Proper and effective management of the cash flow of your business can be a challenging task. Mismanagement can occur at any stage of your business, which could hurt your bottom line and make it difficult to scale up. If you want great success and considerable growth down the line, It is crucial to stay on top of money management and keep your books ‘clean’.
Fortunately, there are methods and even tools that can help you with your finances. Keep reading to learn more about the best ways to manage your finances while scaling your business.
1. Use expense reimbursement software.
The fact that this tip is the first one on the list is no surprise since expense reimbursement software can really help you when it comes to handling finances properly.
An expense reimbursement software automates and streamlines all tasks which are a part of the expense claim process. This covers the easy submission of employee expense reports, automatic policy compliance, expense claim verification, to name a few.
Manual, paper-based processes are error-prone, and employees have difficulty keeping up with all the tasks they have daily on top of them. Your employees are striving to meet your organization’s goals, and they should not be slowed down with repetitive, unproductive tasks such as expense reporting, approvals, or reimbursements.
A good finance and expense reimbursement software tool always brings great expense management features that deal with the major challenges your employees face in the expense reimbursement cycle in a single click.
2. SharePoint for accounting and budget planning.
Businesses have many applications built on different platforms they use on a regular basis. This usually causes problems since some apps cannot be integrated with each other, and some require custom data connectors in order to be connected to each other. Further, different storage locations for data may lead to duplication and errors.
However, SharePoint provides a way to bring different apps together on a single platform, and it offers a lot of out-of-the-box functionalities. It was built so that employees can use it both on their desktop devices and on their mobile phones. Therefore, they always have access to the necessary data.
But, what does it have to do with handling finances?
Well, SharePoint offers a user-targeted dashboard at a single entry point – announcements, current tasks, tasks on a daily basis, events and meetings calendar, and so on.
Processes related to budgeting and planning, forecasting, and reporting can be brought together and structured. There will be no need for more Excel sheets as SharePoint will do the job just fine.
On top of that, SharePoint can help you with better budget planning. This is a workflow that is made of a number of tasks that would usually be performed by your employees. The tool offers the best practice for budget processes, providing collaboration methods, single point uploads, document storage, and easy access control.
However, if your employees are not familiar with this software solution, you should definitely do your best to provide them with a good Microsoft Sharepoint training program. When they learn how to properly use the tool, they will be able to take full advantage of it right off the bat.
3. Get an expert CFO on board, especially when scaling.
When a business owner starts wondering how to scale a business, different answers come to their mind, including better organization, productivity, and automation. However, there is also one element that you mustn’t forget.
CFOs always play a pivotal role in the scaling of any business. The role has extended its reach into most corners of a company, and in most cases, it is crucial to have a reliable person holding this position.
In most companies today, CFOs are being called on to play a bigger role in setting up a strategy. The traditional role as an operator and catalyst now includes a large dose of strategy on top of the more traditional role that focuses on core competencies such as accounting, tax, financial reporting, internal controls, budgeting, and forecasting.
Nowadays, businesses look for a person that can bring additional value to strategic decision-making processes and that’s what your business should seek too when looking to scale up.
Also, your CFO will be your company’s finance leader, and you should ask them for a more holistic view of a business. A CFO should be able to participate with the CEO and the rest of the management team in aggressively scaling a company.
4. Don’t forget to separate your business from your personal assets.
Set clear boundaries as your business grows. Many business owners use their own savings to fund their businesses, but you should not follow that practice.
Establish your business as a separate legal entity and protect your personal assets even if you start thinking about mending various expenses with your own money. This will protect your assets from being on the hook in case your business goes under or gets served with a lawsuit.
Moreover, having a separate business credit card and checking account also makes it easy to separate your business expenses from personal ones (this is an advantage since many business expenses are tax-deductible).
Keep track of all expenditures, write checks for business expenses from your business bank account, and pay yourself a salary out of your business account. Avoid using your personal card and you will successfully separate your business from your personal assets.
5. Reduce your overhead costs.
Think about your overhead costs and figure out whether you really need to spend money on various items. Also, set a calendar reminder to reevaluate every subscription service a few days before the second charge is scheduled to charge your credit card.
If you fail to find the tools and services that you need or don’t have the additional cash in the budget for a monthly subscription, consider making your own tools.
In case you have developers working for you, it will be worth it to check open-source software solutions that are out there. Some are designed for small business owners, and they are available for free.
Last but not least, find and customize free customer relationship management tools, accounting apps, and even social media marketing tools. Every penny that you save now will be worth a buck in the long run once you start scaling up.
6. Final thoughts.
It is fair to say that being a small business owner is one of the most difficult jobs out there. You are focused on doing everything you can to keep your business healthy, but it is also important to take good care of yourself in the process.
So, make sure you keep all the finances healthy. Separate your business from your personal life, even when you start scaling up. Create healthy financial habits, and you will have a smooth journey to success.
