Skip to content

Business glossary

Find the meaning. Make the next decision.

80 plain-English definitions for business planning, finance, research and operations. Search a term or browse by letter.

80 terms across 7 categories

Core Planning & Strategy Terms

Mission Statement — link to definition

A short statement that explains why a company exists and what core purpose it serves for its customers.

Vision Statement — link to definition

A forward-looking statement that describes what a company aims to become or achieve in the long term.

Business Model — link to definition

The way a company creates, delivers, and captures value, including how it makes money and serves customers.

Strategic Roadmap — link to definition

A high-level plan that outlines key initiatives, milestones, and timelines required to achieve business goals.

Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) — link to definition

A goal-setting framework that defines what a company wants to achieve and how success will be measured.

Minimum Viable Product (MVP) — link to definition

The simplest version of a product that can be released to test assumptions and gather customer feedback.

Product-Market Fit — link to definition

The point where a product meets a strong market demand and customers consistently choose, use, and recommend it.

Value Chain — link to definition

The set of activities a company performs to deliver a product or service, from sourcing to after-sales support.

Business Case — link to definition

A structured document that justifies a project or investment by outlining costs, benefits, and risks.

Strategic Initiative — link to definition

A major project or program designed to move the organization toward its long-term strategic goals.

Financial Planning & Metrics Terms

Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) — link to definition

The average cost of acquiring a new customer, including marketing, sales, and related expenses.

Customer Lifetime Value (CLV or LTV) — link to definition

The total revenue a business expects to earn from a customer over the entire relationship.

LTV to CAC Ratio — link to definition

A metric that compares customer lifetime value to acquisition cost to assess profitability and scalability.

Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR) — link to definition

Predictable monthly revenue generated from subscriptions or ongoing contracts.

Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR) — link to definition

The yearly value of recurring revenue from subscriptions or long-term contracts.

Churn Rate — link to definition

The percentage of customers or recurring revenue lost over a given period.

Runway — link to definition

The amount of time a business can operate before running out of cash, based on current burn rate.

Gross Margin — link to definition

The percentage of revenue left after subtracting the direct cost of goods or services sold.

Unit Economics — link to definition

The revenue and cost associated with serving a single customer or unit, used to test the viability of a business model.

Sensitivity Analysis — link to definition

A technique that shows how changes in key assumptions affect financial projections and outcomes.

Market Research, Marketing & GTM Terms

Total Addressable Market (TAM) — link to definition

The total revenue opportunity available if a product or service achieved 100% market share.

Serviceable Available Market (SAM) — link to definition

The portion of the total market that fits a company's product, geography, or regulatory constraints.

Serviceable Obtainable Market (SOM) — link to definition

The realistic share of the market a business expects to capture within a specific timeframe.

Market Segmentation — link to definition

The process of dividing a broad market into smaller groups based on shared characteristics or behaviors.

Positioning Statement — link to definition

A concise description of how a product is uniquely suited to a target market compared to competitors.

Unique Selling Proposition (USP) — link to definition

A clear benefit that differentiates a product or service from alternatives in the market.

Buyer Journey — link to definition

The stages a potential customer goes through from awareness to consideration, purchase, and retention.

Demand Generation — link to definition

Marketing activities that create awareness and interest in a product to drive qualified leads and pipeline.

Product-Led Growth (PLG) — link to definition

A go-to-market strategy where the product itself drives acquisition, activation, and expansion.

Sales Journey — link to definition

A visual model of how prospects move through stages from first contact to closed customer.

Operations, Execution & Risk Terms

Operating Model — link to definition

The way a company organizes people, processes, and technology to deliver its products or services.

Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) — link to definition

A documented step-by-step process that outlines how to perform a specific task or activity.

Governance — link to definition

The structures, policies, and decision-making processes that guide how a company is directed and controlled.

Risk Management — link to definition

The process of identifying, assessing, and mitigating potential threats to business objectives.

Contingency Plan — link to definition

A predefined response plan for unexpected events that could disrupt normal business operations.

Key Risk Indicator (KRI) — link to definition

A metric used to track exposure to a specific risk and provide early warning of potential issues.

Business Continuity Plan (BCP) — link to definition

A documented strategy that ensures critical operations can continue during and after a disruption.

Operational Efficiency — link to definition

The ability to deliver products and services in a cost-effective, timely, and reliable way.

