Business and Industry - John Wood Community College

The Program

Session One
“10 Steps to Starting and Running Your Own Business” will cover topics such as understanding yourself, your market, business structure, fees and licenses required, developing a marketing plan, pricing, bookkeeping and budgeting, financial statements, writing a business plan, and implementing the plan.

Session Two
“Am I Cut Out to Be a Small Business Owner?” Participants will identify the personal qualities and skills of successful business owners and other factors that contribute to the success of small businesses. In addition, they will assess their current skills and knowledge of small business ownership and develop a learning plan to assist them in growing successful enterprises.

Session Three
Participants will develop an understanding of personal budgeting and its relationship to business planning in ”Can My Business Idea Support Me?” Students will identify the kinds of data needed to project the revenue, start-up, and operating costs of a business, and learn break-even analysis as a tool to assist the small business owner in measuring financial feasibility.

Session Four
“Pricing Your Products & Services – For Profit!” Identify internal and external factors to consider in setting prices for products and services and learn to estimate potential market share. Business examples demonstrate how to evaluate pricing methods, develop sales forecasts, and measure market potential for products and services.

Session Five
“Achieving Sales – A Marketing Plan” This course focuses on the marketing plan and the importance of market analysis in projecting sales. Market research information for a sample business demonstrates the connection between a marketing plan and a cash flow statement. Participants identify market segments and use market segmentation to project sales.

Session Six
“Cash Flow – Let Your Numbers Do the Talking” Cash flow is the lifeblood of any small business! If you don’t have cash to pay the bills, your business won’t survive. Learn how to construct realistic cash flow statements by developing good financial assumptions.