Smaller businesses face
a dilemma: they need cash to finance losses in the early years,
but in order to get that cash they need two things:
| 1. |
A forecast to support their business plan that shows
how much is needed how it will be used and the returns; |
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| 2. |
A finance director who will complete the transaction
and then will ensure that the cash is being properly controlled
and applied in accordance with the plan. |
Once the business is up and running there will be a raft
of practical problems to resolve. It helps to have someone
beside you who has been through this process before, can anticipate
the problems and resolve them quickly.
Forecast
We can prepare a plan that is flexible and realistic, shows
the objectives and the stepping stones to achieving them.
By clearly and explicitly relating the assumptions in your
business plan to financial results, our work will provide
credibility to the plan: instead of saying " our turnover
in year 3 is only 5% of market share and is therefore achievable"
you will be able to say, "by year 3 we will have 12 stores
generating £250,000 p.a. compared to the current level
of £200,000". Have
a look at the examples to see what we mean.
We can also work with our partners to identify who may finance
such a business.
Finance director
It may seem unnecessary to appoint a finance director in
the early stages of growth. The size of the business usually
means that a full-time experienced person is unnecessary.
With FD Solutions you have the benefits of that experience
without the full cost. There are four advantages of having
someone on board early:
| 1. |
We can accompany you in making presentations to investors.
This gives them confidence that the plan is properly constructed
and that there will be controls in place that are cost-effective
and appropriate to the business; |
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| 2. |
We can make sure that the capital-raising process is
completed in good time, without distracting you from the
business too much; |
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| 3. |
Once the money is raised we can help in managing the
relationship with investors. Sometimes it can be uncomfortable,
especially when things don't go according to plan. Having
an independent person able to explain the reasons for
shortcomings and ways of rectifying it, frequently lessens
their reluctance to provide further funding. |
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| 4. |
In addition, as you grow we can recruit the right additional
staff, either externally or from our own people, full-time
or part-time, so that these standards are maintained; |
Other solutions
We can help to keep costs down, particularly in the accounting
process:
| 1. |
We now have the capacity to provide you with on-line
real-time accounting, without the need to purchase accounting
software: using our on-line service, your administrators
can create the original records of sales, purchases
and bankings. You will have on-line access to your sales
ledger, purchase ledger and cash balances anywhere in
the world 24/7. And we can deliver monthly or quarterly
accounts over a secure internet link.
Click on the "Online50 " button below to
access the web based accounting system.
Please make a note of the following user name
and password for accessing the demonstration system.
You will need them first for the "log on to windows"
after you click on the Sage Line 50 icon and then again
to log onto the Sage Accounts.
If you have any difficulties accessing this you
may need to reset some of your browser settings. How to
do this can be found on the downloads page at at www.online50.net.
If you need help please contact us |
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| 2. |
Businesses are ever more burdened with regulations
and unpaid duties of tax collection. So someone who
can reduce this cost is worth having. We have been through
this process before, so we can reduce costs because
we can often anticipate the needs of the business and
make sure that they are addressed at the right time:
for example, in order to avoid the cost of filling in
P11Ds you need to get a dispensation in advance, not
retrospectively. And by setting the accounting system
up in the right way on day 1 avoids time-consuming and
costly re-analysis at a later date. |
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Richard Simpson:
Chief Operating Officer
Having graduated with a
degree in biochemistry, Richard joined Fisons' pharmaceutical
division in 1987 as a management trainee. He qualified
with CIMA in 1990 and enjoyed eight years with Fisons
working in the UK, Singapore and France in a variety
of head office, commercial and manufacturing environments. |
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| Full
profile |
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