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A business plan is a formal document that communicates to its readers your business ideas, positions, and future action course. However, it is also crucial for startup businesses to draw out a full-fledged business plan.It bridges the gap between where you are now and where you want to take your business in the coming future. It acts as a roadmap for your business endeavours to thoroughly examine every step you would have to take.From an investor's point of view, also, a business plan is a necessary document. It conveys to them the potential of the business idea and its scope for growth.Follow the template provided below to create a perfect business plan for your startup.Executive SummaryBegin with an executive summary that encapsulates the core idea of the plan. It underlines the essence of the entire business plan and should be written to ensure accuracy.Company DescriptionProvide a company description highlighting its motivations, goals, and objectives. Communicate the idea of what your business stands for through this section.Product and ServicePlease elaborate on your product or service and characterize its production process. Give out its unique properties and details of every step involved in its manufacturing or production.ManagementProvide an explicatory view of your management organization and operations. The internal workings of the organization form the crust of this section.Marketing PlanIncorporate a marketing plan that features the price and promotion strategies of your product.Competitive analysisDedicate a section to competitive analysis delivering a market overview with competition status.Financial projectionsSpecify your proposed financing along with outlining the future projections of the business. Provide a descriptive view of your financial position.And a business plan is ready for your startup.Do follow Metvy Networking on Quora for more business, marketing work, and other value-based content.

In on of our articles we wrote about project plan templates! Take a look!How to Write a Project PlanBefore you start writing your project plan, you and your stakeholders need to clarify the specific objective and scope of your project. Once you’ve clearly defined these elements, you can start gathering information. Then you should take these steps:MEET WITH THE CLIENT.One crucial component of the data-gathering stage is the client interview. To create an effective plan, you’ll need to have a crystal-clear understanding of your client’s expectations. So meet with your client, and take comprehensive notes. Get an appreciation for their level of knowledge about the product. Discuss deliverable dates and scheduled absences that may interfere with those dates. During this meeting, establish the method of communication your team and the client will be using, and how often the communication will take place.IDENTIFY YOUR TEAM.Once you feel you have a detailed understanding of your client’s needs and expectations, you can identify and gather all the people you need to successfully execute the project. Identify groups or departments responsible for each project phase, then identify specific people within those groups for the completion of specific tasks and subtasks.SEEK TEAM INPUT.Seek input from your team about all of the information you’ve gathered so far, such as deliverables, client expectations, and cursory budget estimates. Based on your team’s input, you’ll be making modifications to the project plan. In fact, you’ll be making changes throughout the formulation and execution of the plan. Since project plans are dynamic, living documentation of your journey, they can change as the project’s lifecycle evolves. Once you’ve identified with all stakeholders involved and communicated with them, you can start drafting your plan.Create the Formal Project PlanOnce you have a rough draft, you may want to move your plan into project management software. Or if you prefer, you can use online templates to track your project. Whatever method you choose, make sure it’s robust enough to include every necessary detail of your project plan.With your team, start transforming the outline into a comprehensive plan, and make sure you include all necessary details within each phase and task. Most project management teams take advantage of related software to help them fill in all the data points of a plan. Managing a project through dynamic software allows a team to continually reassess how the project is being executed in real time, while identifying gaps and weak points.A completely formalized plan addresses all necessary project considerations, such as stakeholder input, project integration, the allocation of human resources, a communications plan, risk assessments, scheduling, cost assessment, and quality control.Stakeholder Input: Identify the responsibilities, priorities, and conflicts, of each stakeholder.Project Integration & Scope: Consider the entire project from a holistic viewpoint, and integrate all its pieces.Human Resource Allocation: Identify the skills needed to complete the project and a plan for acquiring them.Communications Plan: Identify the go-to method for communication with all stakeholders and the expected frequency of communication.Assessing Risk, Limitations, and Dependencies: Determine how to mitigate potential risks, limitations, and dependencies.Scheduling: All phases, tasks, and subtasks should be scheduled using start-by and complete-by dates.Assessing Cost: Determine the overall budget and the cost controls of each resource and phase of the project.Quality Control: Identify a method to ensure that the highest level of quality is maintained throughout the process.Depending on the project, these components can be addressed by creating sub-plans within the formal plan, or they can be explained via entries on a project plan template. At the very least, your project plan should include:A schedule that identifies phases, tasks, and subtasks,Parties responsible for those tasks, and the start and end dates.Tools for project plan management that allow you to add detailed notes about each task, as needed.PRESENT YOUR PLAN TO INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL STAKEHOLDERSOnce you’ve used your chosen platform to write your project plan, distribute it to all internal stakeholders. Give them time to thoroughly read and ingest it, then meet with them to verify their understanding, incorporate their feedback, and answer any questions they may have.Present your formalized plan to your client and seek their feedback. Answer the following questions during the process. Have their expectations been met? Do they have any upcoming events that could interfere with the timing of the project deliverables? Are they satisfied with the agreed-upon mode and frequency of communication?If you are interested, you can read the whole article here: The Only Project Plan Template You'll Ever Need (incl. 6 Examples) - Filestage Blog.

