Whilst most managers understand the concept of profitability and a little bit about the balance sheet cash flow and in particular the way accountants present it, is very misunderstood. 

Cash Flow is very simply the movement of cash from the beginning of the period to the end of the period. So if I had R100 in the bank at the beginning of the period and R250 in the bank at the end of the period my cash flow was R150. 

Cash flow is a crucial metric

Cash flow is a crucial metric and needs to be managed daily. Lots of small business owners will have signed surety for any borrowings they may have made for the business, so if the business fails their personal assets are at stake.

Even if your business is profitable you may have cash flow problems which can be the result of debtors paying too slowly, too much money invested in stock or paying suppliers too quickly. 

Strong cash flows are the best indicator of a successful business and this is why lenders such as bank assess cash flows before anything else when looking at the risk of lending.

Fingenie shows the user the impact that any action has on the cash flows of the business.

How does this help the Business Owner / Manager?

The manager of the business needs to know the cash flow at all times and to work within the set parameters. FinGenie is very useful as it shows him/her the cash flow impact of every decision made.