Forums: Discussions for entrepreneurs and small business.

Hello,

I run a mid-sized business in California, 22 employees, 1M sales. I`ve done all the books myself since inception. Sounds crazy, and is, but we`re managing. I`ve had no institutional financial training, besides the School of Hard Knocks. I outsource my taxes and have "once-in-a-while" CFO, with whom I`ve set up my books to be run by me and, minimally, judged by me. We have some ratios that tell me that our expenses are high, low or normal. Sales ratio that tell me if they are high, low or normal. Current ratio that tells me I`m in serious debt. And one to measure AR turnover. All of these I can manage. So, I`m keeping expenses low, sales high, trying to keep AR turnover low.

Bottom line, I know I`m missing MANY steps. I want to continue to grow. Current strategy is; get AP cought up, save for the next inevitable valley, then pay off debt. Any wizdom or book suggestions for a drowning man?

Dan

I`ve been there, and also know lots of people in similar conditions. Best advice is to sign up at a local junior college for a course on entry-level accounting. You don`t have to worry about passing or failing the course, you`re there to learn the information. It definitely helps, unless you`re the type who more easily gets the same information from books. Then just buy a text book on the same subject.

It`s hard to give you specific advice without knowing more financial details/history... and your post covers a lot of areas... bookkeeping, financial analysis, and business operations.

Bookkeeping - You do not need to know much about accounting with todays` accounting software (quickbooks, etc). Such programs will provide good information about your financial condition...the trick - keep upto date on entering bills, invoices, and deposits....etc.

Drowning - A/R turnover is important for cash flow. Also, look at your AR... to identify accounts that always pay slow vs. other faster paying account... and look at ways to induce faster payments... or if you should keep those accounts. Do you charge interest? I`m sure your bank charges you.

Certainly, watching expenses is important. But you may also need to look at your sources of revenue/sales to see if they can be increased. Price increases, more sales, diversity?

~Roland

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It sounds to me like you have a pretty good handle on things (you know what your financial picture is and what your financial goals are), but I`d recommend you start outsourcing your bookkeeping.  Doing your books does not help make your company grow. 

If you`re spending time on your books when you could be spending it speaking to your customers about how you can improve your business, marketing your business to your existing and future customers, reviewing your production and/or delivery processes, etc., you either won`t have time to grow or you`ll be growing at your own expense.


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Gina L. Gwozdz, CPA
http://GLGcpa.com
http://TaxTreasures.com

Gina,
That`s one of the best arguments for outsourcing the accounting I`ve heard in awhile. Excellent point!

Hi Teddy,

It is hard to advise on what you are missing without having a good understanding of your business.  The one thing I will mention is that cash flow for a growing business is the most critical component to monitor.  Cash flow encompasses all components of financial statements.  Bottom line, you could have the best business idea/concept in the world, but if you don`t have cash to meet payroll, pay suppliers, etc., you won`t get far.  To Gina`s point, outsourcing is not a bad idea, however bookeeping should not take very long and it is a great way to make sure you keep tabs on your business. 

I am a CPA for a large accounting firm and I know how expensive bookeeping can be.  Also, financial analysis is not any good if you never take any time to sit down and review the analysis.  When you get busy growing your business, marketing, etc., it becomes more difficult to actually find the time to do the necessary analysis.  My advice would be to get some coaching on bookeeping and financial analysis, but continue to do it yourself.