Uh, oh.  Don’t look now, but the clock has just ticked into October and it’s…wait for it…THE FOURTH QUARTER!

And just like in football, you need to be managing your clock to make sure that you finish ahead.  Or maybe you’re playing catch up. Or you are so far ahead, you are coasting.

Whatever you do, don’t waste time or let up.  Just because you are on plan doesn’t mean that it’s time to let up on those players, coaches and officials…or yourself. A few things to think about leading into and during the fourth quarter:

• Evaluate your business position. Are you on track to make plan?
• Check up on inventory. Is it where it is supposed to be?
• Be aware of your tax situation as the year ends and what you need to do going into the new year. Do you owe and are you prepared to pay?
• Finish up your planning for the new year and begin preparation for first quarter. What are your expectations?
• Talk with your staff—they are on the front lines and know what is going on and can help you finish those plans for the new year.
• Plan for the holiday season—staff bonuses, partner and customer gifts and how to handle time off at the end of the calendar.

Above all, keep a positive outlook.  Yes, while this is a time of not letting down and pushing across that goal or finish line, it is also a time for reflection.  Of a job well done.  Positive companies thrive and succeed!

For more on how to prepare you and your company for the fourth quarter and beyond, call or write to us.  TFO Solutions is dedicated to helping entrepreneurs and business owners with their financial strategy from the back office to the boardroom.

**photos courtesy of Unsplash (Dave Adamson, photographers) and Paul Maynard

After the first two weeks of the NFL season it seems some fans are already looking ahead to next year.  Their teams have gone oh-and-two and the prospects for winning this year and making the playoffs are somewhere in the range slim to none.

“Better luck next time,” as the saying goes.

Whoa, hold on, isn’t it a 17-game season? Are they giving up too early?

Well, the truth is, as it is with business, an NFL team is really a week-to-week, real-time enterprise.  The defense and offense can make subtle or wholesale changes to get on track.  Two loses don’t make a season.

Same goes for your business.  It’s not that we don’t want to look ahead to next year, but we can manage this team from week to week (or financial quarter to financial quarter) quite successfully.

Remember when we talked about goals? By setting (and keeping on track with) goals you give your company direction, momentum and, really, lift.

Let’s say that at mid-year, your sales are slow or behind projections.  That’s when you gather your team together to reexamine your goals and discuss your options to getting back on track.  If sales are down, talk over how each part of the enterprise can help sales meet their goals. If production is behind, what can the team come up with to help meet customer demand if the supply chain is challenged?

You get the idea. This is about stepping up and taking action as a team that results in success for the greater good.

If you need help with the financial part of that equation, call or write to us.  TFO Solutions is dedicated to helping entrepreneurs and business owners with their financial strategy from the back office to the boardroom.

**photos courtesy of Unsplash (Manasvita S and Behnam Norouzi, photographers)

Little Anthony and the Imperials sang it and most of us live it at one point of our lives:

“Going out of my head…”

Sure, life has its distractions, both good and not so good.  But the reality is that focus is a good thing.  Now that focus can be on that thing you are leaving your senses for.  Or it can be for the entrepreneurial business you are trying to keep straight.

Now, don’t get me wrong.  Sometimes distractions are a way to get creative and ensure a positive and free-thinking direction for your enterprise.  However, if you leave your head too often and don’t focus on the things you should, then things could get sticky with your partners, employees, local government and the tax man.

So, if you are the creative thought leader of your company and don’t have a head for the business side of the business, perhaps you should consider taking on employees or stakeholders who can help keep the things in your head that need to be kept in your head? Maybe you could use help with:

• Operations.
• Human resources.
• Marketing.
• Sales.
• Supply chain management.
• Finance.

Now imagine this team of phenomenal head-keepers all around your conference table with you leading them.  Smart people hire smart(er) people so they can take their enterprises to the next level.

Oh, and that last one on the list? We can help you with that.

For more on how to choose and implement a comprehensive approach to managing your company, call or write to us.  TFO Solutions is dedicated to helping entrepreneurs and business owners with their financial strategy from the back office to the boardroom.

**photos courtesy of Unsplash (Fakurian Design and Riccardo Annandale, photographers)

“Procrastination is opportunity’s assassin.” – Victor Kiam

“Procrastination is like a credit card: it’s a lot of fun until you get the bill.” – Christopher Parker

“Procrastination is one of the most common and deadliest diseases and its toll on success and happiness is heavy” – Wayne Gretzky

We are all guilty of putting things off. A lack of resources or time makes us reassess why we even have to do something, let alone do it on time.

