Cornerstone Counseling Group

Words in [brackets] are blanks you fill in with your own details when you adopt this sample in Supreme Plan AI.

Executive Summary

Cornerstone Counseling Group is a multi-clinician outpatient mental health practice in Atlanta, Georgia, owned by Dr. Alicia Reyes, a licensed psychologist. The practice provides individual, couples, family and group therapy, telehealth and employer programs with appointments available within a week.

Why this fits. Demand for counseling has grown and many practices have long waits. A group practice with strong supervision, flexible hours and a written crisis plan can serve clients quickly and build referrals.

Here is what our numbers show. In Year 1 we plan about 2,200 individual and family sessions, 550 group sessions and 200 telehealth and employer sessions. That brings in sales of $278,600, growing to $939,450 by Year 5. We expect a loss of about $47,300 in Year 1, a profit of about $6,500 in Year 2, a profit of about $28,400 in Year 3 and a profit of about $116,600 by Year 5. Clinician and staff pay, the office lease and the furnishings are our largest costs, and the plan counts all of them. Insurance payments arrive weeks after each session, which the plan also counts.

We need $235,000 in total. Of that, $100,000 is startup costs (office furniture and sound-proofing, computers and telehealth equipment, waiting room furnishings, licensing and insurance, a lease deposit, credentialing and working capital), and the rest is cash for the first months. I am putting in $35,000 of my own savings and asking for a $200,000 SBA 7(a) loan.

I am Dr. Alicia Reyes, owner and clinical director of Cornerstone Counseling Group. These numbers are estimates based on the assumptions listed at the end of this plan, not promises.

Company Description

Cornerstone Counseling Group will be a limited liability company (LLC) in Atlanta, Georgia, owned and run by Dr. Alicia Reyes. Dr. Reyes is a licensed psychologist with fourteen years of experience in clinics and hospitals. She wants to build a group practice where clinicians have time with clients and clients can get an appointment within a week.

What we do:
- Individual therapy for adults, teens and children.
- Couples and family therapy.
- Group therapy and skills groups.
- Telehealth sessions.
- Employer and community wellness programs.

Who we serve: Adults, teens, children and families in the Atlanta area who want counseling, and employers and schools that want mental health support.

Licensing and insurance. I hold a Georgia psychologist license and will register the practice, enroll with insurance plans, make sure every clinician holds the required Georgia license or provisional license and supervision, carry professional liability and general liability insurance and follow state licensing rules and payer billing rules. We follow HIPAA privacy and security rules, keep records in a secure electronic health record, use business associate agreements with vendors and tell every patient how their information is used. We are not an emergency service: our written crisis plan names the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline and 911, and we explain the limits of confidentiality at the first visit.

Our promise. Timely, respectful care from licensed clinicians who take the time to listen.

Where things stand today. The business plan, crisis plan and referral plan are written. The next steps are the lease, the payer credentialing, the offices and the first clients.

Problem & Opportunity

Many people who want counseling wait weeks or months for an appointment, and clinicians in large systems have little time with each client.

What customers run into:
1. Long waits for appointments.
2. Hard-to-find clinicians who take insurance.
3. Rushed visits.
4. Limited evening and telehealth options.

Why it matters. Timely care keeps problems from growing and helps people get back to work, school and family life.

Products & Services

Cornerstone will be the Atlanta practice where people can start counseling this week.

What makes us different:
1. Appointments within a week.
2. Evening and telehealth hours.
3. Licensed clinicians with strong supervision.
4. Specialties for anxiety, trauma, couples and children.
5. A written crisis plan.

How a client's care works:
1. The client calls or books online and we verify insurance.
2. A clinician completes an intake and agrees on goals.
3. The client attends regular sessions in person or by telehealth.
4. We review progress and adjust the plan.

Why customers stay. Clients continue until goals are met and refer friends and family.

Market Analysis

Who we serve:
- Adults with anxiety, depression and stress.
- Teens and children and their families.
- Couples and families.
- Employers and schools that offer wellness programs.

