I have a “side hustle” when I’m not occupied with running the CFO for Rent business; it’s investing in commercial real estate, along with some of my clients and close friends. It’s the business I’ll pursue more fully when I’m no longer offering consulting services, and the brokers and money lenders know that. Our office gets offers […]

We have a client whose accounting activity functioned for years under the direction of non-accounting management, not uncommon among smaller privately owned companies whose limited resources often put accounting last on the shopping list. In this case, as we began working together, the primary obstacle was the difficulty in making sense of their financial statements. […]

A question was raised in a client review meeting recently that reminded me that some financial terms – these two in particular – are often not as clear to non-financial managers as they should be. So this post seemed like an excellent opportunity to provide some clarity. Gross Profit? Contribution Profit? What’s the difference? Why […]

As we urge every CEO and business owner to do, we compare actual results with the projections the client made at the beginning of the year, whether it’s a formal budget with staff accountability or not, and we ensure a discussion with management follows. Even without staff accountability, there is value in management learning what […]

News and social media are valuable sources of intelligence about people, companies, trends, and more. For strategic planning, risk management, litigation support, or other times when you need to know more before taking action, it’s worth adding this step into your research process. As with any type of online research, though, news and social media […]

Many companies have come out of the pandemic/inflation/Fed counterattack in a great position with more cash on their balance sheets than they expected, or needed, to run their business effectively. For some, that comfort has led to complacency, letting the cash sit in their business checking accounts ready on demand for any new venture, or […]

The literature typically calls them KPIs, or Key Performance Indicators. I used to call them Critical Performance Factors, or CPFs, before the idea became popular and in every consultant’s toolkit. Whatever you call them, the financial KPIs should be collected and reported in a dashboard format, an essential addition to your monthly financial reporting package […]

One of the things that small businesses – and often mid-sized ones too – don’t do well is bookkeeping, the source of all their financial reports. When dollars for an adequate accounting system and competent staffing have to compete with (1) expanding the sales and marketing team, (2) adding new products, or (3) paying bonuses […]

So if you’re shopping or considering going shopping, and the interest rates aren’t sufficiently off-putting, here are our thoughts on the things you will have to keep in mind and deal with, as you approach lenders – even your current bank. So if you’re shopping or considering going shopping, and the interest rates aren’t sufficiently […]

You’ve had a really good year so far, after the mess of the last few years. Your top-line revenue looks much better than expected. New business is up, returning customers are buying again, and your sales team is feeling great about the prospects for the balance of the year. There is only one problem: Net […]