Practical guides, not fluff.
Short, no-nonsense reads on the reporting and forecasting questions we get asked most.
How to build a 13-week cash flow forecast
Most cash flow surprises aren't actually surprises — they're just not visible far enough in advance. A 13-week forecast (roughly one quarter) is the sweet spot: close enough to be accurate, far enough out to actually let you act.
What you need to start
Your current bank balance, expected customer payments by date, recurring outgoing payments (payroll, rent, subscriptions), and anything irregular you know is coming.
How to structure it
One column per week, one row per cash category. Start with your real balance, add inflows, subtract outflows, and carry a running total — that's the number that matters.
The most common mistake
Building it once and never updating it. It's only useful as a living document, refreshed weekly against what actually happened.
5 signs your business needs fractional FP&A — before it's a crisis
Most founders don't decide to get serious about financial reporting on a calm Tuesday. Usually, something forces the issue. Here's what we typically hear right before someone reaches out.
You find out about cash problems only when they're urgent.
If the first sign of trouble is a low bank balance, you're finding out too late to have real options.
Budget versus actual review happens rarely, if ever.
Without a regular comparison, small overspends compound quietly for months before anyone notices.
Board or investor updates take days to pull together.
If every update means starting from scratch in a spreadsheet, the reporting isn't actually systemized.
Hiring and spending decisions aren't checked against a forecast.
Decisions made on gut feel alone tend to outrun what the business can actually support.
Revenue is growing, but nobody's fully sure why margins move the way they do.
Growth without visibility into what's driving profitability is a lot harder to sustain.
8 KPIs every founder should actually track
Plain-English definitions, no finance degree required.