Selecting the Most Useful Business Technique - Essay Example

EVALUATION OF BUSINESS PLANNING THEORY & PRACTICE (Student Name) (Course No.) (Lecturer) (University) (Date) The development of a business idea usually requires the establishment of a plan of activities which goes by the laid out objectives of the company. The success of any good business idea depends on the vibrancy of the business plans and its ability to articulate the required procedures. The development of the plan further goes to the next step of plan implementation and monitoring. However, several techniques and theories come to play in determining the plan developed. The evaluating committees usually compare the various components of the methods and approaches used. The different weights according to both favorable and unfavorable factors leads to the decision to either develop or refrain (Anthes 2011). This paper intends to focus on the evaluation of the relevant techniques used in drawing the business plan to determine the best possible framework. The assessment focuses on determining the most suitable method beneficial for the development of the app idea embodied in the previously developed plan. Identification of techniques used in planning A business planning process integrates the determination of planning framework and approaches. In several cases, the plan generated depends on upon the identification of one or even two related methods which offer consistent and reliable results. The previous planning procedure determined several methods relevant in any planning process. One of the techniques relates to the SWOT Analysis. This approach identifies four aspects of a project whose evaluation then determines the relevance and viability of any project. This method looks at the Strength associated with any projects. The strengths denote the aspects which keep the project viable by presenting its significance. The Weaknesses aspect assesses the various aspects which make any project undesirable unless the company or the planner buttress the strengths f the project. The opportunities represent the numerous chances which offer an expansion or success footing for any project. Lastly, the Threats determine the factors within and without which threaten the viability and feasibility of any project. Therefore, a project qualifies as viable if the strengths outweigh the weaknesses (Anthes 2011). The other technique determined relates to the use of PESTEL as one of the active approaches in determining the relevance of any project. This strategy assesses the factors which affect the viability of any project. These factors include Political, Economic, Social, Technological and Legal factors constituting the external environment within which a project exist (Barrow et al. 2012). Therefore, the planning processes consider the extent to which the PESTEL factors affect the planned projects and their success. The other technique determined relates to the positioning strategy, which considers the product-market strategies. The positioning strategy rests on four fundamentals which define the feasibility of a project. Market Penetration strategy determines the ability of a product to increase the market share among other competitors. The other tenet relates to Market development strategy where the planner or the organization seeks to venture into new markets. Product Development strategy aims at creating new products for the existing markets while diversification aims at introducing new products to the market. Planners use this technique to determine the relevance of any planned product before releasing it to the market (Blackwell 2008). Selecting the most useful technique The method adopted in developing the app relates to the SWOT Analysis as the most useful approach in this context. The SWOT Analysis determines some of the proposed strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats likely to face the project. The team considered the propped and analyzed techniques. However, the determination of the expected performance in the light of SWOT Analysis proved as the best framework to determine the developed app. Application: The SWOT Analysis became the most significant of the tools since it assessed the four aspects likely to affect the established project and their possible impact on the project’s success. For example, the team underscored the fact that the massive capital input relevant in the developed of the app stood out as one of the threats facing the developed process (Blackwell 2008). The other aspect determined was the existence of fierce competition among mobile app developers with established network. Industry Competition stood out as one of the real threats which the development of the project took into consideration. Results: The results of evaluating the project against the SWOT Analysis framework revealed viability and feasibility. Out of the six challenges evaluated, the opportunities and the strengths of the proposed development outweighed the threats. The evaluation of the viability of the project, therefore, showed a positive indication of the prospects of the project. The determination of the opportunities ensured that the project remained consistent and viable towards achieving the set objectives. The evaluation considered the various elements responsible for determination the potential success of the project. The context developed by the study found the fact that a high value of weaknesses and challenges as compared to strengths and weaknesses makes a project unfit for adoption. Therefore, a positive result showing greatest potentials and strengths of the business informed the decision to implement the project development (Eriksson & Kovalainen 2011). Evaluation: The SWOT Analysis remained as a useful and a significant tool in the context of determining the development of the project. The decision reached to optimize and continue in the elaboration of the mobile app came as a result of the determination of opportunities and strengths whose evaluation outweighed the potential challenges. One primary contribution of the technique relates to the identification of the relevant factors surrounding the project. The determination of the viability levels depended on the assessment of the likely performance of the mobile app amidst the competition, challenges and weaknesses of the project (Eriksson & Kovalainen 2011). The framework developed by SWOT Technique provided a template upon which the determination of four major factors dictates the adoption or disposal of a plan. Studies reveal that only projects which show positive results about strengths and opportunities become adoptable by the use of SWOT Analysis. Conclusion Project development process follows through systematic processes so s to come up with the required results. One of such steps entails the determination and evaluation of business planning theories and techniques. This paper focused on the assessment of the project to develop the mobile app using the technique known as SWOT Analysis. The analysis concentrated on determining the viability of the project within the framework of four tenets. The principles and strategies considered in the technique include the Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats of the proposed plan: The choice of this method brought great significance to the planning and development processes due to its holistic and practical approach to project planning process (Anthes 2011). This method provides that the viable projects usually rank greater on the tenets of Strengths and Opportunities and rank lower on Threats and Weaknesses. The evaluation of the development of the mobile app, therefore, satisfied the provision of this technique in its entirety. A chance to repeat the project would, however, allow me to develop more alternative planning methods apart from the three listed above. References Anthes G 2011 ‘Invasion of the mobile apps’, Communications of the ACM, Vol 54, p16-18. Barrow C, Barrow P & Brown R 2012 The Business Plan Workbook, 7th edition, Kogan Page. Blackwell, E. 2008 ‘Chapter 9: How not to write a business plan – or run a business’ In How to Prepare a Business Plan, 5th Edition, Kogan Page, p133-139. Eriksson P &Kovalainen A 2011 ‘Chapter 12: Focus Group Research’ In Qualitative Methods in Business Research, Sage, London, p173-192. Read More