The document outlines the importance of risk assessment in business planning, emphasizing that it helps entrepreneurs identify potential obstacles and prepare strategies to overcome them. It details various types of risks, including product, market, people, financial, and competitive risks, while highlighting why entrepreneurs may avoid thorough risk analysis. Additionally, it provides examples of risk questions and mentions business planning apps that can assist in the process.

1. Business Plan: Risks & Challenges
Kofi Kafui Kornu
@qaphui
http://dominicmary.blogspot.com

2. What’s a Business Plan?
• A summary of how a business owner,
manager, or entrepreneur intends to organize
an entrepreneurial endeavour and implement
activities necessary and sufficient for the
venture to succeed.- Wiktionary

3. Risk Analysis
• The identification and assessment of factors
that may hinder the progress of a project (in
this case, the start-up) or the achievement of
a goal.
• It also helps to define preventive measures to
reduce the probability of the risks arising, or
possible solutions to such risks.
• REMEMBER: “If you fail to plan, you plan to
fail”

4. Why do people shy away from risk
assessment in a Business Plan?
• Start-up entrepreneurs are afraid of scaring
off potential investors!
• Others think a SWOT Analysis is enough.
IT. IS. NOT!

5. Why the need to assess risks
Shows investors:
•That one has thought through some risks
•That the entrepreneur knows how to plan for
risks
•That the business plan (and therefore the
business) can survive

6. Types of Risks
• Product risk: risk that a product cannot be
created. Example: Biotech companies
• Market risk: risk that market may not grow as
expected.
• People risk: occurs when the company depends
on having ‘certain’ employees
• Financial risk: risk of the company mismanaging
funds or running out of money
• Competitive risk: risk of competing
service/product

7. Sample risk questions:
• What if your KEY employees quit?
• What if demand for your service/product decreases?
• What if your major suppliers run into financial
difficulties?
• What are the technological advances in your
business and are you able to keep up?
• What if you run out of cash? How do you pay bills?
• In case of injury to you, do you have someone to
take over management role(S)?

8. Business Plan Apps
• Enloop (web-based)
• StratPad (iPad only)

9. References:
• Robbins, Steve. (2004). Retrieved from
www.entrepreneur.com/article/49042
• Schlough, Charles. (2001). Knowing Your
Market – The Most Challenging Part of a
Business Plan.

10. Resources
• Steve Blank’s Lean Launchpad Course on
Udacity’s website
• Business Model Canvas