Corporate Business Plan

The plan details the services, operations and projects a local government will deliver within a defined period. It also includes the processes for delivering these and the costs associated. 

What do I have to gather?

The following information is gathered prior to commencing the review of the Corporate Business Plan. It is important that the initial planning aspect occurs to ensure alignment and resource capability before a budget is determined:

• The Corporate Business Plan is used to drive development of the Annual Budget. Each year of the Corporate Business Plan is intended to drive the Annual Budget.
• Any external trends or key issues that would impact on the objectives in the Corporate Business Plan for the ensuing financial year.
• Performance data to assess where improvement is required over the ensuing financial year.
• Any internal operational issues or requirements that could impact on objectives need to be sourced.
• Reviews of the Strategic Community Plan or reviews of Council priorities which activate short, medium or long term community aspirations.

What do I do with it?

During the review of the Corporate Business Plan and Reprioritisation, the following key processes may be used:

• External analysis - examine and manage external trends and issues that could impact on the local government's operations over the ensuing financial year.
• Internal analysis - examine performance data, assess operational issues and identify the improvement strategies to be deployed throughout the duration of the Corporate Business Plan.
• Service/project evaluation - significant changes in community aspirations, expectations, priorities or external factors may require a method for re-evaluating services and projects to ensure alignment, cost-benefit and resource capability.
• Capability analysis – micro testing of resource capability ensures that the local government responds to changes in the community and business environment by prioritising its operations within its available resources. The long term (10 year) financial projections are updated and utilised during this analysis. They also drive the development of the Annual Budget.

What do I end up with?

The following are outputs of the Corporate Business Plan review and Reprioritisation processes:

• Annual budget - The financial representation of "Year 1" of the Corporate Business Plan, including detailed statutory financial requirements.
• Reprioritised/roll forward Corporate Business Plan - Outlining all of the local government's operations (including services, assets, Council priorities and projects), with detailed financial estimates, administrative responsibility and linkage to the Strategic Community Plan. The interdependent relationship with the Informing Strategies means that the level of resource capability over the extended life of the Corporate Business Plan is reviewed, assessed and updated as required.

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