To get a job in Canada, you must do 5 things:Creating a resumé that’s consistently gets shortlistedCreate a LinkedIn profile that gets found by recruitersBuild a network that will get you referrals to jobsStand out in your online job applicationAcing the job interviewI’ll break down each section for you. At the end, if you even apply 1 thing from this answer you should see a significant difference in your job search in Canada.Canada’s hiring practices are competitive and conservative, especially for newcomers to Canada. But as a newcomer myself, I can confidently tell you that finding the right job early, will reward you big time in the near future. It’s the only reason I was able to afford a home in Canada during these difficult times with the housing market at an all-time high…So let’s get to it!The biggest complaint job seekers have is that they apply for jobs online and don’t hear back.The second biggest complaint is they are getting interviews, but they are not converting to job offers, and they don’t get any feedback as to why.Anyone of the above 5 things could be the root cause.So let’s start at the beginning - your resumé.#1 CREATE A RESUMÉ THAT CONSISTENTLY GETS SHORTLISTEDIn this day and age, machines and artificial intelligence is part of the job application process.It’s important to remember that your resumé has to pass the initial screening of an applicant tracking system (“ATS”) that is programmed to match keywords from the job description to your resumé.Only once your resumé is ranked high, will it get to a recruiter’s eyes.The recruiter is only aware of what is on the job description. So if something is on your resumé that’s not on the job description, it’s going to be alien to her, and a distraction to vital content that is relevant.The other point you have to remember, is that you resumé is scanned for 7.4 seconds (according to research by The Ladders) before a recruiter decides if this resumé is worth a detailed read.So not only does your resumé’s content need to be relevant, that relevant info needs to light up like a Christmas tree the moment that page is opened.You can download a template of such a resumé at the bottom of this answer.Your target job titlePut the job title of the job description right under your name at the top. That’s your headline.Not only will the ATS rank your resumé higher, the recruiter will immediately observe that this is a resumé that is relevant to the role she is trying to fill.It does not matter if your current/last job matches that title. The purpose of the headline is to establish what job you are applying for.Your actual job titles that you had goes in the work history section.Your Professional SummaryThe very first line of your resumé should indicate the years of experience you have, your job function, your industry (optional) and key soft skills that provides context to an achievement or accomplishment.Ditch any tired overused business jargon like “Result oriented” or “Passionate”. Readers have grown tired of these phrases that provide no proof or context.An example would be “Project Management professional with 7+ years experience in the construction industry, responsible for managing the completely life-cycle of projects from tender to close-out, giving high attention to detail with project management documentation that fosters positive collaboration and communications with project stakeholders, resulting in < 5% project budget variances.”And just like that, within 7 seconds of seeing your target job title and professional summary, I already have 50% of the info I need to make that call. Now I’m ready to read the rest of your resumé.You’d be surprised - for many resumé’s I have read, I’ve spent 5 minutes reading it and I still don’t know what type of job the person is looking for or what they do.Work ExperienceThe biggest mistake I see job seekers making here is listing out their responsibilities like a task list.The second biggest mistake is using this section as a dumping ground from a brainstorming session of their past responsibilities and skills.If there is one thing you should take away from this answer, it’s this:NEVER start a job search without researching the job market.A job search is a marketing project.Your resumé is a marketing document.You cannot - I repeat - absolutely cannot, assume that your past roles and responsibilities is exactly what your future employer is looking for.Review 5–7 job description for research purposes. Check what are the most common responsibility, skills and qualifications required.Only then, create a resumé that speaks to that research.Every company does things differently. Times change. Roles evolve. If you have not been job searching for a long time, it’s likely the market needs something different from your job title.Once you done that research, don’t just like your responsibilities like a task list. This may be the norm in some countries.But in Canada, you need to stand out from your competition by explaining what you did (the task) how you did it differently, and proof you did it well.Be specific, provide context, and quantify wherever possible.For example, instead of stating:“Created project management plans and made sure they remained up to date.”You could restate it to:“Created project management plans using MS project and advanced excel formulas to track project scope, budget and timelines. Documents were cleanly formatted and consistently communicated to all project stakeholders via SharePoint, creating a culture of continuous feedback that reduced project scope to < 10% while maintaining budget variance of < 5%”This resumé would rank well for a job description where project management plans, MS Office and SharePoint were important keywords.EducationDon’t go overboard with your education. State it before your work experience if you’re a new grad or need to fill an employment gap.In most case for mid-level roles and higher, education goes last in a Canadian resumé.State your major, the college name and that’s it. Exclude the year if you graduated over 5 years ago, else you will be dating yourself and opening yourself up to age discrimination.Volunteer ExperienceDefinitely a plus point. Large enterprise organizations value volunteer work in Canada, as community outreach is a value they pride themselves on.Again, it goes to the end of your resumé, unless it also serves to fill an employment gap.