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  • Where to go from here – focus on the role of the Controller/CFO

    Strategically oriented Controllers/CFOs often ask me how to upgrade the quality of the Finance function, and even more important, it’s perceived value as an integral part of the business. Most of these financial leaders often realize that to enhance their role and value (both for the business and for themselves) they need to go “beyond the numbers.” The chief financial officer of a [...]

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    Credit granting policies to improve cash flow

    In a recent article on Cash Management by the authors, we mentioned the importance of credit granting policies in the cash management cycle. This article elaborates on the importance of this and some of the issues that should be addressed in managing the sales processes, to facilitate the cash management that will follow. Management of Accounts Receivable is significantly influenced by a [...]

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    Reducing expenses

    Most businesses are constantly trying to reduce expenses but fail to go about it in a methodical way.  As a result, as with most exercises that are not well planned, insufficient focus leads to missed opportunities. One very valuable aid to reducing expenses is to utilize and frequently review checklists, on a regular basis and by more than one staff member. Five checklists covering different [...]

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    Deadlines

    Deadlines are inevitable!  They often cause a high level of stress for the person responsible for meeting the deadline.  There are many strategies that a Controller and CFO can implement to manage deadlines effectively and, as a result, reduce the stress level of the Controller and support staff.  Deadlines for recurring routine tasks and ad hoc assignments, that are both long and short-term, [...]

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    Focus on the important not the urgent

    In our daily work lives it is so easy to get swept away dealing with time-consuming tasks that seem urgent. So we procrastinate and often do not attend to, or do not give sufficient consideration to the really important projects. How many times have you looked at your watch at the end of the day and said “where did the day go?” and realized that you have not done any or most of, what you [...]

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    Obtain value from your Accounting department

    In many small and medium sized businesses the head of the accounting dept. (let’s call him or her a Controller) is perceived as an overhead, or even a necessary evil and the Controller often then does everything in their power to live up to that perception.  This is exemplified by the Controller’s business associates calling him a bean counter. It is relatively easy for the owner/President [...]

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    Cash management - one way to manage your working capital

    Cash management is essentially the process of managing working capital. One way to get a high level view of your business is to calculate its cash conversion cycle. This is the time that it takes to convert cash outflows that are needed to produce goods into cash through sales and collection of accounts receivable.  An example would be for CN Railway using their 2010 annual financial statements:[...]

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    Ten steps to improve the productivity of your Accounting Department

    I have never come across the head of a finance/accounting function (let’s use the generic term Controller, as the title does not matter) who could not use a few more hours in every day.  I am sure that you, or your Controller, could make very good use and create real additional value, if you have just one more hour a day.  And what if that applied to every member of your staff with managerial [...]

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    Ten simple steps for obtaining value from a bonus

    I often find that new clients award a significant bonus to an employee but without significant communication. It is not uncommon for a busy CEO or manager to telephone a staff member and say something like “Hi Joe, I’m calling about your bonus. You are getting $X.  Well done.  You did a great job last year.  Thanks.”  Often the employee is not sure what it is that he did well, or what [...]

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    Beware of the tax man

    Tax issues to avoid when preparing your exit strategy All too often, business owners neglect to plan ahead for the succession of their business. And while this is likely to affect their options for transitioning out of their business, there can also be severe tax implications that could have been avoided with a bit of forethought and advance planning. In many cases, the ultimate tax burden [...]

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