05: Management and personnel

Your business plan should not just detail the current structure and key skills of the existing management team. It should also identify the strengths and weaknesses of each member and of the team overall, and include plans to deal with these. You should also highlight any new skills the company will need if it is to meet its business objectives, and you should include your estimates of the timescales and costs involved in filling these gaps.

The management and personnel section of the plan should provide such information as:

• Overall workforce numbers.
• Efficiency ratios when compared to competitors.
• Retention rates.
• Your succession plans or actions needed to mitigate the loss of key workers.