How we sized the market. Our Year 1 plan is about 2,200 individual and family sessions, 550 group sessions and 200 telehealth and employer sessions, a small share of the counseling in a large metro area. Replace this estimate with your own count of clinicians and employers near you.

Why now. Demand for counseling has grown and many practices have waitlists. Telehealth and evening hours widen access.

Competitive Landscape

What customers can do today:

1. Large health systems. Integrated and often with waits.
2. Community mental health centers. Affordable and busy.
3. Solo private practices. Personal and limited in capacity.
4. Online therapy platforms. Convenient and less personal.
5. Employee assistance programs. Short term and limited.

Where we fit. Cornerstone will be a group practice with short waits, strong clinical supervision and flexible hours.

Marketing & Sales Strategy

How customers will find us.

Before opening:
- Meet physicians, schools and employers.
- Credential with insurers.
- Set up a website with online booking and a Google Business Profile.
- Host free community talks on stress and anxiety.

After opening:
- Ask clients for feedback.
- Send updates to referring doctors with client permission.
- Host skills groups.
- Offer employer workshops.
- Share mental health tips on social media.

What we will measure. How clients heard about us, how many intakes become ongoing clients and how many clients reach their goals.

Operations Plan

How the business will run.

Season and schedule. Sessions run weekdays and evenings and some Saturdays, with higher demand in the fall and around the holidays. Intakes are scheduled within a week.

Team. Dr. Reyes sees clients and supervises in Year 1. A licensed clinician joins at opening, and an intake and billing coordinator supports the practice from the start.

Quality and safety. Clinicians follow professional ethics, use a written crisis plan that names 988 and 911 and explain confidentiality limits. Offices are private and sound-proofed, and records are kept in a secure system.

Equipment. We will buy furniture and sound-proofing for therapy offices, computers and telehealth equipment and waiting room furnishings.

Paperwork and money. Clients pay copays at the session and insurers pay claims weeks later. We submit claims within two days of each session, follow up on denials weekly and bill clients clearly for any balance. We keep the books in simple accounting software and set aside money for taxes and insurance every month.

Management & Organization

The people who will run Cornerstone Counseling Group.

Dr. Alicia Reyes, owner and clinical director. She sees clients, supervises clinicians and leads the practice. (Replace this paragraph with your own background.)

Team. One licensed clinician at opening, growing to five, each licensed and supervised.

Office. An intake and billing coordinator works from opening, with a second added as sessions grow.

Outside advisors. An accountant, an insurance broker, an attorney who reviews contracts and a free mentor from SCORE or the Small Business Development Center.

Staff pay in this plan is a full year per person: owner / Clinical Director $85,000; licensed Clinician $78,000; intake and Billing Coordinator $34,000. Replace them with the pay you can offer where you live.

Milestones Narrative

Our goals and when we plan to reach them.
- Before opening (4 months ahead): register the practice, sign the lease, credential with insurers, hire the first clinician and meet the first referring physicians.
- Year 1: about 2,950 sessions with Dr. Reyes and one clinician; $278,600 in sales and a loss of about $47,300.
- Year 2: about 4,430 and a second clinician; $430,030 in sales and a profit of about $6,500.
- Year 3: about 5,900 and a third clinician; $589,000 in sales and a profit of about $28,400.
- Year 4: about 7,400 and a fourth clinician; $764,100 in sales and a profit of about $57,500.
- Year 5: about 8,850 and a fifth clinician; $939,450 in sales and a profit of about $116,600.
Growth depends on winning and keeping customers, so treat the later years as goals, not promises.

What we check every week: sessions completed, claims submitted and paid, denials, cancellations, wait times and cash in the bank.

Funding Request

How much we need and how we will use it. Total we are raising: $235,000.

