Strategic and Business Planning for Housing Organisations
Introduction
Housing Organisations (HO) are business-oriented firms that specialise in housing tenants in need of homes (Mullins et al., 2012). Different HO have various rules set to provide adequate services that support the community and area development. The role and performance of a HO would differ from another despite having a similar goal in the provision of services and derive actions from the available tenancies within the region. The organisations need to focus on providing a clean, managed, equitable resources with collecting rental income whilst creating peaceful neighbourhoods, and most importantly, offering new models of housing with minimal levels of expenses.
Traditional roles of HO focused on offering rental services to the community, but the recent change in development and technology have seen a change in service provision where they are focused on bringing a technological advancement into housing departments. Therefore, the current role of HO includes housing tenants, minimising the cost of living and, ensuring the current technology suits the community. Lawson et al., (2014) records that HO have shown interest in providing social amenities within a community apart from their major role of being a business venture. An additional role of current HO includes the provision of adequate health care within a community. Mullins, et al., (2012) shows that HO work at ensuring poverty level decreases within a specific region thus, broadening the role of the organisations beyond the expectation.
The Role and Purpose of a Business Plan
Business plans (BP) are a set of guidance that supports an organisation to have a smooth running of their activities and consists of the speculated goals that help in progressive development. Therefore, a BP acts as a clarification of the direction the business has taken (Kathy 2013). The success of an organisation would depend on a BP to define the direction its success.
A BP is useful in the context of financial benefits. Financial institutions would depend on the information drafted in BP to decide whether the business would receive financial benefit (Navarro 2015). A successful business plan with enough explanation of every step would attract investors willing to be part of the business. The BP acts as a forecast of what the company would make regarding revenues thus, making it a tool for financial forecast.
Managers and officials would enquire the information in a BP to manage the enterprise. The business would have a sense of motivation working under a set of policies to ensure smooth running and a flow of techniques securing the goal of the organisation in an effort of ensuring a steady flow of revenues as well as the incorporation of the role of the business in a community (Navarro 2015).
Developing a Business Plan
A BP would help an organisation achieve their goals as speculated and planned. However, the process of developing a BP would differ from one organisation to another. A BP for a housing company would start with an explanation of the purpose and the role of the business. Moreover, the HO BP would consist of the projected housing properties aimed at providing homes to the given community (Barringer 2012). The plan would incorporate a draft planned at describing the vision, mission, and challenges that would face the organisation. For instance, housing organisations have a problem with facing a shortage of funds when it comes to rental income through Universal Credit (UC).
A robust business plan would focus on realising their priorities as a way of knowing what strategies to use in the accomplishment of important decisions. However, the goals of the company should include a scheduled budget that would determine the survival of the organisation (Vu 2013). The BP revises the responsibilities of every member that would help meeting of the company’s expectation.
Developing a BP from a scheduled platform would mean taking the plan from one level to another. The vision of the company should define an appropriate way of focusing on the important strategies that aim at developing the company. Similarly, the company officials should consider strategic planning that would see the implementation of the BP in an efficient manner. Moore and Neef (2012) suggest the business draft offers clear and precise instructions on the strategy focusing on the development of the company.
Implementing and Monitoring of a Business Plan
The best way to succeed in business is the utilisation of the strategies prescribed in a business plan. Chang (2016) depicts that a BP offers the stages of monitoring the progress and development of the business. The first stage in monitoring is regular reporting of the steps speculated in the BP. The HO management would be required to state the development of their progress. Similarly, constant checking is another stage that would help adequate monitoring of the BP module. Furthermore, the officials should check the validity of the expected benefits laid down on the BP.
Implementation of the BP to the organisation would mean the officials practicing the speculated monitoring stages. For instance, the officials should have frequent meetings with their subordinates to discuss the development of the company. The managers should as well provide clear definition of their projected procedures of meeting organisational goals (Daniel 2016). Therefore, the company should have at least three to four general meetings to discuss the issues affecting their business. Quarterly meeting would help the business realise the flow of operation as well as updating some changed policies. Proper data management should be followed otherwise their operations would not meet their expectations.
A successful BP should have a table of information that describes the progress of events. One event should follow another in the way of ensuring every task is catered for in the context of the company’s performance. For instance, the BP should incorporate the role of officials in allocating work to the employees in an effort of reaching their goals as well as completion of their targeted tasks (Power and Hahn 2015). Therefore, an efficient BP would be followed by a strict strategy that would ensure full implementation of the information found and a comprehensive monitoring.
