Exploring the Potential of Your Idea or Venture

1. Exploring the Potential of Your Idea or Venture Presented at ‘Agroforestry: Diversification Options for Communities Impacted by the Mountain Pine Beetle’ December 4, 2009 Prince George, BC George W. Powell, PhD, PAg

2. Outline Scoping Your Idea Know Your Enterprise / Know Yourself Work From a Plan Failure to Plan is Planning to Fail SWOT it! Understand your Strengths and Weaknesses Assess Potential Risks and Rewards

3. Scoping Your Idea “The birth of an idea is the happy moment in which everything appears possible and reality has not yet entered into the problem.” - Rudolph Diesel -

4. Scoping Your Idea How do you assess if your idea will succeed and is the right opportunity for you? Know Your Enterprise  Build a Business Plan Know Yourself  SWOT Analysis

5. Work From a Plan • Business Plan Elements • Business overview • Products & services • Industry overview • Marketing strategy • Management and staffing • Regulatory issues • Risks • Implementation plan • Financial plan • Failure to Plan is Planning to Fail

6. Enterprise Planning Production Markets The “Plan” Administration Finance

7. Enterprise Planning Production Markets What, where, when and how to: Grow / Harvest Process Package The “Plan” Administration Finance

8. Enterprise Planning Production Markets Cyclical / Stable Wholesale / Direct Fixed Price / Floating Seasonal / Year-round The “Plan” Administration Finance

9. Enterprise Planning Production Markets Long-term debts Short-term cash flow Self-finance, borrow or outside investors The “Plan” Administration Finance

10. Enterprise Planning Production Markets Regulations Taxation Human Resources Operating Structure The “Plan” Administration Finance

11. SWOT Analysis Internal External Strengths Opportunities Weaknesses Threats

12. SWOT Analysis Strengths and Weaknesses Assessment Does this interest me? Does it fit with my values? With the community values? Do I have the knowledge? Resources? Time? Risk tolerance? Diversify, don’t Diworseify

13. SWOT Analysis Strengths and Weaknesses Assessment Identify the information gaps; is your idea ready to implement or do you need more time for research and develoment? Is your skill set complete? Can you find training or hire someone to fill the gaps?* “If you think education is expensive, try ignorance.” - Derek Bok - (former President, Harvard University)

14. SWOT Analysis Opportunities and Threats Assessment Do the potential rewards justify the risks? Evaluate your risks in light of the worst case scenario, and be conservative with production and revenue projections.

15. Next Steps • Turn your plan into a playbook • Set short-term goals and monitor your results. • Adjust as necessary but don’t ride a bad idea into the ground. “Even if you are on the right track you’ll get run over if you just sit there.” - Will Rogers -

16. Summary • In order to evaluate if an idea is right for you, you must know your enterprise and know yourself. • Invest in planning before investing in production. Failure to plan is planning to fail. • Assess your strengths and weaknesses honestly and invest in professional help when needed. • Turn your plan into a playbook and monitor your successes and failures.

17. ForMoreInformation • Planning Resources • Business Plan Examples and Forms • www.canadabusiness.ca/eng/guide/2089/ • Farm Business Advisory Services • www.gov.bc.ca/al/ • Framework for Evaluating Specialty Crops • www.agf.gov.bc.ca/speccrop/publications/evaluate_spcrop.htm • Contact me: • info@agforinsight.com • www.agforinsight.com