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Back in the Saddle and Ready to Work for You!

After a six-month stint as Vice President of Finance for an agricultural technology company in Eastern Washington, Kevin is back in the business owner saddle and ready to work for you!

 Perhaps the highest value service we can provide at INWA is for our owner, Kevin Strain, to fill in as your part-time or interim CFO. 

High-performing CFO's and controllers are a rare breed and when you have one retire or otherwise depart, filling that spot permanently can be a lengthy and expensive affair. This is where the interim CFO comes into play.

Having a strong part-time or interim CFO assist in negotiating loans with banks, preparing the monthly/quarterly/yearly financials, mapping out tax-mitigation strategies, and ensuring GAAP and overall financial regulatory compliance means peace-of-mind for owners and security for the business, not to mention potentially increasing profitability!

Kevin has extensive practical experience as a financial controller, working directly under three different small-to-mid-size business owners during the last ten years, and can attest to the high demands placed on them by the nature of their businesses. On two occasions, Kevin was called upon to replace the outgoing CFO permanently, so your business is in good hands.

You may need Kevin's assistance for only a few weeks, several months or even up to a year in maintaining a well-ordered financial house. Everything can be tailored to your needs and we place the highest value on your time and ventures!

Call 509-953-4298 or email us at inwaccounting@protonmail.com to ask for a free 30-minute consultation and learn more about how we can best serve you! Godspeed!

The Magical Finch Arboretum

 

I was introduced to the John A. Finch Arboretum on the western side of Spokane many years ago but only just recently started taking my family there last year. The Finch Arboretum features dozens of different tree and bush species, some of which likely not found anywhere else in the region, and totals over two thousand individual flora spread across sixty-five wooded acres!

Our most recent trip was today on a cool afternoon which turned into, at first a light rainy hike, and then later a downpour (incidentally, not a common occurrence in the second half of June in Spokane). Fortunately, rain happens to be a favorite environment for my kids so combine that with the beautiful arboretum trails, it was a great success!

At this point, I could turn the story from narrating this wonderful time I had with my family into some business lesson about trimming back the growth on trails, or helping guide business owners through the maze of different challenges, or stopping to examine your business segments (tree species analogously) more closely.....you get the picture.

Nope. Just wanted to share some neat pictures and encourage you to take your families out to explore the many trails and magical outdoor areas the Pacific Inland Northwest has to offer!

Get out there, be safe and Godspeed!

Small Businesses and Money: Everyday Challenges

 💲 How do businesses make more money?

💹 By increasing cashflow!
💲 "Well, thanks Mr. Genius Accounting guy! I'll go do that right now!"
😁 Taking a step back, how does one increase cashflow?
🤔 Well, sometimes it's just doing the "little things" well, like increasing inventory turnover (without losing your shirt!), lowering your receivables, taking advantage of vendor discounts, and implementing modest general price increases.

👍 Besides these starting points, there are other focus areas we can look at during a free thirty-minute consultation. To elaborate a bit, a consultation might look at:

• The last three to five years of tax returns (1065 if a partnership, Schedule C from your 1040 if a sole proprietor, or 1120-S if a S-Corporation). 
• Plenty of nuggets we can draw from each of these, such as:
• Were there tax deductions or credits missed? Are they worth an amendment or just something to make sure we capture in the current year going forward?
• A/R Aging
• Do you have a high concentration of receivables (accounts) over 90 days? Do these customers need to go to collection and then be placed on COD terms?
• AP Aging
• Is the business missing out on 2/10 or 1/10 Net 30 discounts because it's occupied paying down older debts over 60 or 90 days? 
• These discounts add up quickly to lost money. Quick math says 36% in lost discounts on purchases each year for a given vendor with 1/10 Net 30 terms, assuming 3 purchases each month.
• Inventory Turnover
• Is there a noticeable concentration of old inventory with a high carrying cost? Carrying costs could be a combination of financing needed to purchase the inventory, warehouse/retail space rent, manpower + software + equipment needed to manage inventory, and lost opportunity costs in not being able to purchase fresh inventory because your money is tied up in the old.

☎ Call 509-953-4298 to schedule your consultation and find out more! You may also email us at inwaccounting@protonmail.com.

Part-Time CFO: Saving the Day for Small Business Owners Everywhere!

Perhaps the highest value service we can provide at INWA is for our owner, Kevin Strain, to fill in as your interim CFO. 

High-performing CFO's and controllers are a rare breed and when you have one retire or otherwise depart, filling that spot permanently can be a lengthy and expensive affair. This is where the interim CFO comes into play.

Having a strong part-time or interim CFO assist in negotiating loans with banks, preparing the monthly/quarterly/yearly financials, mapping out tax-mitigation strategies, and ensuring GAAP and overall financial regulatory compliance means peace-of-mind for owners and security for the business, not to mention potentially increasing profitability!

Kevin has extensive practical experience as a financial controller, working directly under three different small-to-mid-size business owners during the last ten years, and can attest to the high demands placed on them by the nature of their businesses. On two occasions, Kevin was called upon to replace the outgoing CFO permanently, so your business is in good hands.

You may need Kevin's assistance for only a few weeks, several months or even up to a year in maintaining a well-ordered financial house. Everything can be tailored to your needs and we place the highest value on your time and ventures!

Call 509-953-4298 or email us at inwaccounting@protonmail.com to ask for a free 30 minute consultation and learn more about how we can best serve you! Godspeed!