But let’s face it: as the quotes above have said, procrastinating is as much an adversary to your business as a lack of cash flow or your biggest competitor. You need to face up to this challenger as you would any crisis you encounter in your business.

So, what if I put things off? Or miss a deadline? So what?  Well, procrastination is bad for your business because it can:

• Cause you to miss opportunities.
• Ruin customer relationships.
• Damage your reputation.
• Harm your health.
• Keep you from reaching your goals.

From a financial perspective, putting things off—like paying taxes or doing payroll or collecting past due invoices – has a very real impact to your company’s bottom line. You can combat procrastination by:

• Writing down your goals then doing them.
• Knowing your priorities.
• Maintaining a strong focus.

For more on how to get things done now and not put them off any longer, call or write to us.  TFO Solutions is dedicated to helping entrepreneurs and business owners with their financial strategy from the back office to the boardroom.

**photos courtesy of Unsplash (Magnet.me and Brett Jordan. photographers)

They are simple things, really.  Looking ahead for the future of your business.

Sounds dry and boring, right?

Nope! You have to look at setting goals for your business with the same enthusiasm as that soccer (futbol) announcer from a few years back:

GGGOOOAAALLLL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Setting goals for yourself and your company is a joyful thing. Really.  Think of it as charting the course for your child, your baby—it’s exciting to know what you have in store from them as the mission unfolds.  Think about it as a way to help navigate around the unknown—if you begin with the end in mind, it becomes simpler to avoid disaster.

What makes a goal a goal?

• Specificity—it is clear what you are trying to accomplish.
• Quantifiable—how much or how big?
• Measurable—this helps give it shape and a reality.
• A timeframe—give yourself a deadline to accomplish your goa.

As for how many, that’s up to you.  By examining your company and yourself you know what you are capable of you by when.

What kind of goals should you set?

• Financial
• Operational
• Marketing
• Sales

While those other areas are important, that first one, financial, is why we are here. Setting financial goals are really important, but they shouldn’t be conceived in isolation.  That is, you can’t set a financial goal without knowing the condition and goals of your operation. By the same token, you can’t set serious financial goals without knowing the direction your sales and marketing people are going.

Are we ready to set some goals?

For more on how to set goals for your business, call or write to us.  TFO Solutions is dedicated to helping entrepreneurs and business owners with their financial strategy from the back office to the boardroom.

**photos courtesy of Unsplash (photographers Catherine Hughes and Berge Maelum); video courtesy of YouTube and Joel Leistmann

In small business, many times employees have to wear many hats and do multiple jobs.  Sometimes things that weren’t in their original job descriptions.

Oh, the old “and-other-duties-as-assigned” schtick.  I see.

What happens, however, when you ask your administrative assistant to answer the phones, do payroll and accounting AND human resources is that something gets dropped in all that juggling. Usually a professional who has been trained in those disciplines follows a process they’ve been taught and is universal.

Process, you say?

You know, the steps that outline how things get done in your company? A company implements processes (or controls or procedures) to ensure that work gets done consistently by your employees regardless of who does the work.  The areas in a company that can benefit from having processes in place:

• Finance
• Human Resources
• Operations
• Sales and marketing

Hmmm…that just about describes the organization of most, if not all, businesses.  Must make sense, then, to most business owners. It might make the difference between getting paid and not getting paid if, say, you can’t find an invoice that is overdue.  So, let’s start with finance and accounting.  Here are some of the basic processes that could make your life better from a finance perspective:

• Budgets
• Payroll
• Accounts receivable (AR)
• Accounts payable (AP)
• Taxes

Recently, we encountered a small company that had assigned accounting and collections to the boss’ administrative assistant.  Collections became difficult when she couldn’t find purchase order numbers associated with invoices.  A simple process and communication between sales and accounting would have made it easier for her to make those calls and successfully et the payment.

For more on how to organize your business processes, call or write to us.  TFO Solutions is dedicated to helping entrepreneurs and business owners with their financial strategy from the back office to the boardroom.

**photos courtesy of Unsplash (Joshua Coleman and Henny Stander, photographers)