Cash flow | Numbers Knowhow

10 Tips For Creating A Sustainable Creative Business

Mahmood Reza — Tue, 02 Jan 2024 08:25:01 +0000

It can be challenging to build a sustainable creative business. Every year, I see more and more businesses in the Arts struggling to remain profitable. It’s a fine line between doing what you love creatively and balancing the books. It can be done – but you’ll need to invest some time and energy into the support functions in your business. Here are 10 tips for maintaining your creativity AND your profitability. 1: Establish a clear vision for your creative business Artistic and creative business owners go into business to do the thing they love doing whether that’s photography, sculpture, expressive arts such as dance, music and so on. It’s a passion business which can often mean that the support tasks can get overlooked. Without a clear vision and plan, you can get caught up in the creative side of your business. You forget to give enough time to manage your numbers. Develop a long-term vision that incorporates both creative aspirations and financial sustainability. It’s wonderful to create stunning pieces of art or music. But if you can’t pay your bills on time, your business won’t survive no matter how talented you are. Regularly revisit and refine your business vision. Adapt […]

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Navigating Cash Flow Challenges In The Arts: A Step-by-Step Guide

Mahmood Reza — Tue, 21 Nov 2023 09:13:34 +0000

Arts and creative organisations may be at higher risk of running into cash flow challenges than other businesses. It’s common in the creative industry to be at the mercy of unpredictable and volatile income streams. Many creative businesses work on a project basis with little opportunity for retainer contracts which bring predictable and sustainable income each month. That’s why it’s even more important to stay on top of your business finances. Try to identify cash flow challenges as early as possible. Here’s a step-by-step guide to managing financial and cash flow challenges: Assess your financial position Identify common cash flow issues Implement cash flow strategies Create a budget Create a ‘rainy-day’ fund Use financial tools Monitor and adjust Get expert support Assessing your financial position Before you can take steps to mitigate any cash flow challenges, you need to understand your current financial position. This means looking carefully at your profit & loss statement, your balance sheet and, crucially, your cash flow forecast. Identify your various income sources and revenue streams. You should know how much of your income comes from which clients and how those clients were sourced. Next, look at your fixed and variable expenses so you […]

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Social Enterprise Management For Success

Mahmood Reza — Fri, 10 Nov 2023 11:38:24 +0000

Social enterprise management is no different than managing any other for-profit business – at least in some ways. However, managing a social enterprise has additional challenges that aren’t found in traditional companies. Here are just five aspects to consider. Key aspects of social enterprise management Social enterprise management is all about balancing potentially competing priorities. A social enterprise must first make money before it can succeed in its social vision and mission. These two ends of the seesaw could make managing the organisation more difficult than a business with profit generation for shareholders as its focus. 1. Mission and values The overriding mission of a social enterprise is usually to tackle a social or community problem. It could be helping people who are homeless to get warm clothing and a hot meal. It might be providing employment for young offenders or perhaps even have an environmental angle such as creating local recycling opportunities. Whatever the mission, you’ll need to align it with your organisation’s financial and business strategy because one can’t happen without the other. Being clear on your mission and values helps stakeholders, including potential investors, employees, customers and suppliers to understand why you might operate differently than […]

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Achieving Success In Your Business

Mahmood Reza — Mon, 16 Oct 2023 10:30:17 +0000

Feeling like you’re not achieving success in your business? You’re not alone. You’d be surprised to hear that many people feel this way at some point in their lives. But don’t worry, I can help. Once you’ve learned what success actually is, you can start to work on achieving it in your own business. However it won’t be easy, but it will be worth it. I promise. Here are some tips and examples of how you can achieve success. Watch my video on business success and find out how to achieve it for yourself! A few words on success Certainly we all have our own definition of success, but there are some commonalities that we can all agree on. To clarify success is not a destination, it’s a journey. It takes hard work, dedication and lots of perseverance. But most importantly, it takes learning from your mistakes and continuously progressing forward. There are so many resources out there to help you achieve success in your business. All you need is the desire and willingness to learn and put in the effort required. Stay focused on your goals, don’t compare yourself to others, and always keep moving forward. You can […]

