The most commonly neglected aspect of business management in my opinion is the state of the financial chart of accounts.

Ask yourself this question, if I asked you to print off a profit and loss report from your accounting software, how much confidence would you have that you could lay your hands on it within one day?

If your answer is yes, then that’s a good start, but I would add, when you read the report does it offer any critical insight other than your total income, or bottom line result? For those of you that answer no, how can you run a professional business and not have access to the ultimate financial result?

It is understandable that this is not an area of strength that all business owners have. But whether it is getting a process and system in place that produces these reports on a monthly basis, or making changes to the chart of accounts for a better breakdown of financial information – these changes are well placed to happen from the first month of every new financial year in July because accounting software rolls forward on the 1st, and provides a clean slate.

Don’t make changes without consulting a suitable professional advisor, or qualified Bookkeeper. Live Bookkeeping can help you whether it is by providing the template to change or outsourced bookkeeping services to implement the changes. If you are serious about your business, you need to get serious about your financial scoreboard and reporting.