section of startups.co.uk includes information on what a business plan is and what it should cover. The website provides news and information to get your small business starting.
Writing a business plan: The basics (SmallBusiness.co.uk)
This website provides useful resources, products and services for small business owners and start-ups, including guidance on writing a business plan, business plan do's and don'ts and a checklist to ensure your plan includes everything it should do.
Centa Business Services
Free registration with Centa provides access to their Resource Bank and a broad collection of factsheets, FAQs and web links to information on business planning and a wide range of other business topics.
Articles and books in the Library collection
To find out how you can borrow books from the Library please see our guide to book loans.
You can obtain copies of articles or extracts of books and reports by post, fax or email through our document delivery service.
Can't find what you're looking for?
If you have any difficulty in finding the material you are looking for please contact the enquiry team by phone on +44 (0)20 7920 8620, by fax on +44 (0)20 7920 8621 or by email at library@icaew.com.
The ICAEW accepts no responsibility for the content on any site to which a hypertext link from this site exists. The links are provided 'as is' with no warranty, express or implied, for the information provided within them. Please see the full copyright and disclaimer notice.