1. When and why prepare a Project Feasibility Study?

Project Feasibility Study is a process used to assess the strength and

weakness of a proposed project and present directions of activities which
will improve a project and achieve the desired results or goals of the
project. It is also is used to determine the viability of an idea, such as
ensuring a project is legally and technically feasible as well as
economically justifiable. It tells us whether a project is worth the
investmentin some cases, a project may not be doable. There can be
many reasons for this, including requiring too many resources, which
not only prevents those resources from performing other tasks but also
may cost more than an organization would earn back by taking on a
project that isnt profitable.

Project Feasibility Study is conducted either before the conception of a

certain project, so that a project can be evaluated for its potential
success, or after the conception of the project to determine whether or
not the project is in consonant with its mission and goals and if not,
have the means and ways to correct it.

2. Compare and contrast a Project Feasibility Study and a Project Proposal.

Project Feasibility Study and Project Proposal are tools used in the
analysis for the decision making of organizations and can be used along
side one another, the only distinction is that they tackle different
processes. Project proposal contains the detailed description of a series of
activities aimed at solving a certain problem or attaining a certain goal, it
also provides a logical presentation of data used specifically in decision
making of investors and high level management personnel, on the other
hand Project Feasibility Study assess the strength and weaknesses of a
project and provide a detail plan which may deviate to the original plan
but still within the line of the goals and missions of the project.

3. What is a Marketing Plan and what is its importance in developing a

project.

A Marketing plan is a comprehensive document or blueprint that

outlines a business advertising and marketing efforts for the coming
year. It describes business activities involved in accomplishing specific
marketing objectives within a set time frame. A marketing plan also
includes a description of the current marketing position of a business, a
discussion of the target market and a description of the marketing mix
that a business will use to achieve their marketing goals. A marketing
plan has a formal structure, but can be used as a formal or informal
document which makes it very flexible. It contains some historical data,
future predictions, and methods or strategies to achieve the marketing
objectives. Marketing plans start with the identification of customer
needs through a market research and how the business can satisfy these
needs while generating an acceptable level of return.

The importance in developing a marketing plan for a project is to set the

company on a specific path in marketing. The marketing goals normally
aligns itself to the broader company objectives. The marketing plan also
shows what the company is intended to accomplish within the budget
and also to make it possible for company executives to assess potential
return on the investment. And lastly, marketing plan offers a unique
opportunity for a productive discussion between employees and leaders
of an organization. It provides good communication within the company.
The marketing plan also allows the marketing team to examine their past
decisions and understand their results in order to better prepare for the
future. It also lets the marketing team to observe and study the
environment that they are operating in.
4. How do we prepare a Marketing Plain in a Developmental Project?

The following are the steps to prepare a Marketing Plan:

a. Prepare a mission statement. The mission statement clearly and
succinctly describes the nature of the business, services offered, and
markets servedusually in a few sentences. Sometimes for larger
companies its combined with a vision statement that can be two to
three paragraphs in length.
b. List and describe target markets. In this section, list and describe
potential groups of users or clients.
c. Describe your services
d. Spell out marketing and promotional strategies
e. Identify and understand the competition
f. Establish marketing goals that are quantifiable
g. Monitor your results carefully

5. Discuss each of the essential contents of a Marketing Plan.

The following are the essential contents of a Marketing Plan.

