Your horse business plan is finally coming together. You’ve analyzed the competition, written a mission statement, developed objectives and drawn up a marketing plan, among other things. The finish line is approaching.
The next step in your horse business plan is outlining the responsibilities of management. Who are the people behind your horse business and what will they do?
Every horse business needs some sort of managerial hierarchy. Someone has to be in charge, and everyone plays a role.
Your management plan might start out with a chart that looks something like this:
The barn owner is in charge of the entire operation, and his duties might include running staff meetings, scheduling employees to work, paying and sending invoices, ordering supplies and hiring workers. Below the barn manager in this case are the stable manager, head riding instructor and head horse trainer. They have their own responsibilities and job descriptions.
The goal here is to make sure that every task (outlined in the operational plan) is covered by one or more employees. Only when this happens will you achieve maximum efficiency.
The purpose of the management section of your horse business plan is to determine:
- How many employees you need
- Job descriptions for each employee
- Starting salaries
- Promotion requirements
- Hiring and firing policies
You need to know what you will do in as many eventualities as possible. What if an employee is caught stealing? What if you discover that one of your riding instructors deserves more responsibility? Who’s in charge when the barn owner isn’t on the premises?
Answering all of these questions will allow your horse business to run like clockwork, with every employee in his or her place and every potential problem covered with a solution.
You might also like:
- Horse Business Plans 101:
Operational Plan - Horse Business Plans 101:
Marketing Plan - Why Write a Horse Business Plan?
- Horse Business Consulting in Stable Management
- Horse Business Plans 101:
The Objective
About the Author: Laura Jane Thompson is the Chief Equestrian Officer of Riding Instructor University and the Feature writer for the horses section at Suite101. She believes that any horse business can succeed provided its owner practices smart strategy.