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Performance Management System: 5 Tips

Mahmood Reza — Fri, 13 Oct 2023 10:57:38 +0000

Do you need a system that will track the performance of your employees in a consistent and measurable way? Then you need a performance management system for your business! Wondering how to create one? You’re in the right place! In this video, I’ll be talking to you about the five steps you need to take to create performance management system that’s perfect for your business. A balanced scorecard approach This is a performance management system aligned with a company’s core strategic goals. It includes the performance objectives of the business which it monitors, measures (and changes if necessary) with the end goal of achieving the company’s business plan. Why it might sound scary to business owners Creating and implementing a performance management system for your business can be a daunting task. There are so many factors to consider – from setting goals and measuring progress, to providing feedback and handling termination procedures. There are five steps to creating a performance management system are: Identifying your critical success factors, Setting your KPIs, Figuring out your initiatives, Reviewing your progress, and Taking action. This list might seem intimidating at a first glance, but having the right tools and advice, will definitely […]

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Knowing Your Costs – The Key To Any Business

Mahmood Reza — Mon, 25 Sep 2023 10:46:37 +0000

Running a business means setting clear goals that you would like to achieve as a business owner. Whether that is to provide services or manufacture products, you must have a defined target and strive to reach it. Certainly, one of your goals should be making money i.e making a profit, since there is no future in a business that is repetitively not profitable. Focusing merely on the sales you are generating won’t give you the full picture. Hence, the way to success and money is through knowing your costs. In this blog, I am going to explain the different types of costs and how they behave in different circumstances. The importance of knowing your costs The sales that you make are not your profit in the business precisely because of the costs you have. Once the end customer has paid you for the product or service that you offer, the money you receive needs to cover the expenses that you encountered in the process of production. Now, these expenses are what I call costs. By knowing your costs, you will know what you are left with from the sales. In other words, you will know how much of your […]

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Manage Cashflow: Five Top Tips

Mahmood Reza — Mon, 21 Aug 2023 09:04:28 +0000

Wondering how to manage your cashflow? You’ve come to the right place. By the end of this blog, you’ll have read about top tips to manage your cashflow and you will be equipped with the necessary information to help you do a really good job at it. Cash and business But firstly, what is cash? It’s what gets paid into your bank account. It’s factual, and more importantly, is the lifeblood of your business. Secondly, why do we need cash? Your business needs it for a whole bunch of things. Typically, cash is needed for: So running out of cash, access to cash or poor cash flow is squeaky bum time. Your business will survive if your cash flow supports it. However, if you do a bad job at managing your cashflow, the cash will run out, or access to it will dry up. Unfortunately, it is the end of the business road if you reach that point. It’s not for nothing that the phrase “Revenue is vanity, profit is sanity, and cash is reality”, rings true. It’s good business practice to have a good cash flow management strategy. Here are the five key elements that you should include […]

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What Is Turnover In Business?

Mahmood Reza — Sun, 06 Aug 2023 15:07:27 +0000

What is turnover in business? We’re here to answer that question for you. If you’ve been looking to get a grasp of what turnover is, then it certainly doesn’t help that there are different terms for it. As a result, you’re left wondering what they mean when they use all that jargon. By the end of this blog, we will clear all of that confusion. So, without further delay, here’s what this short blog (and vlog) covers: What is turnover in business (aka definition) To begin with, it is the standard term used by UK limited companies and when accounts are filed. HMRC use it in for the self-employed, large and small, and also for partnerships, large and small. Turnover also comes up for the Fifth Self Employed Grant. First thing is first. Let’s define it. What is turnover in business? It’s the amount of money received from sales for a given period of time. I know it doesn’t help that there are different terms for turnover – revenue, sales, and takings – but don’t worry, they all refer to the same thing. So, whenever you hear people talking about the company sales or revenue, they’re essentially talking about their […]