a. Market research. Research is the backbone of the marketing plan.
Your local library is a great place to start, offering reports like
Standard & Poors or IBISWorld. Some library cards even allow
access to online services from home. Identify consumer buying
habits in the industry, market size, market growth or decline, and
any current trends.
b. Target market. A well-designed target market description identifies
your most likely buyers. In addition, you should discuss at least
two or three levels of segmentation. A language tutoring business
might target both students and foreign-born employees who want
to improve their English.
c. Positioning. What is the perception of your brand in the
marketplace? For example, if your restaurant sells burgers, do
customers see you as the place to go for gluten-free or healthy
options or the place to go if youve got an appetite for a double
cheeseburger? The difference in how the target market sees you is
your positioning. Develop compelling branding and marketing
messages that clearly communicate how you want to be perceived.
d. Competitive analysis. You need to know who your competitors are
and how your products and services are different. What is the
price point at which your competitors are selling, and what
segment of the market are they aiming to reach? Knowing the ins
and outs of your competitors will help you better position your
business and stand out from the competition.
e. Market strategy. Your marketing strategy is your path to sales
goals. Ask yourself How will I find and attract my most likely
buyers? This is the core of what the strategy should explain. It
should look at the entire marketplace and then break down
specific tactics including such as events, direct mail, email, social
media, content strategy, street teams, couponing, webinars,
seminars, partnerships, and other activities that will help you gain
access to customers.
f. Budget. Develop a month-by-month schedule of what you plan to
spend on marketing. Also include a red light decision point. For
each activity, establish a metric that tells you to stop if its not
generating sufficient return on investment (ROI).
g. Metrics. Track your marketing success with Google Analytics for
website conversions and a simple Excel sheet to compare your
budget against the actual ROI. Test programs over the course of a
30- to 60-day period, and evaluate the results. Repeat any
programs that are delivering sales or sign-ups to your email list,
and get rid of anything thats not
6. What is the purpose of Production Planning? What are the contents of a
Production Plan?

The following are the purpose of a production plan.

a. Effective utilization of resources.
b. Steady flow of production.
c. Estimate the resources.
d. Ensures optimum inventory.
e. Coordinates activities of departments.
f. Minimize wastage of raw materials.
g. Improves the labour productivity.
h. Helps to capture the market.
i. Provides a better work environment.
j. Facilitates quality improvement.
k. Results in consumer satisfaction.
l. Reduces the production costs.

7. What is Financial Projection? Why do we have to prepare this when we

do business planning?

Financial projection is a forecast of future revenues and expenses.

Typically, the projection will account for internal or historical data and
will include a prediction of external market factors. In general, you will
need to develop both short- and mid-term financial projections.
Financial projection is needed to determine the necessary and
unnecessary expenses of the business and to adapt to situation in case
of loss.

8. Identify, describe and determine the uses of each of the projected

Financial Statements that planners usually prepare in business
planning.

The following are financial statements used:

Summary report that shows how a firm has used the funds entrusted to
it by its stockholders (shareholders) and lenders, and what is its current
financial position. The three basic financial statements are the (1)
balance sheet, which shows firm's assets, liabilities, and net worth on a
stated date; (2) income statement (also called profit & loss account),
which shows how the net income of the firm is arrived at over a stated
period, and (3) cash flow statement, which shows the inflows and
outflows of cash caused by the firm's activities during a stated period.

9. What is budgeting? What is its purpose?

A budget is an estimation of revenue and expenses over a specified

future period of time; it is compiled and re-evaluated on a periodic basis.
Budgets can be made for a person, a family, a group of people, a
business, a government, a country, a multinational organization or just
about anything else that makes and spends money. Among companies
and organizations, a budget is an internal tool used by management and
is often not required for reporting by external parties.

Budgeting is a critically important part of the business planning process.

Business owners and managers need to be able to predict whether a
business will make a profit or not. The purpose of budgeting is basically
to provide a model of how the business might perform, financially
speaking, if certain strategies, events, plans are carried out. It is also
used to provide a financial framework for the decision making process
and to enable the actual business performance to be measured against
the forecast business performance.
10. Compare and contrast a financial budget and an Operations Budget

Operating budget is the budget for income statement elements such as

revenues and expenses.
Financial budget is the budget for balance sheet elements. In other
words, financial budget deals with the expected assets, liabilities, and
stockholders equity
Both operating budgets and financial budgets rely on the same
expectations when it comes to revenue. In each case, an organization's
financial leaders use past performance and market trends to determine
the upcoming sales, investment revenue and income from selling off
assets according to a budgeted plan.
Organizational budgets, however, balance that revenue against upcoming
expenses, while a financial budget seeks ways to spend some or all of the
revenue. A financial budget also includes a balance sheet, which notes
the organization's assets and liabilities at a given point in time,
independent of its revenue or projected expenses.

11. How do you treat expenditures not provided for in the budget?