Change Management — link to definition

The structured approach used to manage organizational changes in processes, systems, or structure.

Stakeholder Analysis — link to definition

The process of identifying stakeholders and understanding their interests, influence, and impact on a project.

AI, Analytics & Automation Terms

AI Business Plan Generator — link to definition

A software tool that uses artificial intelligence to create structured business plans from prompts and data.

AI Business Planning Tool — link to definition

A platform that combines AI, templates, and analytics to help businesses design strategies and financial plans.

AI Market Research — link to definition

The use of AI to collect, analyze, and summarize market, customer, and competitor data for decision-making.

AI Financial Forecasting — link to definition

The use of machine learning and AI models to project revenue, costs, and cash flow under different scenarios.

AI Business Assistant — link to definition

An AI system that helps business owners plan, analyze, and automate tasks such as research, forecasting, and reporting.

AI Agent — link to definition

An AI-driven software entity that can autonomously execute tasks or workflows based on goals and rules.

Market Research Automation — link to definition

The use of AI and software to automatically gather, synthesize, and visualize market and customer insights.

AI Competitor Analysis — link to definition

The use of AI tools to scan competitor websites, content, and reviews to extract patterns and differences.

Scenario Planning — link to definition

A planning method that uses different assumptions to model multiple future outcomes and strategic responses.

Decision Intelligence — link to definition

The discipline of combining data, analytics, and AI to improve the quality and speed of business decisions.

Funding, Startup & Investor Terms

Pre-Seed Funding — link to definition

The earliest external capital raised to validate an idea and build an initial prototype or MVP.

Series A Funding — link to definition

A significant investment round used to scale product, team, and go-to-market once early traction is proven.

Valuation — link to definition

The estimated monetary worth of a company, often used when raising capital or selling equity.

Cap Table (Capitalization Table) — link to definition

A record of who owns equity in a company, including founders, employees, and investors.

Dilution — link to definition

The reduction in existing shareholders' ownership percentages when new shares are issued.

SAFE (Simple Agreement for Future Equity) — link to definition

A funding instrument where investors provide capital now in exchange for future equity at a later priced round.

Convertible Note — link to definition

A type of loan that converts into equity at a future financing event, often with a discount or valuation cap.

Term Sheet — link to definition

A non-binding document outlining the key conditions and structure of a potential investment.

Due Diligence — link to definition

The detailed investigation investors conduct into a company's financials, operations, and risks before investing.

Exit Strategy — link to definition

The planned way for investors and founders to realize returns, such as acquisition or IPO.

Foundational Business Planning Basics

Business Plan — link to definition

A written document outlining a company's goals, strategies, and financial projections.

Market Analysis — link to definition

Research that determines the size, characteristics, and trends of a target market.

SWOT Analysis — link to definition

A framework for identifying strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

Key Performance Indicator (KPI) — link to definition

A measurable value used to gauge how effectively a company is achieving its objectives.

Return on Investment (ROI) — link to definition

The ratio of net profit to the cost of an investment, expressed as a percentage.

Value Proposition — link to definition

A clear statement explaining why customers should choose a product or service.

Revenue Streams — link to definition

The various ways a business generates income from its products or services.

Operating Expenses — link to definition

The ongoing costs required to run a business, excluding the cost of goods sold.

Break-Even Analysis — link to definition

A calculation that determines the point at which revenue equals total costs.

Cash Flow — link to definition

The net amount of cash being transferred into and out of a business.

Profit Margin — link to definition

The percentage of revenue that remains after deducting all expenses.

Target Market — link to definition

The specific group of consumers a business aims to reach with its offerings.

Customer Persona — link to definition

A fictional representation of an ideal customer based on data and research.

Competitive Advantage — link to definition

An attribute or capability that allows a company to outperform its rivals.

PEST Analysis — link to definition

A method for assessing external factors: Political, Economic, Social, and Technological.

Marketing Journey — link to definition

A model describing the stages a customer goes through from early awareness to purchase.

Burn Rate — link to definition

The rate at which a startup spends its available capital before generating positive cash flow.

Bootstrapping — link to definition

Starting and growing a business using personal resources without external funding.

Seed Funding — link to definition

Initial capital used to start developing a product or business.

Scalability — link to definition

The ability of a business to handle increased demand without compromising performance.