1) Reporting Flexibility and User Acceptance:

Many integrated job costing and accounting systems in use in the creative industry offer great value to the organisation by streamlining the project management from recording the first client brief, generating budgets and quotes right through to closing the job bag and handling the billing. There is however one aspect in many such systems, that is often underestimated by the software authors. It is the user control over the creation of reports. Whilst all systems around provide standard reports such as profitability reports or job bag reports on the project management side and aged debtors and creditors reports on the accounting side, it is the flexibility in generating one’s own reports that makes the big difference in user acceptance or rejection of the system.

2) Technical Restrictions to the Reporting Flexibility:

All databases consist of tables holding information. Whilst it is relatively straightforward to create a report on one of those tables, e.g. creating a list of clients with their address and telephone number details based on the client table, it is the connection of tables that allows for more complex reports. An example for such a report would be a client profitability report: You start with the client table, connect a client to all the client’s jobs in the job table and then connect every job to the job transaction table to get a list of all costs and income for those jobs for that client. Ideally you have the added ability to being able to have profit calculations and subtotalling as well.
The number of tables that can easily be linked for reporting is directly related to the strength of the database hosting those tables. Thus the user defined report building ability of the project management software has physical restrictions in particular when simpler stand alone data bases are used, but is greater in systems based on more powerful data bases such as e.g. SQL or Oracle. Whilst in simpler databases more complicated reports can be programmed in hard code by the software developers and are therefore not amendable by the end user, mightier databases give the user the flexibility to create their reports on an ad-hoc basis.

3) How to Resolve this Problem and Increase User Acceptance:

Although there are independent software solutions enabling users to access their integrated project management system and extract data for reporting purposes, these are seldom perceived to be user-friendly solutions and most certainly defy the objective of having an integrated system. Why entering all timesheets, estimates or third party costs in one system in the first place, if you then have to use a separate system – be it an easy Excel odbc query or something like crystal reporting – to get the reward of useful reports out of it.

This perceived lack of user friendliness on the project management site of the software is even more unfortunate as in many cases the finance department users are quite happy with the accounting reports produced by their software.

In many training courses for project managers attendees have quoted the lack of reporting functionality as the biggest obstacle in end user acceptance of systems previously used. In those same seminars being able to show participants easy to use report writers as part of their new integrated system has proved to be the breaking point for them buying into a new integrated project management software. In the environment of an agency this ability of creating user-defined reports is even more influential as users operate powerful software systems to create fancy creative products for their customers all the time. It is difficult to comprehend why one is able to produce impressive creative end products often combining text, graphic and video in one system whilst at the same time in a system that has the “relatively easy task” to just handle numbers and figures it is not possible to make even minor changes to ready made reports.

Upgrading the database on top of which the project management software sits, might offer one, but not always the most feasible solution in particular for small and medium sized companies due to the extra costs and administration involved. Experience from running project management and reporting seminars shows that upgrading the project management software to one that has a better designed architecture of tables thus enhancing the flexibility even of a simple stand alone data base and giving users the ability to construct their reports in a drag and drop manner has proved to be the most cost effective solution for many agencies. If – in addition to that – the user knowledge of the data base structure and the report writing technique is built up, the organisation will soon benefit from an improved job reporting and along with that user acceptance.

Ensuring that your business has an effective funding solution is key to your business success. Before you can do anything with your business you need the finance to be able to fulfil your business needs. So how do you go about gaining the business finance that you need?

There are many avenues that you can approach when it comes to gaining your start up business finance such as bank loans, investors and credit cards as well as overdrafts; however in order to gain any form of business finance you need a well thought out and structured business plan. On the other hand there are occasions when you may have a viable business plan but you are still struggling to get finance in order to expand or start up your business; this is where a Small Firms Loan Guarantee can help.

Small Firms Loan Guarantee is also known as SFLG and is a joint venture between the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) as well as a number of participating lenders. An SFLG was put in place for people who have tried and failed to get a conventional loan. They are available for most types of businesses and business purposes but it should be noted that there are still some restrictions and exclusions, which is why it is important that you check these against your business before making an application for a SFLG; this can be said for any form of finance. You should check that your business is able to apply before applying for any form of finance to save yourself time, money and effort.

A Small Firms Loan Guarantee is most suited for small to medium businesses that have trouble trying to gain a conventional loan. They are extremely helpful to small and medium businesses as you won’t have to offer assets as security. But before you apply for a SFLG you should take a good look at your business and carefully think about the needs of your business. When doing this you should keep questions such as the following in mind:

o What is the money needed for?

o How much money do you need for your business?

o Have you investigated all of the forms of finance that are available to you?

