(1) A broad category of business processes that are modeled as objects. A business object can be as large as an entire order processing system or a small process within an information system. See object-oriented programming.

(2) (Business Objects) A San Jose-based company acquired by SAP in 2007 for its leadership in business intelligence and decision support tools. Business Objects was founded in France in 1990 by Bernard Liautaud and Denis Payre and was the first to integrate query, reporting and OLAP into one product that shields users from the complexities of making a query. In this context, the word "objects" does not refer to object-oriented programming as in definition #1 above, but to "business items." See SAP.

BusinessObjects (One Word)

Business Objects' products were always branded as one word and fall under the SAP BusinessObjects umbrella. Its flagship software is a suite of query, reporting and analysis tools that runs under Windows and Unix. It provides access to a wide variety of databases, including Oracle, INFORMIX and DB2. As data are extracted from the database, they are stored as multidimensional OLAP cubes that can be easily sliced and diced into different views. See OLAP.

The Semantic Layer

BusinessObjects uses a patented semantic layer that shields users from the complexities of table names and relationships. Once the semantic layer has been defined, users work with familiar "business objects" such as product, customer and revenue.

Whether you need a quick-launch overview or an in-depth plan for investors, any business plan should cover the six key elements outlined in our free template and explained below. The main difference in starting a small business versus an investor-funded business is the market research and operational and financial details needed to support the concept.

1. Your Mission or Vision

Start by declaring a “dream statement” for your business. You can call this your executive summary, vision statement or mission. Whatever the name, the first part of your business plan summarizes your idea by answering five questions. Keep it brief, such as an elevator pitch. You’ll expand these answers in the following sections of the simple business plan template.

• What does your business do? Are you selling products, services, information or a combination?
• Where does this happen? Will you conduct business online, in-store, via mobile means or in a specific location or environment?
• Who does your business benefit? Who is your target market and ideal customer for your concept?
• Why would potential customers care? What would make your ideal customers take notice of your business?
• How do your products and/or services outshine the competition? What would make your ideal customers choose you over a competitor?

These answers come easily if you have a solid concept for your business, but don’t worry if you get stuck. Use the rest of your plan template to brainstorm ideas and tactics. You’ll quickly find these answers and possibly new directions as you explore your ideas and options.

2. Offer and Value Proposition

This is where you detail your offer, such as selling products, providing services or both, and why anyone would care. That’s the value proposition. Specifically, you’ll expand on your answers to the first and fourth bullets from your mission/vision.

As you complete this section, you might find that exploring value propositions uncovers marketable business opportunities that you hadn’t yet considered. So spend some time brainstorming the possibilities in this section.

For example, a cottage baker startup specializing in gluten-free or keto-friendly products might be a value proposition that certain audiences care deeply about. Plus, you could expand on that value proposition by offering wedding and other special-occasion cakes that incorporate gluten-free, keto-friendly and traditional cake elements that all guests can enjoy.

3. Audience and Ideal Customer

Here is where you explore bullet point number three, who your business will benefit. Identifying your ideal customer and exploring a broader audience for your goods or services is essential in defining your sales and marketing strategies, plus it helps fine-tune what you offer.

There are many ways to research potential audiences, but a shortcut is to simply identify a problem that people have that your product or service can solve. If you start from the position of being a problem solver, it’s easy to define your audience and describe the wants and needs of your ideal customer for marketing efforts.

Using the cottage baker startup example, a problem people might have is finding fresh-baked gluten-free or keto-friendly sweets. Examining the wants and needs of these people might reveal a target audience that is health-conscious or possibly dealing with health issues and willing to spend more for hard-to-find items.

However, it’s essential to have a customer base that can support your business. You can be too specialized. For example, our baker startup can attract a broader audience and boost revenue by offering a wider selection of traditional baked goods alongside its gluten-free and keto-focused specialties.

4. Revenue Streams, Sales Channels and Marketing

Thanks to our internet-driven economy, startups have many revenue opportunities and can connect with target audiences through various channels. Revenue streams and sales channels also serve as marketing vehicles, so you can cover all three in this section.

