Tag: Financial Analysis
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Founder Mode vs. Manager Mode
When it comes to managing a business, there are typically 2 schools of thought with staunch defenders on each side: (The latter is sometimes referred to as micromanagement.) In his recent article Founder Mode, Paul Graham (founder of startup incubator, Y Combinator) compares the hands-on management approach (Founder Mode) with the traditional delegation approach (Manager Mode).…
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Do These 3 Things With Your Financials
Prepping the numbers This week, I gave a keynote to a group of franchisees outlining how to read and use their financial statements (a novel concept). It started with the idea of “mise en place.” If you’re not familiar with the thorough preparation phase before cooking, then let me give you some quick background: Mise…
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Building a Financial Review Routine
What’s your financial cadence? Business owners have a typical financial review process that goes something like this: Financial statement analysis is the primary tool when it comes to evaluating business performance (I’ve said this before). There’s a “what” component and a “when” component to that analysis; here’s a simple routine that should work for most…
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The Quarterly View
Taking the quarterly view It’s not too late to review 2024 annual financial statements. In fact, most public companies are still reporting Q4 and full year results. Like other business owners, I have a strong preference for monthly financial statements; but, with yearend in full swing, it felt like a good time to pitch the quarterly…
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The 5 Best Financial Reports
“Send me your financials.” What I receive in response to this question is typically a mixed-bag. Maybe there’s a different answer depending on the recipient, but I’ll share my 5 favorite financial reports. These are the ones I’d want to see in order to really help someone. The 5 best financial reports (in order): The point is to look…
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Business Breakdown Part II: Financial Statement Analysis
Last week, we kicked off a multi-post series working through a case study, Starbucks Corp. to be precise. We covered the business model, profit model, and unit economics and today we’re moving onto financial statement analysis. The goal for today is to show you how to pick apart a set of financial statements with ease. Quick…
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Capital Allocation Part III: Return on Capital
We’re wrapping up a 3-part series (here’s part I and part II) on capital allocation – the effective use of profits and cash flow – with a concept called Return on Invested Capital (ROIC). [Sometimes just called return on capital or ROC.] First, a quick reminder of our balance sheet – we buy or build assets for the purpose…
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Capital Allocation Part II: Cash Sources and Uses
Sources & uses of cash This is Part 2 of a series on capital allocation. A quick recap from last week: We defined the 3 uses of profits as capital allocation. They are: Where we left off was how to assess capital allocation… let’s cover one of the best methods for evaluating capital allocation, a tool we refer to…
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Every Small Business Needs a Financial Operating System
We’re big fans (and users) of Gino Wickman’s EOS (Entrepreneurial Operating System), which outlines a useful framework for business management. I’d highly recommend if you’re in need of a basic structure for meetings, people management, and setting a company vision. What it lacks is a robust financial management structure, or what I’ll refer to as a Financial Operating…
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How to Keep Cash Flowing
1) The indirect method of cash reporting The indirect method of reporting cash flow is what you’ll see most often. It’s the standard format across QuickBooks, other financial software, and for publicly-traded companies. How it works There are 3 sections of cash flow With all the components laid out, it’s easy to see why profit is so…