#2 CREATE A LINKEDIN PROFILE THAT GETS FOUND BY RECRUITERSAccording to a study by Jobvite, 87% of recruiters check out a candidates LinkedIn profile.So if you’ve been neglecting it, make sure you spruce it up - it could be the tie-breaker for the recruiter between calling you for the interview vs someone else.Recruiters search LinkedIn for talent. And once again, keywords play an important role.When they search, they enter criteria such as industry and location, but they will also enter keywords from the job description to further filter their search.Another reason why that research I mentioned earlier is so vital.Profile PictureAccording to a LinkedIn source, having a profile picture increases the likelihood of your profile being read by 14 times.It also helps establish trust and likability with the recruiter. Considering that in a Canadian resumé, you cannot include personal details like your photograph (along with your date of birth and gender), a picture is still worth a thousand words.So make sure you get a good (ideally professional) headshot of yourself. It’s worth the time and money to get a good photo done.HeadlineBe sure to update the headline from the default. LinkedIn auto inserts your last job title and company here if you leave it blank.Big mistake.Your headline is highly important in LinkedIn’s search software for ranking high for recruiter searches.So pack it with relevant skills and keywords from your search.Work HistoryYou could take the easy way out and just copy paste your resumé here.But smart job seekers are using their work history to tell a story.You see in many cases, a recruiter has seen your resumé already, and has moved on to your LinkedIn profile to learn more.So give her more! Elaborate on the problems you solved, how you solved them, the challenges you faced, and the difference you made in the organization.Your resumé is for stating facts and being direct and to the point.Your LinkedIn profile is for story-telling.#BUILDING A NETWORK THAT WILL GET YOU REFERRALS TO JOBSThis is the single biggest activity in your job search strategy that will end your job search sooner than later.It is said that 80% of the job market is hidden. That doesn’t mean the job is not advertised, as regulatory requirements in Canada require them to be so.It means that the hiring manager has already ear-marked the position to someone in advance. In other words - the “preferred candidate”.Why did they choose this preferred candidate? Because the candidate took an active effort to stay in touch with the hiring manager.That’s what networking is about. Staying in touch.And so many people fail at networking in Canada. Because they think it’s transactional.The first stage of networking in Canada is nurturing. i.e. Giving unconditionally until your contact is ready to give back.It’s like planting a tree. You plant the seed. You provide food and water without expecting that tree to bear fruit. Then eventually, with enough nourishment, that tree will bear fruit for you on its own.Networking is exactly the same. You can’t expect a new contact to have a job for in their back pocket the moment you connect with them.But eventually they will. The question is, when that time comes, will they remember you and trust you enough to put their reputation on the line to give you that referral.This is why many job seekers fail at networking. They treat every contact as a transaction.They send a LinkedIn message - “Hi I’d like to connect. I’m looking for a job in Canada. Let me know if you hear of anything.”No!I will not let you know if I heard of anything. Why should I? What do I owe you?If you truly want to build a network, start by nurturing a network.Your Canadian networking planTarget 10–15 companies you want to work for.Go to LinkedIn and do a filtered people search. Filter by the company name, location, and keywords from the job title. For example, if you are in supply chain, enter “Supply Chain” in the job title.Find senior managers, directors, and VPs. Yes, go as high up as them. Because these are the people with the power, authority and who control the budget to hire you.Send them a customize LinkedIn invite (or Inmail if you’ve invested in Premier).Set calendar reminders to stay in touch with them every two weeks.What is “Staying in touch”It’s not “Hi”, “How are you”, “Thanks for connecting”, “Hope you’re doing well”.Don’t be a lazy networker.Staying in touch means offering value to your network. Learn about their company, learn about the industry, and share information with them.If you live in their community, share community news. VPs and directors are usually volunteering their time by being on board of directors of non-profit organizations.Learn about what they do, and offer your support.THAT is networking!Is it hard? Yes!Does it take up more time? Yes!Will it end your job search sooner and put more money in your pocket? Hell yes!