Revenue Streams

Revenue streams are the many ways you can make money in your business. In your plan template, list how you’ll make money upon launch, plus include ideas for future expansion. The income possibilities just might surprise you.

For example, our cottage baker startup might consider these revenue streams:

• Product sales: Online, pop-up shops, wholesale and (future) in-store sales
• Affiliate income: Monetize blog and social media posts with affiliate links
• Advertising income: Reserve website space for advertising
• E-book sales: (future) Publish recipe e-books targeting gluten-free and keto-friendly dessert niches
• Video income: (future) Monetize a YouTube channel featuring how-to videos for the gluten-free and keto-friendly dessert niches
• Webinars and online classes: (future) Monetize coaching-style webinars and online classes covering specialty baking tips and techniques
• Members-only content: (future) Monetize a members-only section of the website for specialty content to complement webinars and online classes
• Franchise: (future) Monetize a specialty cottage bakery concept and sell to franchise entrepreneurs

Sales Channels

Sales channels put your revenue streams into action. This section also answers the “where will this happen” question in the second bullet of your vision.

The product sales channels for our cottage bakery example can include:

• Mobile point-of-sale (POS): A mobile platform such as Shopify or Square POS for managing in-person sales at local farmers’ markets, fairs and festivals
• E-commerce platform: An online store such as Shopify, Square or WooCommerce for online retail sales and wholesale sales orders
• Social media channels: Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest shoppable posts and pins for online sales via social media channels
• Brick-and-mortar location: For in-store sales, once the business has grown to a point that it can support a physical location

Channels that support other income streams might include:

• Affiliate income: Blog section on the e-commerce website and affiliate partner accounts
• Advertising income: Reserved advertising spaces on the e-commerce website
• E-book sales: Amazon e-book sales via Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing
• Video income: YouTube channel with ad monetization
• Webinars and online classes: Online class and webinar platforms that support member accounts, recordings and playback
• Members-only content: Password-protected website content using membership apps such as MemberPress

Marketing

Nowadays, the line between marketing and sales channels is blurred. Social media outlets, e-books, websites, blogs and videos serve as both marketing tools and income opportunities. Since most are free and those with advertising options are extremely economical, these are ideal marketing outlets for lean startups.

However, many businesses still find value in traditional advertising such as local radio, television, direct mail, newspapers and magazines. You can include these advertising costs in your simple business plan template to help build a marketing plan and budget.

5. Structure, Suppliers and Operations

This section of your simple business plan template explores how to structure and operate your business. Details include the type of business organization your startup will take, roles and responsibilities, provider logistics and day-to-day operations. Also, include any certifications or permits needed to launch your enterprise in this section.

Our cottage baker example might use a structure and startup plan such as this:

• Business structure: Sole proprietorship with a “doing business as” (DBA).
• Permits and certifications: County-issued food handling permit and state cottage food certification for home-based food production. Option, check into certified commercial kitchen rentals.
• Roles and responsibilities: Solopreneur, all roles and responsibilities with the owner.
• Supply chain: Bulk ingredients and food packaging via Sam’s Club, Costco, Amazon Prime with annual membership costs. Uline for shipping supplies; no membership needed.
• Day-to-day operations: Source ingredients and bake three days per week to fulfill local and online orders. Reserve time for specialty sales, wholesale partner orders and market events as needed. Ship online orders on alternating days. Update website and create marketing and affiliate blog posts on non-shipping days.

6. Financial Forecasts

Your final task is to list forecasted business startup and ongoing costs and profit projections in your simple business plan template. Thanks to free business tools such as Square and free marketing on social media, lean startups can launch with few upfront costs. In many cases, cost of goods, shipping and packaging, business permits and printing for business cards are your only out-of-pocket expenses.

Cost Forecast

Our cottage baker’s forecasted lean startup costs might include:

Gross Profit Projections

This helps you determine the retail prices and sales volume required to keep your business running and, hopefully, earn income for yourself. Use product research to spot target retail prices for your goods, then subtract your cost of goods, such as hourly rate, raw goods and provider costs. The total amount is your gross profit per item or service.

