I Don’t Know Our Company’s Cash Flow (And That’s OK)

Whether your business started a VAR, MSP or CSP, we all remain fixated on cash flow -- especially while building a recurring revenue business. Many channel partners also are fixated on a growing number of key performance indicators -- including a major shift to real-time KPIs.

But here's the thing: Roughly half of small businesses ignore their KPIs. And within the halls of our own company, I must confess, that I don't know our specific cash flow KPIs.

Is that a fatal flaw? Not if you have a great leadership team -- and clear roles and responsibilities. In our case, CEO Amy Katz builds and manages the business -- including all of the financial KPIs. And I focus on building and managing our digital platform -- and all of the associated audience KPIs.

We have a standing call every day at 11:00 a.m. ET to discuss our most pressing company issues while also touching on recent KPI trends. And when each month closes, we review our business and digital platform progress as well.

Financial Dysfunction

So how are we different than the typical small business? I hear it over and over again from VARs, MSPs and CSPs that have co-owners. In many cases, their roles and responsibilities are not clearly defined. Multiple people are writing checks for the business and to the business -- without any one person actually overseeing the day-to-day finances.

That's a recipe for disaster -- especially when you're trying to pinpoint the profitability of specific services, building compensation plans, setting budgets for staffing build-outs and so much more.

End the madness. Trust someone -- a specific employee -- to own your company's finances and the associated KPIs. And make sure those metrics are shared with the key company leaders at predictable, set intervals.

Got a question about how our company manages cash flow? I'll defer to Amy. As usual.