business financial consultant

The Value of Business Growth Planning

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Portal CFO Growth Planning Tips

Whether you’re just starting out or already have an established, profitable business in operation, business growth planning should be near the top of your priorities list. Every industry has unique challenges, but some common practices can position your business for future success. We’ve compiled four tips that will give you the most value out of your business planning and set you on a course for success.

Growth Planning Tips for Success:

1. Real Time Accounting

From the basics of Excel or QuickBooks, to more advanced custom accounting software solutions, every business has a way to track their financial position. Implementing a software system that delivers insights on your finances in real time can help you make strategic growth planning decisions and spend your limited capital where it will have the greatest impact.

2. Set Goals For Growth

You may be just getting started in a new market or launching a new product, but all businesses have aspects like revenue or cost savings they want to accelerate and measure. Setting growth planning goals and milestones and using them to track progress over time for your most important business activities makes the mission clear for employees and helps remind everyone what you’re striving towards.

3. Forecast For Tomorrow

Every business should use their existing data to develop strategies for what they can do better in the future. Building forecasts and models for costs of goods, profitability, or logistics expenses can help set expectations for capital requirements, and can often reveal inefficiencies or blind spots that can be addressed to make your business even better.

4. Talk To An Expert

Meeting with consultants is a great way to learn more about your industry, the major players and challenges, and how you can develop a growth planning strategy to win against the competition. If you’re working on a difficult project or seeking to maximize your return on investment, growth and planning consultants can set you on the right course for accelerated success and profits.

Growing your business can be as complicated as running it day to day, but the payoffs can take your operation to the next level. Take charge and use these tips to get a head start on growing your business today.

Remember, running a business successfully does not need to be complicated.  Keep it simple!

For more interesting topics on successfully managing the challenges of growing your business profitably, please search our blog at our website www.portalcfo.com.

Useful Advice for Starting A Business

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Portal CFO Starting Your Own Business Photo

A lot goes into establishing a business and building it to the point of realizing profitability, and for that reason, the decisions you make at the initial stages are critical. You also need to give room for mistakes as a budding entrepreneur because they allow you to learn through experience! In this post, we have summarized three main pillars of getting a new business off the ground. Read on to learn some useful advice for starting a new business.

Start Today

Time waits for no one, which means that the perfect time to start a business will never come. The opportunity you are seeking to implement the business ideas you have on paper is here; it is today. Many startup ideas do not kick off for various reasons, which means that they will only remain a dream if you do not act. For instance, if funding is a challenge, you cannot wait to save enough as an aspiring entrepreneur. You only need to start with what you have right now, and soon your enterprise will be up and running.

Pursue Your Passion

If you are considering becoming independent and you do not have an idea of what kind of business you should begin, focusing on your passion can be a starting point. Venturing into any field in the marketplace is not advisable as well because it is one of the reasons why most startups fail. Pursuing what you genuinely love as you get into the business arena brings a sense of fulfillment in life, and over time you will join the league of those who own large enterprises.

Embrace Progressive Growth

As you start your business do not bite more than you can handle. Trying to work your enterprise into a multinational as soon as you begin is not a wise idea either. Instead, set realistic goals that will help you build your firm over time. Small incremental goals encourage continuous business growth and adopting the latter strategy gives you a better sense of how to maneuver challenges and seize opportunities.

Remember, running a business does not need to be complicated.  Keep it simple!

For more ideas on how to keep your business healthy and thriving, check out our website at www.portalcfo.com.

Key Business Advice For Securing Financing

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securing financing

Securing financing is key to any business, especially a business that is growing or plans to grow. However, the minefield of applying for a loan is daunting even for seasoned business owners.

Banks want to loan, but have trouble finding creditworthy applicants. Banks make money by lending so it makes sense they would want to loan. The difficulty most businesses face is bridging that gap between what the company needs and what the bank wants. How does a business find the magic formula that will encourage a bank to loosen the purse strings and lend money?

It turns out the formula isn’t so magic, but it does take some planning and preparation. Here’s some key business advice on how to prepare a compelling loan package and securing financing you need to grow your business profitably.

