| Abstract: Preface. A Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) holds the minimum credential necessary to offer Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) services within the certificant’s scope of experience/expertise. A BCBA wishing to offer services in their own name, by starting a private practice, faces substantial considerations beyond basic clinical competence. Ethical Considerations. Section 1.02 of the Behavior Analyst Certification Board (BACB) Ethics Code provides that BCBAs only offer services within the boundaries of available competence. In addition to basic clinical competence, operating a private ABA practice requires expertise in various administrative areas including: insurance contracts and procedure, personnel management, billing and collections, business law, accounting and payroll, cashflow management, and general business administration. Personal/Market Surveys. To evaluate the practicality of establishing a practice, the prospective entrepreneur should survey: (1) personal resources and existing responsibilities, and (2) the ABA business conditions existing in the prospective geographic market (demand for services, competition, funding sources, population density, traffic, technician availability, pay rates, etc.). Business Plan. A business plan typically reflects: specific goals/expectations, timelines, key personnel, defined target market(s), pro-forma budgets, cost-analyses, detailed consideration of in-house vs. outsourcing of administrative functions, personnel recruitment and training plans, definition and assignment of specific management team functions, policy/procedural documentation, and clinical/administrative quality control. |