Singapore is a region where foreigners and expats set up their international companies for several reasons that are mostly favorable to them such as Singapore’s talented workforce, the ease that is associated with starting a legal business in the country, diverse-cultured residents, tax incentives, etc. However, as an expat who is planning to start a business in Singapore, one of the ways for your company to be approved by the government of Singapore and to be registered in ACRA (Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority) is for your company to be able to have a business plan since before you apply for the registration of company Singapore, the business plan for the company is one of the necessary requirements.
Business planning is very significant in terms of setting up business entities and the beauty of it is that once its applications are done right, your business will achieve a certain rating that will soon attract and earn the trust of your partner, manager, staff, directors, suppliers, distributors and investors. However, once you have done it incorrectly, your business will have to face a certain liability, a lot of risks and problems to the point of collapsing.
Before discussing the reasons why you need a business plan to follow for all the days and years your company is in operation, let’s discuss what a business plan is.
- A business plan refers to a set of documents stating in detail the reasons and manner how your business is going to be run which includes everything as to how it is going to be promoted, how it is planned to be funded and to whom you will address your service or product to.
- A business plan includes the forecast of its financial activity for the business which explains the amount of money the business can possibly make and how this is going to be done by an accountant. Also, included is the amount of money that is needed and reserved to finance your business, but that is not only limited to that since the plan on the how the funds are to be raised and the number of funding that you think will be needed are also a part of the business plan.
- A business plan includes your market research in detail showing the size of your market and who comprises your customers. You will categorize your market according to your customers’ personal information which includes their spending habits, socio-economic groups, earning power, interests and age.
- A business plan may also include information explaining the number of people your company will employ, when they will be recruited and the number of those that will be recruited. This will be very helpful in making your financial forecasts and in convincing investors that you have thoroughly thought about your business ideas.
- A business plan is updated regularly taking into consideration the economic climate as well as those that are taking place in the industry to give you an assurance of having a clear knowledge as to which direction you will take your business.
Why is a business plan needed?
- By setting out a correct plan you will be able to determine if your business ideas work or not. By making sales, cash flow and financial forecasts as well as looking at the kind of target market your business will have, you can be able to figure out if your ideas work for the business and how conveniently you will gain profit from it.
- Since it exactly lays out the strategies you have and the ways you are running your business, a business plan that is written well enough which has the incorporation of relevant figures can help you in convincing investors about the reliability of your business proposition.
- A business plan that is researched well, containing the realistic forecasts and the accurate figures will provide potential investors with the reassurance that your business promises sensible investment opportunities.
- Even though you may not be planning on raising money, through having a business plan you will be able to plan in detail what the outcome of your business will be. This will result in having a comprehensive study about the way you handle various scenarios.
- The business plan has enough room for you to list your specific business objectives and goals which help you to decide clearly about how you are going to reach these goals as well as the time when you are going to achieve them, and strongly encouraging you to follow that certain plan.
- Since detailed market and financial forecasts are included in the business plan, it will help in managing cash flow as it shows you in detail your expectations of your outgoings and incomings within the stated periods of time.
Company Incorporation Singapore 