Business Management Practices for Small to Medium Sized Forest Products Firms

Long term business success needs good business practices.

However, many small to medium sized forest products companies do not received adequate training in this area. A handbook has been compiled to specifically assist forest product companies improve their business management practices. The contents of the book are based on the authors’ management experience in the forest products industry and as educators and researchers.

The book is organized into eight chapters covering major topics in business management. The chapters follow the business planning process, but do not need to be read in sequence. Concepts and calculations are illustrated with examples from the forest products industry.

• Chapter 1: Provides a brief introduction to the U.S. forest products industry, including, its importance and its major markets and products.
• Chapter 2: Briefly introduces business management and the business planning process.
• Chapter 3: Introduces the most important components of strategic planning, from formulating the mission and vision of the enterprise to strategy implementation and evaluation.
• Chapter 4: Discusses human resource management in detail, from recruitment and selection to compensation strategies.
• Chapter 5: Describes the process of marketing management, including the fundamental four P’s (product, price, promotion and placement), methods to conduct market research, and strategies for customization and niche marketing.
• Chapter 6: Discusses operations management, including product development, manufacturing strategy, operations planning, inventory management, quality and process control, and maintenance.
• Chapter 7: Provides a detailed description of the financial management process, starting with financial planning.
• Chapter 8: Describes the process of preparing a business plan and lists useful resources to aid in the writing of such a document.

Finally, Appendix A includes links to organizations that the reader might find useful during business plan preparation or during the day to day running of the enterprise. Appendix B includes an example of a complete business plan for a forest products company. The book is titled “Business Management Practices for Small to Medium Sized Forest Products Firms”. The authors are Omar Espinoza and Robert Smith. It is published by Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. Source