Changes in Government Policy regarding Housing Organisations
The recent government has interfered with the housing business in protecting the interests of tenants. The new policies focus on minimising the costs of housing and improving the living standards. For instance, the government accredited an increase of salary with 1% to persons working in the government housing businesses (Schwartz 2014). The idea would help the employees, but the long term effect would see the expenses of the company hiking if the revenue would be constant. Similarly, the government intervened on rent issues advising social housing are to reduce the costs of renting with a decrease of 1% hence; making it hard for the department to make the estimated profits (Schwartz 2014). Alcock (2014) indicates how the housing department had speculated a budget of a certain amount that would rise after a financial year but the government policies would halt the projected revenues. Therefore, the HO may not generate the predicted income and prospectus after the returns have gone back to the norm.
The government has initiated a program that brought changes in benefits sector. People entitled to different benefits would see a change in their benefit entitlement where they would be required to pay for their services. Therefore, the HO would see a fall in revenues generated from rents as many people may not afford to pay due to Welfare Reforms introduced by the Coalition Government.
Changes to Regulatory Framework
The company has aimed at changing the regulatory framework on the issue of value for money as they prioritise on maximising profits. The BP would reduce cases of rent arrears that would slow their operations. Similarly, tenants would be asked to cater for repairs hence; reducing the expenses incurred in repair and development. The company would aim at reducing procurement costs by involving the Eastern Procurement Consortium (Beuren, et al., 2013). The framework requires the company to reduce rents, but that would weigh down the strategies for repairing, development, and servicing the rental homes. Therefore, the company intends to reduce costs of maintenance and repairs hence; maximising their profits. Similarly, the company would remove the ‘pay to stay’ strategy and enhance the purchasing of homes at a discounting rate (Teck-kong 2012). Therefore, the BP would recommend strategies that would help the England’s economy reach their target.
Response to Government Changes (Political Economic Social Technology (PEST))
The HO would focus in analysing the external factors that would affect the business. The analysis would help identifying the PEST attributes contributing to the business negatively. Therefore, the organisation would handle the government’s requirement to raise salary by installing technology development that would reduce labour. Similarly, the issue of reducing rent by 1% would mean that, the organisation would remove some of their services to the tenant to accommodate the reduced rent percentage. Therefore, the organisation would have a balanced economic value that would sustain the business. The HO should respond to the issue of UC with caution because many people may not be eligible to the usual income related benefits. Therefore, the organisation would intervene to with the government to ensure the level of unemployment would not fall increasing the risks of rent arrears.
Protecting Service Users
The government are trying to protect the interests of the tenants. However, imposing policies might affect the housing businesses. Therefore, the organisation is supposed to come up with strategies that would not affect their economic strength in the housing business. For example, they should decide to remove some third party communal services such as providing water and electricity to the tenants. Similar services should be left to tenants’ accountability. Some housing companies provide free internet and employment training at the expense of the company. Imposing charges to similar services would reduce the cost of expenditure paving way to a standardised and controlled budget even after a decrease in rent by 1%.
Business Plan Outline
Executive Summary
- The purpose of the Company is to provide housing services to the tenants and its environment (Ball, 2013).
- The HO has decided to help tenants have a peaceful and affordable life in the sector of living.
- The HO offers services to all tenants regardless of their income.
- The financial purpose and objective of the organisation are to sustain their business as well as generate enough revenues that would help the communities within their borough.
Legislative Framework
- The Housing Act changed to a self-financing strategy that aimed at retaining the revenues generated from rents. The revenues are kept to reduce England’s housing debt of £58 Millions (Ball, 2013).
- The Housing and Planning Act requires all the landlords to reform their tenancy policies that would meet strategic housing strategies.
- The Act asks the housing department to meet regulatory standards that would demonstrate different communication methods with their tenants and the authority.
- The regulators require landlords to involve tenants in empowerment as well as improving service delivery. Similarly, the Act provides a framework where tenants are commissioned in repairs as a way of enhancing cost sharing in the business (Beuren, et al., 2013).
- The welfare reform changes, reduces working age tenants benefit entitlement where the number of bedrooms exceeds the need. A cap to the amount of benefit paid and roll out of UC in Great Yarmouth is increasing rent arrears.