#4 STAND OUT WITH YOUR ONLINE JOB APPLICATIONThere are over ~200 applicants for every job. How are you standing out?Here’s what you should be doing:Customizing your resumé for every job application. Use http://jobscan.co to scan your resumé to make sure it scores high with the ATS. No job seeker to be looking for work without this vital tool.Create a cover letter that starts with a hook - something captivates the reader. Provide an example of a common problem in your industry, and how you’ve solved that problem in the past. End with a call to action with your contact details, expressing your excitement and why you want to work for this company.Contact the hiring manager directly. Use the filtered LinkedIn search I explained earlier, and discover who the hiring manager might be. At times, job descriptions give you the exact job title the position will be reporting to.Most people don’t go through this much effort for an application.They are happy submitting a generic resumé, clicking submit, and relying on hope.Stop hoping. Take control of your application by going after the jobs you apply for. This is how I got three job offers in three weeks from landing in Canada.I just didn’t rely on those machines and recruiters to filter my resumé. I made sure the hiring manager - the one decision-maker for every job - knew my name!#5 ACING THE JOB INTERVIEWThe job does not go to the most qualified candidate. It goes to the most prepared.When preparing for your job interview, you need to prepare the following areas:Tell me about yourselfThis is the first question you will be asked, and you need to practice this a million times until it comes naturally to you.I’ve conducted countless interviews in Canada, and most candidates bore me to death with their answer.The answer should be no longer than 60 seconds. The manager doesn’t want you to parrot back what’s already on the resumé.Start with your years in the industry as an opening line, and from there move on to the two biggest skills you believe you possess.Then, tell a story about how you’ve used those skills, ideally in a specific project. Be sure that, in the story, you are emphasizing on the “I” instead of “We”.Most people are thinking of a team project, so they use the word “We”. But remember, the hiring manager is not hiring your former team. She is hiring you! So be sure your story focuses on how you specifically contributed to that project with the skills you mentioned.And finally, wind up with why you are interested in this position.60 seconds - no more!Practice this introduction by recording yourself on your phone - I highly recommend it if you are serious about getting that job.The core questionsInterviews in Canada are conducted using behavioural interview questions. This is very different from other parts of the world.These types of questions typically start with “Tell me about a time when…” or “How would handle this situation…”You must prepare to answer them in advance. Managers can immediately tell when someone is winging it.How to prepare?Look at each responsibility in the job description, and think about a time when you had to use that responsibility.Organize your story in the S.T.A.R. format.What is the S.ituation you were put in, what was the T.ask you were assigned, what A.ction did you take, and what the R.esult you achieved.For example, the tough question could be “Tell me about a time you had a disagreement with your boss, how did you handle it?”(Yes, these are the types of questions you could be asked in Canadian interview)A good answer for a call center team leader (for example) is this:“We had a situation once where the manager asked us to reduce the hold time between calls to 0 seconds so we could reduce our call wait times. I knew this would be a problem as our agents used this time to complete the ticket data entry. I voiced my concern and tasked myself to check with the team first. It turns out I was right. The team stated that if they did not get this time, the ticket quality would suffer. I reached by to the manager and explained the situation and provided examples as well. He understood and retracted his suggestion, much to the relief of the other team leads.”Not only is this a great answer, you’ve also shown you’ve taken ownership, and been a true leader for supporting your employees and peers.Note the cultural difference here. In other parts of the world, this answer may not be acceptable. In hierarchal cultures, you follow the bosses command without question. Canada’s culture is more egalitarian. Everyone’s opinion matters, and (good) management expect you to speak up and challenge them where required.Closing the interviewYou will be asked at the end if you have any questions for the interviewer.The wrong answer is “No”.You must prepare questions in the advance. Good questions could be:Questions about the team/company cultureWhat are the first projects you will be handlingQuestions about the department’s goals and objectivesQuestions about the biggest challenges the manager is facing.Do NOT ask questions about pay and benefits. That comes after the job offer.It’s all up to youWhether you’re a newcomer to Canada, a new graduate or a seasons Canadian professional, these basic tips go a long way in giving you the career you deserve.I know it’s a lot to take in. But take it one step at a time.Start by downloading this Canadian resumé template that I’ve created. I’ve personally used this, and so have my students with resounding success in Canada.Click here to download the template.To your success in Canada.