The perceived usefulness of the business plan in formal entrepreneurship education: the perspective of alumni entrepreneurs

Abstract

The role of business plans and business planning (BP), and their importance for entrepreneurs, has been discussed in the literature, but its (perceived) usefulness is still subject to wide debate and controversy. The main aim of this work is to assess whether current teaching of BP in entrepreneurship education is actually useful for the professional lives of individuals. The empirical analysis focused on testimonies from graduates of eleven full editions (2004–2014) of a specialized master’s in entrepreneurship and combined qualitative and quantitative methodologies applied to all the master’s relevant stakeholders. The econometric estimations, based on 84 responses from former students/alumni, revealed that BP tools and dimensions are perceived as extremely useful for the professional lives of a large part of the alumni inquired, particularly those who created new business ventures after attending the course (the entrepreneurs). Moreover, entrepreneurs, when compared to non-entrepreneurs, tend to attribute greater importance to certain business plan financial tools, namely “Cash Flow Statements” and “Balance Sheet,” and business plan dimensions, most notably “Company and Product/Service Description,” “Marketing and Sales Plan,” and “Financial Analysis.”