By Mike Bedel, CPA, CGMA Partner, Director of Audit & Assurance Services [email protected]
The broken windows theory is a criminological theory that visible signs of crime - such as shattered glass and graffiti - create an environment that encourages further destruction. It's the idea that little drawbacks can lead to large disasters. As social scientists George L. Kelling and James Q. Wilson wrote in the 1982 article "Broken Windows": "Consider a building with a few broken windows. If the windows are not repaired, the tendency is for vandals to break a few more windows. Eventually, they may even break into the building."
So, how does this apply to you and your business? If you ignore your company's flaws - its "broken windows" - more problems will spread throughout your entire operation.
Financial statements are great to understand your financial position and profitability, but are they telling you what you really want to know? There are probably aspects of your sales and marketing efforts that you would like to understand in more detail. How do you measure customer engagement? We would like to offer a few quick metrics by which you can measure your company's revenue growth, customer engagement and future potential! Consider taking a look at a few Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) related to your revenue cycle on a periodic basis (daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly).
KPIs are data points evaluated at a point in time over several periods, either compared with your respective industry benchmarks or against your company at that same point in time of periodic intervals.
So, what are some revenue cycle KPIs you should keep a close eye on in the coming months?
Be honest: Were you like me and waited until the last minute to file your taxes this year? Even though I promised myself a year ago that I would start anew? Or did you miss the deadline entirely and have to apply for an extension - again, at the very last minute? Some of my procrastinating groupies even dropped their tax information to their preparer a couple days before the deadline and then were upset they had to file an extension! It's like they think the tax filing deadline changes every year and they don't understand the significance of APRIL 15! But I would like to help you make your tax filing process less stressful in the future by sharing advice I have never heeded.
If you found yourself anxiously digging through a year's worth of paperwork and scrambling to find your W2 and 1009 forms, here are some tips to make the whole process run more smoothly for 2019 - BUT YOU MUST START NOW!
Tina Kelly has been with our firm from the very beginning. With more than 30 years of experience in the accounting industry, she is a vital asset to the team.
As a Manager in the Accounting Services department, Tina assists clients with bookkeeping, payroll processing, personal property tax preparation and financial reporting. She is also a QuickBooks Desktop and Online Certified Pro Advisor, helping with the setup, installation and training process for this accounting software.
We want to thank our staff for rising to the occasion and helping us make this year's tax season a huge success. We're also grateful to their loved ones for bearing with us during this time. We did it, everybody!
