It pays to do things twice in accounting. Italian friar Luca Piacoli established that when he published the first book on double-entry bookkeeping in 1494. The practice is still being used today. Like Piacoli, who was well versed in a wide range of subjects, the art and science of accounting is all about timing and balance. Double-entry bookkeeping, which requires two-sides to every journal entry,…
Business process outsourcing – You are doing it already. Don’t be intimidated when you hear the term BPO, or business process outsourcing, bantered about at your next business meeting. You are doing it already. If you have an accountant do your taxes, an attorney help with documents or an advisor for your benefits plan, you are already using BPO services.
Every trade and every industry has a strategy to help ensure success. For carpenters and tailors, there’s the old adage, “measure twice and cut once”. For businesses, the path to maximizing your likelihood of success lies in taking the time to do a full and proper assessment of your business systems, people and practices.
Accurate, timely accounts are not only important, they can mean the difference between success and failure in the business world.Four out of five new businesses fail within the first five years, and of those 60 percent are profitable, according to the Professional Association of Small Business Accountants. One of the main reasons is “payment terms”–the time between when a service is provided or a liability…
A financial innovation that will drive value for your business – Process improvement can yield high returns with little or no capital investment.We live in a world of scarce resources. One of the major challenges business leaders face is how to drive great results with limited capital. In the race for resources many businesses don’t place enough value on preparing timely and accurate financials. This is…
Having metrics that keep a company focused on key areas are critical to business improvement. Recently a group of local financial executives discussed the art of developing effective business performance measures. Participants agreed many key metrics used today are irrelevant in helping guide their business. Poorly chosen metrics waste corporate resources by diverting attention from important issues to less important or, worse yet, irrelevant ones. The group decided businesses should…