Have a Strong Business Plan – Banks may want to loan money, but they also want to minimize risks. A robust, well-conceived business plan will go a long way to giving the bank confidence that you are prepared to run the business in a solid fashion, thereby reducing risk.

Know Your Numbers – Bankers love numbers, and well they should, because most of their decisions are based on them. Have a solid grasp on your cash flow and financial projections. Demonstrate to the bank that you know your business well enough to gain their trust.

Take a Long Hard Look – Don’t wait for the bank to find weak points in your financial picture. Before going to the bank, invest the time to look at your business plan, your financials, and your budget. Think about how you can improve your plan or make adjustments so your business is more creditworthy.

Build a Relationship – Banks like a proven track record. If you already have a relationship with a bank, this can be a big contributor to getting a loan approved. In fact, the survey by the Federal Reserve of New York showed that 75 percent of businesses approved for a loan had a relationship with the bank. If you don’t already have a relationship with a bank, start building one now to prepare for future banking needs.

Remember, running a business successfully does not need to be complicated.  Keep it simple!

For more information on business analysis, business planning, and ways to grow your small business profitably, please check out our website www.portalcfo.com.

3 Pieces of Inspirational Business Advice to Start Your Day

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A rut is an inevitable part of any entrepreneur’s work life. While it is of course something that should not be perpetual, it happens even to the best of them. But there are many ways to overcome it. This post will provide three pieces of inspirational business advice to give you a fresh start to your day and get you out of that work rut.

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How can Business Advice from a CFO Consultant help my Business?

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cfo consultant

Sometimes, a business owner may not possess the necessary skills to deal with the financial concerns of a business. Not everyone understands how to deal with a company budget or the impact of business decisions on cash flow.  That’s where a CFO consultant adds value to a business owner’s efforts.

If your company is growing at a fast pace or if you are looking to increase your profits, then it may be time to seek business advice or consulting from someone who has the experience and skills your business needs.

Here are a few signs that your business may need to hire someone to help.

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The Business Advice of The Agent

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“Show me the money, show me the money, SHOW ME THE MONEY!” You can’t think of professional athletes and their business decisions, and not think of Jerry McGuire saying, “Show me the money.” Esquire Network is set to run a ten-part documentary series this summer called, “The Agent.” In a press release detailing the new show, PR reps said, “Behind every professional football player is an agent. Their clients make the plays on the field, but they run the game off the field. Esquire Network gives an inside look at the business behind America’s favorite pastime as cameras follow four top real-life ‘Jerry Maguire’ sports agents navigating the cutthroat world of professional football.”

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5 Tips for Business Growth Planning

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Running а small business requires hаvіng thе rіght knowledge аnd applying sеlf-discipline оn а daily basis.  Business growth planning is critical to keeping your eye on the goals you have set for your business. Here are 5 simple tips to keep in mind as you plan your business growth.

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Do I Need Business Coaching for My Small Business?

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Having a coach in your corner won’t ensure you victory, but there is something to be said about having a guide when you encounter obstacles and challenges. A coach does more than tell you to “be the ball.” He helps you navigate the opposition, achieve goals, and hone your skills for better performance. You expect a coach on the sideline during a game, but do you really need business coaching for a small business? What are the benefits of working with a business coach?

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Grow Slow: Business Advice For The Niche Market

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Far too many business owners are focused on sending out branches, when what they should be doing is sending out roots. While it may sound counter-productive on the surface, focusing on digging your business in right where it is instead of sending it out into uncharted land can be crucial to the survival of a small business.

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How to use Employee Assessments to Grow Your Business

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A business cannot grow with only management.  Getting your business to the next level requires leverage and leverage means having the right employees.  If you feel like your employees are not empowered, it’s time to evaluate your hires.  Hiring the right people for the job is the best way to grow your business.

In order to increase retention rates and keep the right people, you might want to consider performing ongoing assessments of your employees.  After a specified period on the job, employers should evaluate their workers to make sure everyone hired is the right person for the job.  Here are some key items to incorporate into your employee assessments:

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