Small Business Valuation Excel Template

[SuzyQuant]

Overview

This project aims to create a comprehensive and user-friendly Excel template for valuing various types of small businesses. The template will serve as a tool for business owners, financial analysts, and investors to estimate the value of a small business quickly and efficiently. It will incorporate different valuation methods, such as the income approach, market approach, and asset-based approach, tailored to the nuances of small businesses.

Before embarking on this project, we will conduct thorough research to determine if there are existing templates that meet our criteria. If such templates exist, we will analyze them to understand their strengths and weaknesses. Our goal is to either improve upon these existing resources or create a new template that addresses any gaps or shortcomings we identify.

Tasks

1. Research Phase:

   • Conduct an exhaustive search for existing small business valuation Excel templates.
   • Evaluate found templates based on criteria such as comprehensiveness, ease of use, adaptability, and accuracy.
   • Document findings in a report with links to the templates and a summary of their features.

2. Requirement Gathering:

   • Define the scope of businesses (size, industry) our template will cater to.
   • Identify key valuation metrics relevant to small businesses.
   • Gather input from potential users (e.g., accountants, business owners) on desired features.

3. Design Phase:

   • Outline the structure of the Excel template.
   • Design formulas for automated calculations where possible.
   • Create a user-friendly interface with clear instructions and explanations.

4. Development Phase:

   • Build the Excel template according to the design specifications.
   • Test all formulas and functions for accuracy and reliability.

5. Documentation & Tutorial Creation:

   • Write comprehensive documentation explaining how to use the template.
   • Create tutorial videos or guides demonstrating practical examples of valuations using the template.

6. Review & Feedback Cycle:

   • Share the initial version with a select group for feedback.
   • Incorporate feedback into subsequent iterations of the template.

7. Final Review & Launch:

   • Perform final testing on all aspects of the template.
   • Prepare release notes detailing features and usage instructions.
   • Publish the final version on GitHub for public access.

Acceptance Criteria

• The final product must be an Excel file (.xlsx) compatible with recent versions of Microsoft Excel (2016 onwards).
• The template should support at least three widely recognized valuation methods suitable for small businesses.
• It must include clear instructions within the sheet itself on how to input data and interpret results.
• Formulas should be locked down to prevent accidental modification but allow advanced users to view them if needed.
• The design should be intuitive enough that someone with basic knowledge of Excel can navigate it without extensive training.
• All automated calculations must be error-free under typical usage scenarios.
• Documentation must be clear, concise, well-organized, and free from technical jargon where possible; it should also include examples or case studies illustrating how to perform valuations using different methods within the sheet.
• A minimum usability score based on user feedback must be achieved (to be determined by surveying initial users).
• The final release should have no critical bugs or issues affecting core functionality; minor bugs must have documented workarounds until they can be addressed in updates.

By meeting these criteria, we aim to provide a valuable resource that simplifies what can often be a complex process—valuing a small business—making it more accessible and manageable for our target users.

[SuzyQuant]

Today, I will focus on completing the initial research phase for our small business valuation Excel template project. By the end of my first four-hour shift, I aim to have identified and reviewed at least 3-5 existing templates, taking detailed notes on their features and functionalities and in what way this is relevant to the type of valuation the company wants. In my second shift, I'll draft a template that targets the right type of valuation sheet for the company.

[SuzyQuant]

Yesterday, I was working on USIVA SQ Case. I will work on the task below:

My goal is to research for our Excel valuation template project. By the end of my 4-hr shift, I plan to have looked at five different templates and noted what's good and bad about them. In my afternoon shift, I'll put together a simple summary of what I found.