To properly pursue your ambitions, it’s vital that your organisation is financially resilient. Feeling confident that you can navigate potential challenges and capitalise on opportunities relies on having reserves to call upon when needed. The future is unpredictable, so giving yourself the best possible chance, whatever arises, is the best strategy.

Not all business owners love numbers. In fact, most don’t. However, numerical understanding is an imperative for leaders who want to run profitable companies, not a luxury.

As collecting data becomes easier and more widespread, with the introduction of new software, it can be understandably difficult to keep on top of. The key to utilising your data is identifying what key performance indicators are most relevant and communicating them clearly to the right people.

Each piece of data tells its own story, which might only be relevant to a certain people within your organisation. The challenge is presenting this information as coherently and concisely as possible, so the right people can make the right decisions from it.

Gather data to inform decision making, but be conscious that some of the numbers will be more influential in leading your company effectively.

Managing and reviewing data can often be an overlooked aspect of running a business, but it is vital for assessing performance and effective decision making. It can often seem tedious to trawl through spreadsheets and daunting if you are not mathematically inclined. However, as a leader, having the correct numbers to inform and justify your actions is an asset you cannot afford to disregard.

A modern business can be submerged in numbers. As collecting data becomes easier and more widespread, with the introduction of new software, it can be understandably difficult to keep on top of. Many business leaders will rely on their financial department, or resident maths boffins, to make sense of these details and feedback the relevant information. However…

2020 certainly presented an array of unforeseen challenges for businesses, and 2021 looks likely to have tests of its own. It’s important to stay positive, and not be too hard on yourself.

The data you’re looking at may not show the progress you would have wanted, but it’s necessary to factor in the difficulties and adjustments you have had to make. To have survived a period of such great financial uncertainty is an achievement in itself…

Working with data can seem daunting for some business leaders who feel inclined to delegate these tasks to their financial department. This may appear sensible but can lead to a lack of proper understanding across the company. Knowing the numbers, and why they’re relevant is important for everyone, so a collective direction and motivation can be achieved…

Financial competency is skillset that should be found throughout a successful business. A real and present danger is that in limiting this understanding exclusively to the financial department, they may have too much influence on decision-making…