I suppose you are now wondering what exactly a Small Firms Loan Guarantee offers you, well the main features and criteria of a SFLG are as follows:

o A guarantee to the lender covering 75% of the loan amount, for which the borrower pays a 2% premium on the outstanding balance of the loan, payable to BERR

o The ability to guarantee loans of up to

There are two types of costs “direct” and “indirect.” Direct costs are also called “variable costs” and refer to costs that are a direct result of producing, delivering, or returning your product/service. Examples of these are materials and labor needed to produce/deliver the product that only occur once you sell the product, transactions costs like visa commissions, sometimes shipping charges, etc.

Indirect costs are also called “fixed costs” and refer to expenses that your business will have regardless of sales volume. Examples of ithese are rent, utilities, wages that are not based upon commission, interest expense, advertising, automobile, etc. The tricky aspect of these are that a cost may increase with increased sales, e.g. an increase in sales may require overtime or the addition of staff but the relationship is not direct.

A good tool for managing direct and indirect costs is to monitor the costs on your monthly income statement using percent of sales. Divide the cost by total sales.

Direct costs as a percent of sales will remain within a narrow margin, e.g. materials costs if 30% of sales at $1,000 sales then materials should be right around 30% at the $5,000 sales level. The actual dollar amount of materials used to produce more products will go up but as a percent of sales, it will remain close to 30%. What would lower the percent is if you got a better deal from your supplier.

Your indirect costs when monitored as a percent of sales will respond differently. For example, rent equaling $500 per month remains $500 per month even if your sales increase to $5,000. $500 divided by $1,000 in sales equals 50%. $500 divided by $5,000 in sales equals 10%. (It is that old math axiom in action here: A numerator divided into a larger denominator produces a smaller fraction.)

So why is this important? Knowing the difference between direct and indirect costs provides you with a couple of valuable management tools, break-even analysis, and your contribution margin. Break-even analysis is a handy management tool for quickly determining if a solution is feasible. Contribution margin is the remaining profit after direct costs are taken out of a sale. For example, if you sell a bookcase for $250 and it cost you $75 to make your contribution margin is $175 or 70%. The contribution pays for all the Fixed expenses/overhead.

A good way of organizing these costs is to put all the direct costs in the “Cost of Goods” section and the indirect costs in the expense area of your income statement. By doing this Gross Profit equals Contribution Margin and is automatically calculated for you.

Another reason to identify your direct costs is when bidding in a competitive environment. Ever wonder how your competitor beat you on a bid??

Imagine a situation where you know you have covered your overhead expenses for the month with normally bid projects. A quick project comes up for bid around the 15th of the month and you have a crew available to work on it. You figure it will be very competitive and if you use your usual estimating process on it you will not get the project. Since you have already covered all your expenses for the month and any margin above your direct costs is profit. Plus you have a crew that it would be better to have working on a project and being paid by a client versus cleaning the shop being paid by your profits. You decide to aggressively go after the project with a bid slightly above your direct costs.

Obtaining capital in this “tight money market” is easier said than done these days. As more and more banks go belly up, lenders are increasingly making it more difficult to obtain capital. I will show you how it is possible, even in this market, to obtain unsecured business funds without having to show business bank statements, tax returns, balance sheets, profit and loss statements, etc. Although you won’t need any financial documentation, you may need a simple business plan.

Make sure when you are working with a lender that you pay absolutely zero “upfront fees” or “application fees.” Applying for business capital should not have to cost you anything up front. Most lenders should charge their fees from the “back end” (proceeds of the line of credit). Keep in mind that most unsecured “no doc” business loans will come with a higher price tag than one that is secured and is “full doc” (bank statements, business tax returns, etc.). Reason is pretty simple; funding unsecured, no financial business loans poses a higher risk to the lender. As long as the costs are reasonable and only paid when the loan actually funds or is approved, then a no documentation business loan is the way to go!

Additionally, these loans should not come with any kind of pre-payment penalty. You should be free to pay the loan off whenever you want without having to pay any kind of penalty. If a loan has a pre-payment penalty then you should not waste your time applying and find another lender. There are simply too many lending choices out there to get stuck with any kind of pre-payment penalty.

No documentation business loans and lines of credit rely heavily on credit, assets and years of experience. For $100,000 business lines of credit, most lender guidelines call for a minimum 680 credit score (most business lenders use the Experian credit score), 2 years in business and home ownership. Although these loans are indeed unsecured, most lender statistics favor those who own homes and will lend capital more readily if you do own a home. Once you are approved, you will receive a book of checks. You can access funds by using these checks any time for any purpose. Best part is that you only pay interest on the outstanding balance – not the entire loan amount.

You are only required to pay monthly payments of interest and a small amount of principal helping to keep the payment affordable. Some business lines credit only require you to pay only the interest for the first three to five years. This period is known as the “draw” period. During this time you can access your credit line and write out checks. Once this period has passed, the loan usually converts to a 5-year to 7-year term loan, during which principal and interest payments are due.

