What you have to do

Read the following Case Study and answer the four (4) questions below using the information provided in the Case Study in conjunction with the information provided in the Learning Materials.

Questions

Case Study

You have just retired from a senior management position with a large city organisation and moved to a rural town on a large fresh water lake. The lake is the focus for sports anglers and water sports in the surrounding area. You want to get into a small business in the local area and have noticed that, early every morning, there is a line-up of boats and anglers at the local boat ramp.

Your thoughts tell you that each one of these anglers and boaties requires bait and would appreciate a hot drink and a bite to eat, such as a bacon and egg roll. The boat ramp is located on the perimeter of the local industrial estate and you have noted that there is no other food outlet within the estate. In other words you see a business opportunity.

Your preliminary research reinforces your initial thoughts. You can now see that the establishment of a fresh bait/fast food business is feasible and proceed to set yourself some strategic objectives for the next three years. You now need to develop an operational plan.Question 3

Many believe that few business owners or managers are challenging what is in their operational plans. They overlook assumptions made when assessing the impact of risks. If these assumptions prove inaccurate, the damage to the business will be great, particularly if strategies to limit the consequences of risk are not included as part of the operational plan.

Comment on the truth of this statement. Explain the importance of risk assessment and analysis in the operational planning process. Include two examples of potential risk in the establishment of the fresh bait/fast food business in the case study and how these risks might be minimised.