Abstract:
In the field of entrepreneurship and especially during start up, much emphasis is placed on the business
plan with regard to entrepreneurship education and training, funding from external investors, business plan
competitions and government development agencies in the Small, Medium and Micro Enterprise (SMME)
sector. In many earlier studies of well-known entrepreneurship educators, the formulation of a business plan
was identified as being the most important feature of any entrepreneurship programme or course. However,
the relevance of a business plan has been a topic of intense and unresolved debates in more recent
literature. This paper contributes to the literature with regard to the value a business plan adds to potential
entrepreneurs. Furthermore it increases the understanding of how a detailed business plan (such as the
approved business plan template of the University of Pretoria) can enable a potential entrepreneur to
assess opportunities. The paper conducts a comprehensive analysis of business plans and the methods of
assessing opportunities, in order to reveal similarities between the business plan and opportunity
assessment. Based on descriptive statistics and inferential statistics such as ANOVA, and Kruskal-Wallis
tests, the findings support the hypotheses that potential entrepreneurs distinguish between ideas and
opportunities and develop opportunities through the formulation of a detailed business plan. The pertinent
academic and practical significance of this paper is that it highlights statistically significant differences
proving that a detailed business plan is a tool that enables potential entrepreneurs to assess opportunities.
From a practical point of view, this should help potential entrepreneurs to establish more viable business
ventures; however, this would have to be statistically tested in further research. Finally, the study reestablishes
the importance and purpose of a business plan in the field of entrepreneurship.
