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Finance & Business Control

The profit is there; where is the cash?

Starting point
Introductory meetingWe clarify the need and the scope together.
Scope
As neededA single question, or the whole finance function.
Outcome
Decision reportRanked findings and recommendations.

Profit and cash are not the same thing. When interest rates are high and payment terms long, the gap widens: a company that earns on paper ends up financing its bank from the till. We look at where that gap begins: in which customer, which product, which decision.

The symptoms that bring companies to us

  1. 01

    Profit, but no cash: every month end starts with a look at the credit line.

  2. 02

    The more revenue grows, the more credit the business needs.

  3. 03

    Customer terms are 60 days in the contract and four to six months in practice; cheques go to factoring at steep discounts.

  4. 04

    It is not clear which product, which customer and which channel actually make money.

  5. 05

    The inflation-adjusted statements and the numbers management looks at do not match.

  6. 06

    The budget is shelved by mid-year; the management report arrives, but the meeting produces no decision.

Two starting points

If cash is tight

Cash first: we identify where receivables, inventory, terms and credit structure can bring quick relief.

If you are preparing to grow

We check whether profitability, cost structure and financing can carry the growth.

How it works

  1. SymptomStatements, documents and interviews: what is said, what is documented, what actually works.
  2. MechanismThe process, decision and habit that produce the number: where the problem starts.
  3. Root cause and decisionRecommendations ranked by importance and urgency, each with an owner and a timeline.

The questions we answer

  • Where is profit made and where is it lost? Product, customer and channel profitability.
  • How many days is the cash conversion cycle, and who is financing that time? Receivables, inventory, payables and working capital.
  • What does each day of payment terms cost the company, and does the price cover it?
  • Are budget and forecast a management tool, or a form filled in once a year?
  • Are currency, interest rate and payment-term risks tied to a written framework?