A business plan for a social enterprise should show two things: what kind of positive change you want to create in society, and how the business can stay financially, socially and environmentally sustainable and robust over time. It’s similar to a regular business plan, but where social-, economic- and environmental sustainability is a clear red thread throughout.
The plan usually starts with a short summary: your purpose, which social problem you want to help solve, what solution you offer, who you’re targeting, who will pay, and how the business will earn enough to keep going. Then you go a bit deeper into your mission and social goals and show how you take both social and environmental sustainability into account – for example through choice of suppliers, materials, daily operations, transport, and how you involve customers and service users through co‑creation and co‑production.
Next, you describe your market and services with a focus on sustainability: who pays, who benefits, what products and services you offer, and why they are a more socially and environmentally sustainable, and unique, option compared to what already exists. In the part about organisation and daily operations, you explain how the business is set up, what roles and skills you need, and how you run things in a way that supports sustainable solutions, for example by cutting waste, ensuring good working conditions, and promoting social inclusion.
BUSINESS PLAN FOR A COMMUNITY-BASED ENTERPRISE
A business plan is a structured description of a business idea and how it will be implemented in practice. It helps to clarify the different aspects of the business and explains to external stakeholders how the company operates. It also helps, for example, funders assess the viability of the business idea.
Various business planning templates are available online free of charge. There are also several business plan models designed specifically for social enterprises, which take into account the social mission of the business.
The business plan of a community-based social enterprise is structurally similar to that of any other company. However, there is one fundamental difference: a community-based social enterprise should explicitly highlight its social purpose and the role of the community in shaping its business activities.
Community-based enterprise differs from other forms of entrepreneurship in areas such as governance and decision-making: how the enterprise is managed, who makes decisions, how local communities are involved, and how they are taken into account in the company’s activities.
Attention may also be paid to how activities are organised within the community: who participates in the enterprise, with what backgrounds and skills, in what roles, and so on.
A business plan is flexible in format, but it typically includes at least the following sections: basic company information, description of the business idea, the entrepreneur’s skills and competences, analyses conducted to support the business idea, description of products and services, description of customers, markets and competitors, sales and marketing, business objectives, risk management, financial management and necessary agreements, as well as financial calculations required for the business.
Here is a proposed structure for a business plan for a community-based social enterprise (PDF)
Other business plan templates
Business plan template from Údaras na Gaeltachta , Ireland (Word file)
