The Executive Summary is the most important section of your business plan. It provides a concise overview of the entire plan along with a history of your company. This section tells your reader where your company is and where you want to take it. It's the first thing your readers see. Therefore, it is the thing that will either grab their interest and make them want to keep reading . . . or make them want to put it down and forget about it. More than anything else, this section is important because it tells the reader "why" you think your business idea will be Successful.
The Executive Summary should be the last section you write. After you've worked out all the details of your business plan, you'll be in a better position to summarize it. And it should be a summary (ie., no more than 4 pages!).
Contents of the Executive Summary
If you're just starting a business, you won't have a lot of information to plug into the areas mentioned above. Instead, focus on your experience and background as well as the decisions that led you to start this particular enterprise. Include information about the problems your target market has and what solutions you provide. Show how the expertise you have will allow you to make significant inroads into the market.
Tell your reader what you're going to do differently or better. Convince the reader that there is a need for your service or product. Then go ahead and address your (the company's) future plans.
To assist the reader in locating specific sections in your business plan, include a table of contents directly following the Executive Summary. Make sure that the content titles are very broad. In other words, avoid detailed descriptions in your table of contents.
Strategic Planning
Business Plans
Strategic Planning Methodologies
Mission Statements
Management Resources
Managing
Leadership
Marketing
Financing
Strategic Planning
Business Technology
Special Interest Topics
Business Taxes
Recruiting
Staffing
HR Outsourcing
Medical Recruiting
International Services
Bilingual Recruiting
Global Locations
Company Information
Partnerships
Job Seekers
Online Degree Programs
Degrees by Career Path
Colleges by State
Careerbuilder.com
HotJobs.com
Monster.com
HR News
Benefits
Workplace
Recruiting
Business Process