NxLeveL^® for Entrepreneurs

NxLeveL for Entrepreneurs (also known as the "Existing Business Course") is a 12-session, 36-hour course that gives entrepreneurs the professional knowledge and management skills they need to grow an existing business. Participants will learn to identify feasible opportunities for profitable and sustainable growth, and bring them to fruition by preparing a comprehensive business plan based on proven market research, financial management and project management techniques.

Learning Objectives

Session One

• Profitable growth and the entrepreneurial mindset
• The NxLeveL Business Plan: your roadmap for growth
• Setting goals and objectives for sustainable growth

Session Two

• Business planning and feasibility studies
• The internal and external uses of a business plan
• Market research for growth opportunities
• The importance of networking

Session Three

• How your business structure affects your growth options
• Legal issues that affect growing businesses
• Managing the risks of growth
• Building, motivating and managing teams
• Outsourcing and growth

Session Four

• The impact of marketing on profitability
• The need for market analysis
• Identifying new markets and competitors
• Using customer and competition profiles to analyze new market potential
• Balancing the Four Ps

Session Five

• Building a global brand
• Setting the right price in new markets
• Maintaining excellent customer service during business growth
• Choosing the right promotional tools for your growing business
• Online marketing, sales and relationship management

Session Six

• Financial statements and their uses
• How accounting systems guide growth
• Preparing a Personal Financial Statement and current Business Balance Sheet
• Using ratios to analyze Balance Sheet information
• Examining bookkeeping and recordkeeping activities and controls

Session Seven

• Budgeting for growth
• How budgets provide performance feedback
• Reviewing and adjusting budgets

Session Eight

• Calculating the break-even point for your growth opportunity
• Managing your cash flow cycle
• Internal controls for cash management
• Monthly and annual cash flow projections

Session Nine

• Preparing the Monthly Projected Income Statement and understanding how it differs from the Cash Flow Projection
• Developing a Projected Balance Sheet and comparing it with the Beginning Balance Sheet
• Understanding the Statement of Owner's Equity and Annual Statement of Cash Flows
• Managerial uses of financial statements

Session Ten

• Debt and equity financing for growth opportunities
• Alternative financing sources
• Preparing a financing proposal
• Communicating your financial needs to lenders and investors

Session Eleven

• Green growth opportunities
• Feasibility and benefits of greening your business
• Energy efficiency and pollution prevention strategies
• Green branding and marketing techniques
• Assessing the competitive landscape for green business

Session Twelve

• Negotiating and managing deals and contracts
• Avoiding the pitfalls of unmanaged growth
• Project management, financial management and other tools for managed growth
• Growing your supply chain
• Completing your NxLeveL Business Plan