How we got that number. The Funding Need Calculator in this plan adds up three things:
- Startup costs of $100,000, listed item by item in the Startup Costs section: $18,000 for office furniture and sound-proofing, $8,000 for computers and telehealth equipment, $4,000 for waiting room furnishings, $4,000 for entity registration and attorney review of contracts and consents, $5,500 for professional liability and general liability insurance, first payment, $12,000 for security deposit and first month's rent, $5,000 for signs, branding and website, $6,000 for launch marketing, $7,500 for electronic health record setup and payer credentialing, $30,000 for working capital for slow insurance payments.
- The cash the business uses before it breaks even, about $61,200. Clients build over the first months and insurance pays weeks after each session, so the practice pays rent and staff before payments arrive.
- A cash cushion of about $69,500: three months of Year 1 operating costs.
- Together, the cash used before break even and the cushion come to about $130,700, and the three pieces add up to about $230,700, rounded up to the nearest $500: $231,000.
We are raising $4,000 more than that, $235,000 in all, to cover a slower first season than planned. With this funding, the lowest year-end cash balance is about $76,000, at the end of Year 3.

Where the money comes from:
- My own money: $35,000.
- SBA 7(a) loan: $200,000.

Kind of funding we are looking for. An SBA 7(a) loan from a lender that finances healthcare practices, backed by our savings and the equipment as collateral.

How we will pay it back. We expect a loss of about $47,300 in Year 1, a profit of about $6,500 in Year 2, a profit of about $28,400 in Year 3, a profit of about $57,500 in Year 4 and a profit of about $116,600 in Year 5. With this funding, the business has money in the bank at the end of every year of the plan. Our loan is the SBA 7(a) loan at 10.5% over 10 years, $2,699 a month. That payment is already included in our cash flow. We chose these as cautious planning rates; ask the lender for the real rates, which may be lower or higher.

What we are offering the lender: the equipment and a personal guarantee.

A smaller first step, if needed. If we cannot raise the full amount right away, we can start smaller and grow into this plan:
- Phase 1: open with two offices and a small schedule, which lowers the startup costs and the loan.
- Phase 2: once sessions are steady, add offices and clinicians and follow this plan.
To plan the smaller start, make a copy of this plan (use Duplicate) and lower the numbers to match.

All numbers in this plan are estimates. We will update them as real results come in.

Appendix Notes

Documents to attach before you send this plan:

- Your resume and a personal financial statement (a list of what you own and what you owe; lenders usually provide a form).
- Business registration papers and your EIN (your business tax number from the IRS, free at irs.gov).
- Your psychologist license and proof of insurance.
- Payer credentialing applications.
- Your lease or letter of intent.
- Your crisis plan and informed consent forms.
If you don't have any of this yet, no worries - let's continue.

The assumptions behind our numbers (change them in the Financials section to match your own):
- Individual and Family Sessions: about $105 in Year 1, rising to $118; about $8 in direct costs, rising to $9; about 2,200 in Year 1, growing to 6,600.
- Group Sessions (per participant): about $40 in Year 1, rising to $45; about $3 in direct costs, rising to $3; about 550 in Year 1, growing to 1,650.
- Telehealth and Employer Sessions: about $128 in Year 1, rising to $144; about $8 in direct costs, rising to $9; about 200 in Year 1, growing to 600.
- An individual or family session averages about $105 collected, a group participant about $40 and a telehealth or employer session about $128.
- Prices rise about 3% a year.
- Equipment ($30,000 in Year 1) covers therapy office furniture and sound-proofing, computers and telehealth equipment and waiting room furnishings, and later years ($4,000, $6,000, $5,000 and $6,000) replace and add equipment.
- Pay (a full year, per person): owner / Clinical Director $85,000; licensed Clinician $78,000; intake and Billing Coordinator $34,000.
- Other yearly costs in Year 1: office Lease and Utilities $42,000, professional and General Liability Insurance $8,000, electronic Health Record and Software $10,000, marketing $10,000, clinical Supervision and Training $6,000, admin $5,000. These grow between 4% and 15% a year.
- Customers and payers pay about 55 days after service, so at the end of Year 1 about $41,790 is still owed to us. Income tax at 21%.
- Every dollar amount is an estimate. Replace them with your own quotes and research.

Startup Costs