Five figures every business owner should know each month

Detailed management accounts are valuable, but they are not the starting point. Most owner managed businesses get further, faster, by watching a small number of figures consistently than by producing a thick pack that nobody reads.

The five below can be pulled from decent bookkeeping in a few minutes. Reviewed month after month, the trend matters far more than any single reading.

Once these are second nature, fuller management accounts and forecasting become much easier to interpret, because you already know what normal looks like.

Points to note

• Sales for the month against the same month last year
• Gross margin percentage
• Cash in the bank less money owed to HMRC
• Debtor days — how long customers take to pay
• Fixed overheads, so you know your break even point