How your outsourced accountant can bail you out of a “jump or die” scenario.
Have you ever had one of those “jump or die” dreams? You’re running away from a dragon / hardened criminal / other creature to generally be avoided. You inevitably reach some sort of cliff, and your choices are limited. You can either jump off the cliff, or fall prey to the vicious thing (or person) chasing you. At this point, neither option seems attractive. Jumping would lead to your certain death, but staying would almost definitely mean the same. Right now, wouldn’t it be amazing if you had another, third option? For example, what if an ally swooped in with a helicopter and hoisted you up to safety? To experience the exhilaration of victory over your foes rather than the sink-then-thud that comes with jumping, you need help from the outside.
In business, you may face similar “jump or die” situations. For example, your cash flow is much lower than predicted, it’s month-end, and you need to pay your staff. Or, you need to make interest payments on a loan you took out in order to capture some new business, but payment from that first job still hasn’t come in. At times like this, it’s important to know you don’t need to either jump or die. There is an ally waiting in a helicopter nearby. It comes in the form of an outsourced accountant.
Here are three ways in which an outsourced accountant can help you out of a sticky scenario:
• Your outsourced accountant can help you recognise danger before you see it. Imagine, as you were running away from your enemy, you had an earpiece in your ear and someone guiding you away from peril. From their helicopter, this person has a much better vantage point than you do on the ground. They’d counsel you to avoid the cliff and go in a different direction instead.
Your outsourced accountant can do this for you. He or she is trained to recognise and evaluate risk, and guide you on a path that is suitable for the long-term objectives of your company, taking measured risk but avoiding the cliffs along the way.
• Your outsourced accountant can help you determine the tactics of your enemy. Back to the dream: You’re running from your foe and seem to have lost them for a moment. You turn a corner and drop to your knees gratefully, taking a moment’s rest. At that instant your enemy appears in the sky. What!? You didn’t know he/she/it could fly! Your terror mounts tenfold.
In business, your outsourced accountant can understand how your competitors are doing business (and whether they have secret wings). He or she can determine where their operational efficiencies are coming from, and how they may be saving money better than you. As you understand these things, you can scale up your own efficiencies and compete better in the marketplace.
• Your outsourced accountant can help you become the chaser instead of the chased. In your dream, did you ever consider turning around and hunting down your enemy, instead of constantly being the one on the run? Your outsourced accountant can help you do this. This professional will assist in mapping out a clear, strong strategy for your business based on sound financial principles. It will ultimately help put you into the “power seat” in your industry and help consolidate market share.
Of course, these three points work on some basic assumptions, namely that your accountant is trustworthy, that he or she has the best interests of your business at heart, and that he or she is highly skilled in their area of expertise.
That’s where The Finance Team comes in. We have a vast network of handpicked finance professionals who fit these criteria and more. Contact us for an obligation-free cost and needs analysis, and find out how one of our professionals can work for you.
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