Welcome back to this month’s entry of SHOWBIZ OVERDO™.
The focus for today’s discussion will be expert views on the value of
business plans. Two very successful experts in the industry are Andrea Cockerton
and PhD Carl Schramm. We will focus on what are some of the critical and key
components that investors are looking for when reviewing a business plan. Andrea
Cockerton is from the United Kingdom and is an independent pitch expert and
advisor. Throughout her career she has worked with three hundred and fifty
entrepreneurs in the world of business. Her expertise revolves around “venture
funding and business critical ideas.”
Andrea Cockerston’s success throughout her career has allow
her to be able to hold entrepreneurial workshops, network events for businesses
in the United Kingdom and has also helped large companies develop key talks in
order to successfully impact the business world. One of her suggestion that
I’ve considered for my own plan is when Andrea mentions that it is important to
ask for money from investors and bankers before there is no cash left. Andrea
states, “Going to investors at too late a stage is a risky strategy. Better is
to look at the long-term objectives.” Carl Schramm is a PhD economist and also
a former President and CEO of the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation in 2012, which
is a private philanthropic foundation.
The Economist magazine
named Schramm the "evangelist of entrepreneurship". The most
critical and key component that Carl Schramm is looking for in a business plan is
the characteristics of the entrepreneur. Carl Schramm believes that
entrepreneurs must be outsiders, and capable of asking the hard questions. The
entrepreneur usually has worked in multiple places in the world, and been
involved with a start up company. Also the entrepreneur has worked in multiple
industries and has had a job that he or she did not like. The most valuable
point that I’ve gained personally for my own business plan is that Carl Schramm
does not believe in sticking to business plans. It is important to be able to adapt to changes
and respond intelligently. He believes that business plans get out
of date quickly, and things never go as planned. Especially working in the entertainment business.