Here are some examples of projected gross profits for our cottage baker:

Bottom Line

Putting careful thought and detail in a business plan is always beneficial, but don’t get so bogged down in planning that you never hit the start button to launch your business. Also, remember that business plans aren’t set in stone. Markets, audiences and technologies change, and so will your goals and means of achieving them. Think of your business plan as a living document and regularly revisit, expand and restructure it as market opportunities and business growth demand.

If you’ve looked at templates and find that they don’t quite satisfy your company’s inventory needs, you can create your own sheet. By customizing your sheet, you ensure that you capture all the data that you need in one accessible document. Follow these steps to create your own inventory sheet.

Here’s how to create your own inventory sheet in just four steps:

Step 1. Open a Spreadsheet

You can use any spreadsheet you like. Common spreadsheet programs are Microsoft Excel, Google Sheets and Numbers. If more than one person needs to access the spreadsheet, make sure that all permissions are granted, and access is allowed.

Step 2. Name Your Headings

This gives you the information that you will collect on each item in inventory. Feel free to use templates to come up with headers you want to use.

Common headers include:

• Item Name
• SKU Number
• Unit Price
• Number in Stock
• Sale Price
• Minimum Order Quantity
• Order Time
• Supplier
• Discontinued Item

Step 3. Enter Basic Item Information

You are creating your own template that should have all the item information in it. The only columns that regularly change are the unit or sale price and the number in stock. You may also need to adjust the sheet if an item is discontinued. This step is time-consuming but required whether or not you use a template or create your own sheet.

Step 4. Save Your Work

Make sure to save your work and name the file as an inventory template so that you can access it regularly when you need to conduct inventory. When you do, make a copy of the file and rename it to a file name that includes the inventory date. For example, you may do inventory monthly and possibly name the file, “Inventory August 2022” for easy reference.

BusinessObjects was acquired by SAP in 2007 for $6 billion. BusinessObjects was acquired by SAP in 2009 for $78 billion, its largest acquisition to date. Initially, BusinessObjects operated independently, but in 2009 became a SAP division, and its products became SAP BusinessObjects.

ADAMS — Berkshire Business and Professional Women will discuss "Witchcraft in The Berkshires: Modern Witchcraft for Today’s Lives” at the group's next meeting.

The meeting will run from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Oct. 24 at Fire House Cafe and Bistro, 47 Park St., Adams.

Kira Staubach-Smith, witch and owner of Shire Alchemy, and Danielle Munn, eclectic witch and owner and founder of Witch Slapped in Pittsfield, will speak at the event.

The cost is $45 for non-members and $35 for members. The registration deadline is Sunday. Space is limited. Information/registration: Berkshirebpw.org.

As part of Easterseals professional development program, five early childhood educators from the Lily Preschool attended the Child Development Associate course July 29-31, in Orlando. The CDA course consisted of 30 hours of lecture and study hall, teaching techniques, skills and tools for individuals on their way to becoming early childhood teachers.

The course also included math, language and literature. At the completion of the course, attendees were certified to teach preschool classes throughout the United States.

The Lily Preschool at Easterseals Happiness House provides inclusive early childhood education for children 6 weeks to 5 years old. This inclusive model of education makes it possible to address the needs of students with disabilities as well as those typically developing children in a collaborative setting.

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© PROVIDED Hill

Dr. Washington Hill, an obstetrician and gynecologist with CenterPlace Health, in Sarasota, has received the 2022 Distinguished Service Award from the National Medical Association for exceptional work in medical service.

He accepted the award July 31 at the NMA’s Annual Convention and Scientific Assembly, the nation’s foremost forum on medical science and African American health.

CenterPlace Health, a Federally Qualified Health Center, provides high-quality, low-cost health care to those in and around Sarasota County.

Hill is currently the Senior OB, GYN, MFN at CenterPlace Health and Sarasota Memorial Hospital. He is also the founding director of Maternal-Fetal Health Medicine at Sarasota Memorial Hospital.

