The Benefits of Forecasting and Management Accounts

Virtually every person you speak to would agree that they’d like to make their life easier, free up some time, and understand where their business is likely to be in 12 months, 3 or even 5 years’ time. With an increasingly greater choice of accounting software products, all boasting more and more functionality and versatility, it can be surprising how often the built-in reports do not reflect a business’ unique needs or provide the information that is actually required. Often this results in a process of entering the data into the accounting system, then taking numerous reports from that system, only to manually enter the data again onto a spreadsheet in order to extract the relevant information. If you can relate to the above then we may be able to help. We’ve spent a number of years assisting many clients to automate and streamline their management accounts and forecasting processes. This improves efficiency and provides timely information that can really help provide the clarity that a business owner requires. Some of the advantages our clients have found from developing their forecasting and management accounts processes include:

IMPROVED CASHFLOW PLANNING

Forecasting future cash flow is essential to identify trends and highlight potential cashflow problems in advance, giving you additional time and information in which to manage the impact on the business. The inclusion of integrated monthly actual figures can provide a basis to automatically re-forecast the future cash position, ensuring information is kept relevant and up to date.

INFORMED MANAGEMENT DECISION-MAKING

A comprehensive forecast can provide the knowledge required to make informed decisions. The ability to flex a forecast for different scenarios enables you to understand the impact of a decision on the business - from a simple price change to complex growth strategies such as an acquisition or merger. With the current uncertainty of BREXIT, a flexible forecast can provide the opportunity to plan for a variety of potential scenarios, and anticipate and manage any potential effects on your business.

SUPPORT IN RAISING FINANCE

A robust forecast - particularly with an integrated profit and loss, balance sheet and cash flow - can provide support when raising finance. A comprehensive understanding of the future position of your business will build investor confidence that the investment can be managed responsibly.

TIME-SAVING AND ERROR REDUCTION

Automating your management accounts and reports by linking these directly to the accounting software can reduce processing time and give you confidence in the accuracy of your reporting.

ENHANCED PERFORMANCE MONITORING

An automated monthly comparison of budget to actual figures provides valuable information on whether the business is performing as expected. Tailoring the management report can help to identify and monitor any areas of concern, and can measure progress against relevant key performance indicators. By integrating actuals with robust and realistic budgets, your business is not only in a strong position to understand what has happened, but is also better placed to understand what the future position will hold. We have a very detailed knowledge and experience in all of these areas and have provided tailored help and guidance for many organisations in many different situations. If you would like further information on how we can help your business, please do not hesitate to get in touch.