- The regulatory pledges the company to provide affordable homes to the tenants in the strategy of “Right to buy discounts” where the company is asked to build a new home after every sale of a discounted home.
- The BP aims at reducing the rent with a 1% at every year in the subsequent four years aiming at providing affordable rates to the tenants (Teck-kong 2012).
Products and Services
- The BP focuses on providing housing services to the tenants, and the main services include offering houses to the consumers (Beuren, et al., 2013).
- The business is structured to offer other social amenities to the customers. For instance, offering cleaning services to the community.
- The BP does not cover naming other services beyond their expertise but helps the readers in understanding the different roles of an organisation in a community.
Target Market
- The BP aims at reconnecting the current tenants and new tenants that would understand the role of a HO and the benefits behind it.
- The company helps in understanding the role of a government regarding finance through policies aimed at protecting the welfare of the tenants.
- The target market includes the concentrated urban area with a flow of employment that would help the community to pay for rents.
Implementation Strategy
- The BP aims at pressing the officials in convenient ways of implementing the written document.
- The organisation should press the importance of following protocol in implementing the BP. Therefore, monitoring stages should be followed promptly.
- The leaders are asked to update the BP with the changes in the policies of the government.
Company Management
- The management comprises of the Organisational Officials ranking from the Chief Executive Office, followed by Director who is followed by the Group Manager. The office has a financial department who are also included in decision-making (Gainullina, et al., 2016).
- The office has subordinate managers, clerks, housing representatives, and community engagement support.
Financial Overview
- The company aims at getting financial help from bank loans, shares, bonds, and government funding (Clatworthy and Peel 2016).
- The government helps the organisation since it regulates most practices through policies and legislation. For instance, imposing policies inhibiting the increase of rents that would affect the tenants.
- A similar strategy was imposed into the organisation that saw the community benefiting from a 30 years plan of mortgaged houses (Clatworthy and Peel 2016). The deal was sealed in an effort of helping the low-income individuals afford houses without a high return loan rates.
- The company has targeted a minimum increase of rent revenues that has increased from 2012 with a rate of 2.6% per annum Making an increase of profits from £20 million to £30 million within the length from 2012-2042 government policies being constant.
Threats of Government Policies
The government has developed new policies aiming at protecting the interests of the tenants but still would affect the business of housing. For instance, Hays (2012) protests that the rate of reducing the rent by 1% per every year would make the HO make losses within the subsequent years. Similarly, the role of government in interfering with the rules of mortgage that has zero percentage of interests would halt the activities of a HO bearing in mind that, people would go for the strategy leaving the payment of rents to just a few.
The company has been asked to increase the salary of the employees of which the company does not add more income generating activities. The expenditure would rise beyond the revenues generated leading to a negative financial statement. However, the government has imposed changes that would gradually affect the housing business (Liba and Harding 2015). The government has changed the payment system by removed the fees payable to services rendered to the tenants.
Conclusion
The role of HO is the provision of rental services, repairs, clean environment, and community development. A business plan is a statement that aims at providing a platform that a business would follow in an effort of meeting their goals. Therefore, the discussed business plan aims at forecasting on the possibilities of the company in the subsequent 20 years of service. The government has a way of imposing policies and regulations that strictly discourages private organisations from exploiting a community. HO have managed to provide adequate services to the people as well as providing revenues to the government. Therefore, the business plan is the key strategy that would help every business in implementing effective procedures in a company.
Acronyms
BP – Business Plan
HO – Housing Organisation
PEST – Political, Economic, Social, and Technology
UC – Universal Credit
Bibliography
Alcock, P., 2014. Social policy in Britain. London: Palgrave Macmillan.
Andrews, R., Boyne, G.A., Law, J. and Walker, R.M., 2012. Strategy Implementation, Content and Performance. In Strategic Management and Public Service Performance (pp. 86-107). London: Palgrave Macmillan, UK.
Ball, M., 2013. Housing policy and economic power: the political economy of owner occupation. London: Routledge.
Barringer, B., 2012. Entrepreneurship: Successfully Launching New Ventures, (2012). Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson Prentice Hall.
Beuren, F.H., Ferreira, M.G.G. and Miguel, P.A.C., 2013. Product-service systems: a literature review on integrated products and services. Journal of Cleaner Production, 47(2), pp.222-231.
