Northern Anne Arundel County

Chamber of Commerce

“Balancing Finances During

Emotional Times”

Tuesday, June 15, 2010

presented by

Kelly Leonard

Taylor-Leonard Corporation

“Maybe we should …

What Executives Are Thinking

identify ways to collect receivables faster.”

consider lowering our labor costs (outsourcing, off-shoring).”

diversify our product and/or service offerings.”

slash operating costs by closing/consolidating offices.”

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We Will Discussion …

Financial Measurement & Management

Strategies to Achieve Market Growth

Ways to Work Through a Business

Slowdown

Effective Ways to Reduce Business

Costs

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Three important financial measurement tools are:

1. Balance Sheet,2. Profit and Loss / Income Statement and3. Cash Flow Statement – Cash is king!

MASTER THE FUNDAMENTALS & CONSIDER DRIVERS

Financial Measurement & Management

Activity-Based Costing (ABC)

Isolates the cause and effect relationships to objectively assign costs to each product/customer

Magnifies high overhead costs per unit (cost drivers) Helps to control the costs at an individual level and

departmental level Isolates unnecessary costs Helps fixing price of product/service scientifically

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• Create New Income Streams

Teaming / Partnerships (leverage Chamber relationships) Complementary products and services New ways to sell and promote current products Creative pricing

• Acquire Small Business Designations & Identify Opportunities

Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) Local Small Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (LSDBE) 8(a) Veterans, Service-Disabled Veterans HubZone Women

Strategies to Achieve Market Growth

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• Have reserve capital (not just cash, could be strong receivables) .

• Focus on retaining your customers. Increase customer loyalty by

Finding out customer needs Emphasizing your value proposition & services offered Offering discounts, samples & giveaways

• Segment customers

High margin – continue building loyalty (help them to help their customers)

Acceptable margin – up-sell and cross-sell Low margin – shed these

Receivables acceleration (incentives, reciprocity, payment terms, factoring)

Working Through a Business Slowdown

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• Get outside help.

Use consultants Leverage banking relationships Emulate successful competitors ~ Avoid mistakes of others

• Learn more about & take advantage of government stimulus.

Access to working capital Owner-occupied commercial real estate refinancing Microloan programs

Working Through a Business Slowdown

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• Change your own role. Focus on being a financial architect and strategic thinker.

• Socialize/Network.

Leverage Chamber membership & referral groups Define a social networking strategy

Working Through a Business Slowdown

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Effectively Reducing Business Costs

• Tap into alternate sources of human capital. Diverse and plentiful talent pool.

• Barter goods & services

• Renegotiate

Landlord Banker Suppliers & vendors (change fixed fee performance based

contacts)

Reduce/Eliminate ancillary, non-core fees

• Manage your inventory

Buy wholesale/bulk Trim inventories

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• Improve processes

Lean Thinking – focus on eliminating waste and increasing customer value (adding value = generating revenue)

New payment methods Reduce collections cycle time Replace paper-based invoicing electronic/paperless

• Borrow/Rent business equipment.

• Plan Ahead. Make purchases of supplies when they go on sale, in advance of your need.

• Search. New suppliers, lower prices, and better quality.

Effectively Reducing Business Costs

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"Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; begin it well and serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense."

- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Contact Us

Kelly Leonard, CPA, CITRMSGroup Benefits Specialist & Small Business Consultant

Bus. (240) 683.6336 | Mobile. (240) 994.4861

kelly.leonard@taylor-leonard.com

www.workforcecare.com | www.gosmallbiz.com

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About Kelly Leonard

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Kelly Leonard received her bachelor's in Accounting from Virginia Commonwealth

University in Richmond. She is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and Certified

Identity Theft Risk Management Specialist (CITRMS).

Kelly’s finance, accounting, and risk management experience spans more than 19

years; encompassing federal government, private and public accounting environments,

to include Fortune 100 companies with specialization in internal audit, healthcare, and

financial services. Her extensive client list includes such recognized organizations as

Blue Cross/Blue Shield Association, Kaiser Permanente, and the World Bank. Kelly

oversees the Risk Management practice of Taylor-Leonard Corporation (T-LC); a

family-owned information technology and risk management consulting practice.

Although T-LC’s client list includes nationally recognized non-profit organizations as well

as large publicly traded organizations, Kelly’s passion rests ultimately with helping small

to medium size businesses to protect and grow their enterprise.

Kelly maintains professional affiliations with The Institute of Fraud Management and

Gaithersburg-Germantown Chamber of Commerce. She also serves as Past President

for Stedwick Elementary School’s Parent-Teacher Association, volunteers regularly

within her community, and is an active member at Church of the Redeemer in

Gaithersburg, Maryland.