Since this type of financing is largely credit based, the interest rates are usually very competitive. Rates are usually just a few percentage points over the WSJ Prime rate – anywhere from Prime + 1% – 2.5%, making this an inexpensive way to borrow business capital.

What happens if you have less than 2 years in business and/or don’t own a home? You will find a difficult time obtaining $100,000. Shoot for $15,000 – $50,000. There are many SBA (Small Business Administration) loans available for startups and require little or no assets.

A good insider trick to send several applications at the same time, this way you can be approved with multiple lenders before the loans show up on your credit report. Using this technique virtually assures you of obtaining $100,000 up to $500,000.00.

Money is always an issue for small businesses, especially when starting out. However, the need for cash injections can continue long after you get that first dollar. Even same industry businesses can differ greatly, but they all have in common the need for money as well as the places they can go to get it. Here is a look at seven opportunities to get cash for your small business.

Small Business Loan

Probably the most known source for small business cash is the small business loan. This most often comes from a bank or the SBA; for startup capital or an expansion. The lender looking at your proposal needs to feel that you are a good investment and you can help them decide in your favor. Wherever you go to get the loan, there are several things you will need in order to give your business its best chance to get that loan.

Your business plan will tell the lender about your business and you. They will see how much planning you have done, your grasp of the industry, and how effective the loan will be.

A good cash flow projection tells the lender not only how you will pay them back, but when. Your best bet is to show hard, but honest numbers.

Your personal financial statement helps the lender to understand where you are coming from and where exactly your business is at. After all, you’re tied to your business at the hip.

Bring past business tax returns if you have them. It will show the lender how your business has done and how you have managed money in the past.

Your credit rating is key for establishing trust. The lender may be giving money to your business, but they are forming a pact with you. A credit report will fill in the rest of the details of who they are about to trust with their money.

Microloans

From the SBA, the microloan program may be a perfect fit for your current financial needs. With a maximum of $35,000, a microloan can be less daunting to acquire, if not a little easier than a small business loan. The most common use for a microloan is short-term working capital and equipment purchases. Since most microloans require collateral of some kind, the best use is probably equipment, since the equipment can then be the collateral.

Supplier Credit

While this source of income may not work with all businesses, it is ideal for manufacturers and retailers. A supplier makes money by you buying their products, but if you can’t first buy their products to make yours, they lose a sale. If you cannot be billed – net 30 days – or if it may take longer to receive your money, it is possible to work out a deal with your suppliers. An ideal situation is to procure credit out to sixty days. If that isn’t possible, maybe they will take a percentage of the sales of the end product on top of the cost of the supplies. This temporary solution could generate higher interest than a loan, but in some situations, it could be your only choice.

Angel Investors

Best in times of growth, angel investors can be a boon to help a small business get over the hump to where they need to be. Angel investor loans fill the space left after you’ve gotten your small business loan and other capital. Unfortunately, they are few and far between and spending too much time looking for them can be even more detrimental to your business than cash problems. The best time to look for an angel investor is when you already have growth, you’re approaching the breakeven point, or you’re expanding. The worst time is when you’re hemorrhaging money. Take care, you still have your business to run. Plan to spend four to six months looking for an angel investor, but use only a quarter of your time. Like getting a small business loan, be ready with all that proof that you are worthy of an angel’s blessing.

Credit Cards

It’s a source of quick, red-tape free cash, but credit card cash advances can eventually kill your business if you’re not careful. Always keep in mind the high interest charges when you are looking at credit cards as a cash source. Use them, but only for quick-turnaround, time-sensitive, and/or small scale solutions. Treat credit card advances like you would a fire; it’s great for quick warm ups, but really hurts if you leave your hand in there too long.

Home Equity Loans

Like credit card advances, a home equity loan for your business is a personal risk solution. They are more attractive however, because of their lower interest rates. The catch is that if things go south, you lose your home. Depending on how personally invested you are in your business, this may not be such a different outcome from credit card advances, or even small business loans if calamity strikes. The main thing to remember when considering the bad side of a home equity loan is that due to consumer protection laws, it’s a much longer process to seize your house than it is from a normal bank loan.

Family or Friends

Nothing ruins a friendship or splits a family faster than money problems. When you are considering approaching the people you are closest to, you must know the best way to handle the situation, as well as the potential pitfalls. Some common relationship killers due to business loans is the recipient squanders the money, doesn’t use the money as indicated, doesn’t pay the money back, or doesn’t pay it back in a timely or agreed upon manner. If you can avoid those situations, you’re way ahead of the game. The best course for loans with friends and family is to handle it as professionally as a bank loan, or even more so. Make sure there is a formal agreement with signed paperwork stipulating how much is to be loaned, collateral, interest rate, how it is to be repaid, and what happens if it cannot be repaid. If you spell out everything on paper, there is no room for disaster due to misunderstandings. Remember always: these people trust and believe in you… don’t make them regret it!