Step 1

Dashboards – Where Are We?:

“Managing By the Numbers” requires timely and actionable financial information.  The opposite of no information is being drowned by reports and data you don’t have time to study.  Meet the happy median.  We set up weekly dashboards measuring your business’ KPI’s (key performance indicators).  The dashboard in your vehicle tells you how fast you’re moving, your remaining fuel, radiator temperature, battery charging, etc.  Much like the dashboard in your vehicle, your dashboard reports will give you critical data on how your business is running.  You get all of your dashboard reports the same day of the week.  This should cut down your time spent on them to no more than one hour per week.  You’ll know how your business is operating in all the important areas of your business, including cash flow.  You get current data so you can take corrective action before some crisis appears.  Dashboards allow you to manage by the numbers and free yourself from chronic crisis management.

Financial Statements: “Any questions?”

Have you ever been given a copy of your financial statements by your accounting department and been told “Look them over and let me know if you have any questions?”  You didn’t have any questions because you didn’t know enough to ask.  We make a monthly analysis of your financial statements and present a layman’s narrative of what your financial statements are saying about your business in terms of profitability, financial strength and liquidity and a host of other metrics.  We also compare your business to your industry standards to determine if you’re outperforming or underperforming your industry peers.  You get a clear understanding of how your business is doing along with recommendations to improve its performance, financial strength and liquidity.

Financial Statements: “Stale and Past the Expiration Date”

Another stumbling block of financial statements for some businesses is that the financial statements are several months in arears.  Are you getting current financial statements?  They lose value over time.  What good are financial statements that are at least six months old?  Not much relevance there.  We make sure you’re getting current financial statements.  We’ll examine the closing process used by your accounting department and put in any corrections or short cuts needed to get you timely financial statements every month.