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Financial Statements Explained

Mahmood Reza — Sat, 22 Jul 2023 10:26:39 +0000

Financial statements explained is the topic of this blog (and vlog). And it will serve as a guide to you so that you can better understand them. Why do you need to know about financial statements? Because the financial statements form the bedrock of any company. Therefore, understanding them and how they work gives you insight and clarity. In this video, I’ll walk you through: What each statement is, The content of those statements, Why it’s important to understand these documents. Financial statements explained There are 3 types of financial statements, and they are: 1. The cash statement It summarises where the cash in your business comes from, and where it goes. 2. The profit statement Also called the P&L, or profit/loss statement. It shows you your company’s profit and loss over a given period of time. 3. The balance sheet It’s a financial statement of the assets and liabilities of a business at one particular point in time. Benefits Undoubtedly, these documents give you, as a business owner, the numbers of the company and show you: how your business is performing financially, and where you stand in terms of your cash flow. Certainly, this can be overwhelming for […]

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The Difference Between Budget & Budgeting – A Beginner’s Guide

Mahmood Reza — Fri, 19 May 2023 09:16:58 +0000

We’re all on a budget, and I bet we’ve all done budgeting in one way or another. But, before we go into comparing the two, we need to clarify what a budget is. What is a budget? It’s really a plan for spending the money you have or the money you expect to have over a certain period. When it comes to businesses, it’s usually an annual one. When we say that something is in our budget, we actually mean that we have the necessary funds and we can spend them on whatever it is we’ve planned for our business. On the other hand, if it is over it, it means that we’ve not planned for such an expense, and we can’t afford to make a certain purchase. Types of spending plans They can be personal or corporate. This means that both households and companies use them. Hence, the very first sentence of this blog. Personal When you know how much money you have and what portion of it you spend on all your monthly expenses, it will be much easier to stay on top of your finances. These calculations are usually done on a monthly basis. Following a […]

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Business Numbers – Friend Or Foe?

Mahmood Reza — Fri, 19 May 2023 09:15:33 +0000

Do you see your business numbers as a friend or foe? If you are in business, what is your attitude towards your numbers? Do you like them, dislike them, or is it somewhere in between? That is what we are going to cover in this blog. If you think that money is an icky subject, your business will remain a hobby instead of further developing and improving. Many business owners are good at what they do. They may have great skill and craftsmanship, they may excel in providing service to the customers, but they are not necessarily aware of the financial impact that affects their business. Numbers are your best friend Have you ever thought about who your best friend in business is? Spoiler alert, it is your business numbers. They are your best friend meaning they will not lie to you, nor let you down. Your numbers help you navigate your business through turbulent times as well as in times of prosperity. Sometimes, a poke in the eye may seem better than dealing with your business numbers. For some people, the flashbacks of Maths classes with Mr Calculate and Miss Take Away are far from being pleasant. Consequently, […]

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Cash Flow Mastery For Business Growth

Mahmood Reza — Fri, 19 May 2023 09:13:01 +0000

Cash flow or fail! Because money talks. And it is especially talkative when you don’t have any, nagging money worries that keep people up all night and worried all day. Most of us have been broke at some point in our lives. Most people will have had to adopt certain strategies or habits to ensure they get their finances back on track. And that is without us even considering the complex landscape of the business world. Cash flow – a brief overview Cash flow is the money that flows in and out of a business over a given period of time. It is important because it allows you to stay in business. How does it do that? Money coming is used for many purposes. You use it to pay your bills, salaries, rent, etc. It also allows for catering to unexpected expenses such as equipment failure, or natural disasters. Another thing that it is vital in is growth investments. Without cash flow, your business may miss out on investment opportunities, preventing it from reaching its targets. A positive cash flow allows a business to operate smoothly, invest in growth opportunities, and stay resilient when unexpected challenges arise. You need […]

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