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© PROVIDED BY WBTT Graves

As its current marketing and communications professional prepares to retire, Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe has hired a new marketing and communications director, Beth Graves.

Graves will be responsible for developing and implementing strategic marketing plans that will enhance WBTT’s reach while maintaining its stellar reputation. 

Prior to coming to WBTT, Graves accumulated experience in the nonprofit, arts and private sectors. She was the marketing manager for John Cannon Homes, worked seven years with the Circus Arts Conservatory as its marketing manager, was marketing coordinator for the Certified Collectibles Group and was marketing manager for the John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art.

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© PROVIDED BY AFFB Taylor

As its longtime chief financial officer embarks on his retirement, All Faiths Food Bank has hired Timothy Taylor as its new CFO.

Taylor brings extensive professional experience in finance, logistics, operations and business analytics to his role with the area’s only food bank and largest hunger relief organization.

He will be responsible for providing leadership for the financial reporting and operations of the organization, including managing all day-to-day financial and accounting functions, recording and reporting for the organization, in accordance with GAAP (generally accepted accounting principles) and other regulatory requirements.

Before coming to All Faiths, Taylor was director of finance, HR & IT for Sun Bulb Co. – Better-Gro (Arcadia), CFO/COO of Premier Beauty Supply, Inc. (Lincolnshire, Ill.), controller for Wurth Baer Supply Co. (Vernon Hills, Ill.) and, most recently, senior director of finance & HR at Charlotte County Habitat for Humanity.  

He earned a bachelor’s in finance from Northern Illinois University and a master’s in finance from the University of Illinois at Urbana/Champaign.

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© PROVIDED Pacana

Dr. Matthew Pacana recently joined the staff at Coastal Orthopedics, based in Bradenton. He is a fellowship-trained orthopedic surgeon specializing in foot and ankle injuries and disorders.

Pacana treats patients of all ages with various conditions, including foot and ankle arthritis, tendonitis, ankle instability, athletic injuries, bunions and fractures. He has a special interest in ankle replacement, minimally invasive techniques and arthroscopy.

After attending medical school at Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, Pacana finished his orthopedic surgery residency at the University of South Carolina School of Medicine. He went on to complete his foot and ankle fellowship at the University of Texas Houston.

Pacana will be performing surgeries at Coastal Orthopedics’ outpatient surgery center. He will also be credentialed at HCA Florida Blake Hospital, HCA Florida Sarasota Doctors Hospital, Lakewood Ranch Medical Center and Manatee Memorial Hospital.

Coastal Orthopedics is a full-service provider of comprehensive orthopedic surgery, sports medicine, spine care, pain management and physical therapy services.

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© PROVIDED Ovodenko

Community Eye Center Port Charlotte has hired ophthalmologist Boris Ovodenko, M.D., who has 15 years of experience in advanced cataract surgery, including toric, extended depth of focus and multifocal implant technology as well as comprehensive eye care.

Ovodenko graduated summa cum laude from Johns Hopkins University in just three years and completed his medical degree at the State University of New York Downstate College of Medicine.

After completing an internship at the world-renowned Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., he went on to complete a Glaucoma Research Fellowship and ophthalmology residency at the prestigious New York Eye and Ear Infirmary.

Ovodenko dedicated five years to training the next generation of eye surgeons at The New York Eye and Ear Infirmary.

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© PROVIDED Scott

Nancy’s Concierge and Home Watch Services, of Venice, has earned accreditation from the National Home Watch Association for the sixth year.

The NHWA was formed in 2009 to establish and maintain the highest industry standards for home watch throughout the United States and Canada.

Nancy Scott, owner of Nancy’s Concierge and Home Watch Services, operated her own professional organizing company in Pennsylvania for 10 years. She also worked in the hospitality industry.

Nancy’s Concierge and Home Watch Services serves Sarasota, Venice, North Port, Nokomis and Osprey.

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: BUSINESS PEOPLE: Easterseals aids in staff's professional development