Happy Valentine’s Day! We are halfway through the first quarter. How are you progressing against goals set at the top of the year?
If you’re not sure, this message is definitely for you. Keep reading, or if you’re curious what a fractional CFO can do for your numbers in 2024, lets talk.
Your relationship with your numbers and financial performance is much like a relationship with someone you would date.
When you invest time and attention into the person you are dating, the relationship thrives and grows. If you were really into the person, you wouldn’t neglect them or ignore them.
So why would you do the same with your financial performance?
There are levels to measuring business performance. Here are three ways to love on your numbers.
Level 1 – Get to know your numbers AKA the “Coffee Shop Date”🥰
This level is perfect for the DIY’er or Advanced Beginner, and is similar to the first handful of dates when you’re getting to know someone. During those dates, you’re likely showing interest by asking questions about them and looking for red flags and green flags.
This is much like using the Business Scorecard method to measure your financial performance in your business.
A business scorecard is the “coffee shop date” for your numbers. It’s a dashboard of 5-10 data points or performance metrics that tell you where the business is.
A dashboard directs your next action and communicates to others how your business is performing. This is a sample of some of the many types of metrics to track; they don’t have to only be financial metrics.
💘 Sales metrics: % of leads that convert into booked appoints and closed deals, % of visitors on an online retail site that click to cart and then pay versus those who abandon cart
💘 Employee related: employee turnover rate, employee retention rate
💘 Operational: % of employee working hours logged that are billable vs non billable time
💘 Financial: sales by product or service, weekly cash burn or used, average # of days customers take to pay or you take to pay vendors
Level 2 – Intermediate Level Tracking AKA “Defining the Relationship” 🥰
Some months have passed and you’re considering what it could be like to be with your date long term. You’ve probably introduced them to some of your friends or people close to you.
You’ve moved past the initial dating period and you’re getting into the deeper parts of relating to each other.
At this level in business, owners tend to have a bookkeeper that knows accounting and who is doing the books in a reliable accounting software.
If the books are being kept complete and up to date, then it makes sense to generate the income statement and balance sheet monthly and review the trends and anomalies.
Some important things to look out for at this level are:
💘 Gross profit margin → (Revenue – Cost of Goods Sold)/ Revenue → this ratio tells you what % of revenue you have left (after covering the cost of supplies, materials and direct labor) to pay day to day expenses.
💘 Accounts Receivable → If the number is increasing, get on the phone and start calling clients for payment.
💘 Quick ratio measures whether you have enough cash and short term assets (e.g. receivables) to pay off short term liabilities (due in less than a year). A ratio of 1.5 indicates that a company has $1.50 of liquid assets available to cover each $1 of its short term liabilities. Ratios greater than 1 indicate a pretty good cash position.
Level 3 – Advanced level Delegator & Math Lover, AKA “In it for the long haul” 🥰
At this point you’re all in! Your relationship is thriving, you’re fully committed to each other, and you’re making plans for the future. You’re taking steps to build a life together and are growing together.
When you are all-in with your numbers, you want to have a deep understanding of them so you’re empowered to make decisions to improve the future health of your business. You’re;
💘 Looking at financial reports monthly
💘 Future planning and forecasting numbers every quarter
💘 Willing to invest money in coaches and consultants that help you figure out ways to increase cash flow and profits
When you’re at this level, you’re ready for an outsourced CFO to serve as a strategic partner that not only helps you grow and scale, but also educates you so you feel confident making decisions based on numbers, not just imagination.
💘 If you’d like to talk more about what a CFO can do for you, book a 45 minute Financial Strategy Call.
Have a Happy Valentine’s Day!
Tricia
Tricia Taitt is the CEO and Chief Financial Choreographer of FinCore. She holds an M.B.A from The Fuqua School of Business of Duke University, and a BS in Economics with a Finance concentration from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. For over 20 years, she’s been a finance professional. Half of the time was spent working on Wall Street while the other half was spent in the trenches side by side with small business owners. As a result of working with FinCore, clients have been able to take control of their numbers and feel more confident in their ability to make decisions, while increasing profits by 10% and building a cash stash to invest in growth. Follow Tricia on LinkedIn and Instagram.