I’ve been working at Joorney since the middle of 2020. I studied business administration and management, and during my studies I had various internships and student jobs. Upon graduation, I decided to volunteer abroad and travel for a couple of months.

Following this, I was hired by Joorney as a Junior Business Plan Researcher and Writer. Since the job required a lot of general business knowledge and background, I — and apparently the hiring manager at Joorney as well — felt that I could contribute to the organization and that my skills were a good match for the position. My experience in an international environment was also preferred.

As I’ve mentioned, I started out as a Junior Business Plan Researcher and Writer. In fact, every business plan writer starts in the junior role. The reason for this is because each business plan is unique and customized, so each person goes through a detailed training program and must gain a lot of experience before they can move up and handle more complicated plans.

In addition to getting to know the coworkers and learning about Joorney as a company, training took up most of the onboarding process. The initial training process, which lasted approximately three weeks, introduced me to the structure and elements of a business plan.

It was very detailed and covered aspects such as analysis of clients’ documents and questionnaires, contents of various business plan sections, goals and objectives of each section, the language of the business plan, and the plan as a whole. I also had a chance to write mock plans, apply what I learned in practice, and get valuable feedback, which enabled me to improve my business plan writing skills.

Throughout my Joorney journey, collaborating with coworkers has always been an important pillar of my growth and development. Especially as a Junior Business Plan Researcher and Writer, coworkers selflessly helped and supported me, shared their knowledge, and empowered me to advance to writing more complex business plans and business models.

I got to research and write business plans for interesting and innovative business models, gaining experience with each new plan. In addition to coworkers’ support, communication with and feedback from project managers was a tremendous learning resource. Project managers’ direction was crucial for correctly interpreting clients’ business visions and research information, and combining it to create a well-written business plan. Alignment between writers and project managers is also important as the project managers are those who communicate with clients and have more information about the business and that project. 

Over the course of their employment at Joorney, writers usually realize their business plan crafting strengths and get specialized in the type of business plan where they can capitalize on those strengths. The same happened with me.

As my strength is research and presenting a well-written argument, I began to specialize in the EB2 plans where these are two of the most valuable aspects. As senior writers are usually specialized, knowledge sharing continues to be highly important, as it creates a synergy between coworkers, and provides writers with more experienced coworkers’ perspectives and insight when working on a new area or type of plan.

In my assessment, this specialization is what enables the Joorney team to offer the level of quality that we do in our business plans. Regardless of the visa type or business model, there will be someone to share their knowledge.

Now, as a Senior Business Plan Researcher and Writer, my regular day at the office starts with going over my tasks for the day as well as my team messages, and determining priorities. First I focus on rush plans, documents to be sent for application during the same working day, or any other urgent tasks. Clients appreciate Joorney’s ability to adapt to their schedules and priorities, so reprioritizing every day according to clients’ requests is vital.

As Joorney offers unlimited revisions on business plans, my second priority is completing revisions that are due. Some clients who, for example, put their visa application on hold due to Covid, need their plans to be updated to reflect current market conditions and trends. Some clients change their mind on some aspects of their business and we update the plan to reflect that. Others get additional ideas about their business when reading the business plans. All of these scenarios comprise clients’ revision requests. It’s important to take time to understand and correctly interpret the clients’ wishes and adjust the plan accordingly.

After completing these tasks, I get on to what makes up the largest chunk of my working days, and that is writing the business plan I’m currently working on. When starting to work on a business plan, I make sure to take enough time to go over the client’s questionnaire and all the documents they have sent. This allows me to gain a deep understanding of the clients’ requirements, points they want highlighted, advantages of the business, and other key elements.

Moreover, I research the industry the client’s business will operate in, getting to know the trends, operations, major markets, and other important factors. The plan is coming together with various pieces of information fitting like a puzzle. As there is no one that knows the business better than the client, I also make sure I include all the information the client has provided. The result is a plan that the client can understand and get behind, and that is also aligned with the USCIS requirements.

In addition to the great atmosphere and fun coworkers — and let’s not forget foosball — due to my interest in business, I enjoy learning about a wide variety of industries as well as consumer and market trends. As research is a vital part of business plan writing, I usually get interesting insights into various industries and aspects of the business models.

Furthermore, USCIS requirements are also constantly being updated, and we at Joorney make sure that is reflected in our business plans. For these reasons, I learn something new with every plan that I write, which is something I value very much. That keeps me motivated to continue improving my ability to write well-crafted business plans that are aligned with the requirements of both clients and USCIS.