UNDERSTANDING THE CASH FLOW STATEMENT (part 2)

This is the concluding part of the post where effort will be made at interpreting the 3 core areas of the Cash flow statement and its effect on the business. some questions also need to be answered honestly and corrections made to remain viable, liquid and successful..

UNDERSTANDING THE CASH FLOW STATEMENT

Cash flow, as the name implies, is the movement of funds/cash in and out of a business, project, venture or individual. It has to do with all the movement of funds and measured over a period of time. It highlights the value or the situation of an individual, business or a project. It also determines the liquidity (measures the ability to meet maturing obligations as they fall due), viability and sustainability. In essence, it measures the availability of cash/revenue to finance your needs.

It is used to test the ability to remain a going concern. The Cash flow must be positive, sufficient to meet capital expenditure, pay returns to financiers and can stand the test of time. Being rich does not necessarily mean liquid. The riches might be in assets that are not easily convertible to cash.

FEASIBILITY STUDY VS BUSINESS PLAN

Though similar in structure, content, operation and synonymous with the business world, their purposes and applications are different. Most of the time, there is the confusion in differentiating which should be applied to a particular situation. It could also be a daunting task to explain to clients on which to adopt, the demand is usually for a business plan. There is therefore a need to highlight the differences for clarity which I will try to do based on my own knowledge and experience.

From my interaction with some would be entrepreneurs, Small and Medium business owners, I’ll strongly suggest that you are fully involved in its conceptualization and execution. Your mission and business philosophy should be fully integrated in the study and in compiling the report.

Secondly, it would amount to share waste of resources and energy if the report becomes a mere academic exercise and left on one of the shelves to accumulate dust. It requires constant review to determine variations and deviations from the initial aspiration and philosophy, market conditions, etc.