Blank, S., 2013. Why the lean start-up changes everything. Harvard business review, 91(5), pp.63-72.
Chang, J.F., 2016. Business process management systems: strategy and implementation. CRC Press.
Clatworthy, M.A. and Peel, M.J., 2016. The timeliness of UK private company financial reporting: Regulatory and economic influences. The British Accounting Review, 48(3), 297-315.
Daniel, R., 2016. Writing a Business Plan – Implementation Plan.Available athttps://www.thebalance.com/writing-a-business-plan-implementation-plan-1200844(Accessed 27 October 2016)
Gainullina, R., Sokolova, E., Skorobogatova, A., Faizrakhmanova, A., Khanmurzina, R., Mirzagitova, A., Tararina, L. and Yakushevskiy, M., 2016. Pedagogical managerial mechanisms of the labor market needs in a new generation of specialists. International Review of Management and Marketing, 2016, 6(S2), pp.12-17.
Gurran, N. and Phibbs, P., 2015. Are governments really interested in fixing the housing problem? Policy capture and busy work in Australia. Housing Studies, 30(5), pp.711-729.
Hays, R.A., 2012. Federal Government and Urban Housing, The. SUNY Press.
Huang, Y. and Tao, R., 2015. Housing migrants in Chinese cities: current status and policy design. Environment and Planning C: Government and Policy, 33(3), pp.640-660.
Jandaghi, G. and Hosseini, M., 2015. Evaluating the Risk of Projects Implementation in Various Situations using Generalised TOPSIS Model and Business Plan. Trends in Applied Sciences Research, 10(5), p.245-250.
Kathy, B., 2013. What is the Importance and Purpose of a Business Plan? Available at http://smallbusiness.chron.com/importance-purpose-business-plan-760.html (Accessed 27 October 2016)
Laitinen, E.K., 2014. The association between CEO work, management accounting information, and financial performance: evidence from Finnish top managers. Journal of Management Control, 25(3-4), pp.221-257.
Lawson, J., Berry, M., Hamilton, C. and Pawson, H., 2014. Enhancing affordable rental housing investment via an intermediary and guarantee. Available at http://apo.org.au/resource/enhancing-affordable-rental-housing-investment-intermediary-and-guarantee(Accessed 27 October 2016)
Liba, K.R. and Harding, S., 2015. More than a commodity: The right to adequate housing. In Human rights-based community practice in the United States (pp. 39-59). Springer International Publishing.
Lynch, K.D., Hobson, J. and Dooley, P., 2016. Supported housing in global austerity: Local providers fears for the future in Gloucestershire, England. Land Use Policy, 59, pp.589-601.
Moore, C. and Neeff, T., 2012. Developing a Business Plan for Forestry and Other Land Use-Based Carbon Projects. Ecosystem Services from Agriculture and Agroforestry: Measurement and Payment, p.179.
Morgan, N.A., Katsikeas, C.S. and Vorhies, D.W., 2012. Export marketing strategy implementation, export marketing capabilities, and export venture performance. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 40(2), pp.271-289.
Mullins, D., Czischke, D. and van Bortel, G., 2012. Exploring the meaning of hybridity and social enterprise in housing organisations. Housing Studies, 27(4), pp.405-417.
Navarro, F., 2015. Business plan: A preliminary approach to an unknown genre. Ibérica, 30, pp.129-154.
Powers, T.L. and Hahn, W., 2015. The Impact of Strategic Plan Quality and Implementation on Firm Performance. In Assessing the Different Roles of Marketing Theory and Practice in the Jaws of Economic Uncertainty (pp. 195-195). Springer International Publishing.
Rezvani, Z. and Hudson, P., 2016. Breaking the clay layer: The role of middle management in the management of safety. Journal of Loss Prevention in the Process Industries, 44, pp.241-246.
Schaap, J.I., 2012. Toward strategy implementation success: An empirical study of the role of senior-level leaders in the Nevada gaming industry. UNLV Gaming Research and Review Journal, 10(2), p.2.
Schwartz, A.F., 2014. Housing policy in the United States. London: Routledge.
Teck-Hong, T., 2012. Housing satisfaction in medium-and high-cost housing: The case of Greater Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Habitat International, 36(1), pp.108-116.
Vu, K., 2013. Developing a business plan for a start-up e-business.Laurea University of Applied Sciences.
