I don’t want to repeat Clive Peeters’ stuff up. Help!

Dear Aunty B,

I am a first time writer so “hi!”

I did what Boss Lady suggested yesterday and realised that I would really have no idea if I was being ripped off, probably until it was too late.

I get accounts once a quarter with a P&L, etc but how would I know? Although I sign the cheques I don’t really know if money is being siphoned off. I can’t afford a CFO or a GM, and numbers are not my forte.

I do trust my staff and I don’t want to become paranoid, but what are some simple things I can do to not “do a Clive”?

Wise Aunty, what do you do to stop being ripped off?

TG,
Gold Coast

Dear TG,

Hey to you too and welcome. Okay, here is what I do. At the start of every year I set a budget. I know my costs almost to the cent and because I am an entrepreneur tight-arse, the budget doesn’t have much fat.

Then every month I receive a one-page management report which is very simple. It presents my actuals against my budget. Any discrepancy sticks out like an annoying Clive Peeters ad on the telly and I immediately sit down with my accountant/bookkeeper and ask what it is.

It takes a second to flick through the accounts and if anything is out of whack it is picked up immediately. Plus, there are monthly board meetings where a board runs over the figures with their experienced eyes and ask further questions.

The second thing is to reconcile daily. I know business owners who won’t sign any cheques unless there has been a reconciliation (they are generally accountants). That means if something is parked in an expense account by an evil employee it can’t sit there for very long without being picked up.

Third, I have a great gut feel for the business so I know if something is iffy. Of course, as the business gets bigger that is harder to do, but in a business your size, you need to make sure you have the data you need to get to know your business intimately.

There are lots of other checks and balances but they are the main ones I rely on.

Anyone got any more??

Your Aunty B

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