Guidance - Establishing the business plan of a Technical Committee 

Version 2 (March 2012)
Source: Resolution  BT 49/2003 (approving BT N 6967), Resolution BT C61/2012 (approving BT N 8915)

1. Main objective of a TC Business Plan
2. Drafting of a TC Business Plan
3. Approval and maintenance of a TC Business Plan
4. Supporting material

1. Main objective of a TC Business Plan  

The main objective of a Business Plan (BP) of a Technical Committee is to provide a concise and up-to-date overview in a user-friendly format for interested stakeholders from within and outside the committee of important business, technological, environmental and social trends in the field addressed by the work of the CEN committee. The BP shall provide an analysis of these trends as well as an explanation of the linkages between them and the priority areas in the standards development work of the committee.

Each active TC is required to prepare and maintain its own BP.

The types of stakeholders of a committee addressed by a BP are

• the management layer of organisations and companies making a contribution to standardization;
• standards developers and standards developing organisations;
• regulators;
• users of standards;
• the interested public.

2. Drafting of a TC Business Plan  

Information needs to be keyed into the enclosed TC Business Plan template as indicated in the 'Drafting Instructions' which are included in the BP template itself (Word).

3. Approval and maintenance of a TC Business Plan  

3.1 First BP of a TC

A newly created technical committee is required to prepare a BP for approval by the CEN Technical Board (BT), within a period of time set in the BT Decision by which the TC was created (See Process 'Programming of the work of a Technical Committee'.) and in accordance with the TC Business Plan Template (Word).

3.2 Maintenance of existing BPs

The BP of a technical committee shall be reviewed by the TC at each plenary meeting and preferably once per year. The review may result in

• the reconfirmation of the BP: in this case no further action is required. However, every 3 years, CEN/TCs shall formally confirm their BP by means of a 'delegated decision' to be sent to CCMC (e-mail: centcbp@cencenelec.eu).
• a revision of the BP without modification of the scope of the TC: in this case, the revised BP is to be approved by the TC ('delegated decison') and sent to CCMC (e-mail: centcbp@cencenelec.eu) in both WORD and PDF format for appropriate follow-up;
• a revision of the BP with modification of the scope of the TC: in this case, the TC shall prepare a revised BP for approval by the CEN Technical Board (BT).

(See Process 'Programming of the work of a Technical Committee'.)

NOTE:

All approved BPs are made available by CCMC on the publicly accessible area of the CEN web site for public review, comment and information.

Other information (e.g. regarding the Work Programme and project target dates, the list of published standards, the committee structure etc.) is taken from the central CCMC database and made available on the CEN web site together with the filled in template.

4. Supporting material  

4.1 Related process(es)

• Programming of the work of a Technical Committee

4.2 Forms and resolution format(s)

• TC Business Plan Template (Word)
• Approval or revision of a TC Business Plan and programme of work (Delegated decision) (Word)