Do I need a purchase order?
Purchase orders (POs or PORs) often fulfil a key part of the procurement process, but they’re not used routinely by all organisations and there’s no obligation from an accounting perspective to have them – or is there?
Purchase orders (POs or PORs) often fulfil a key part of the procurement process, but they’re not used routinely by all organisations and there’s no obligation from an accounting perspective to have them – or is there?
If you’re a stock-based business, then getting your stockholding and product costings right can be tricky at the best of times. But recently, the effect of high shipping costs, long lead times, material shortages and inflation have made the job even harder. Get it right and you will have a strong cash flow, happy customers, efficient use of space and most importantly, profit on every item you sell! Get it wrong and you risk letting customers down, locking-up valuable working capital and reducing your margins.
It’s December. We’re approaching the end of another year – a clearly defined period with a beginning and an end because a year is a year, right? It has 12 months, 365 days, sometimes 366, or 52 weeks. So why would a financial year be anything different to that and what difference does it make from an accounting perspective?
Next in our series looking at how functionality in accounting software can be put to good use in SMEs, we consider the use of Cost Centres and Departments and how these can help you further analyse your accounts and support budgeting.
If you run a business providing a service on a project-by-project basis, you may find that it is far from straight forward to work out the individual profit on each job or project because those costs may be distributed across a range of ledger codes. This is where project costing can help.
From an accounting perspective, you need to account for the initial purchase of an asset but then add in a transaction for each year you hold the assets, to reduce the value to the business. There are no hard and fast rules on when or by how much you depreciate the value of assets but this explains some of the key facts and aspects to be aware of.
It is not uncommon for a director to loan a company money to assist with growth, asset purchases or cash flow matters. But loans into and out of the company accounts to a Director need careful management.
It’s hard to turn the television on or look at content on the internet these days without seeing various reports about the encroachment of AI into modern life and the potential risks it poses. But for many SMEs it can seem like pie in the sky and not something they’re likely to come into contact with. But is that actually the case or do SMEs need to consider if and how AI can support their businesses?
A bank reconciliation is an important part of the daily accounting function for any business. In essence it is a matching process whereby you link the receipt of funds into your bank account with a sales invoice or payment of funds with a purchase.
If you’re thinking of selling your business, one of the key questions you may ask is what tax I will pay on the money I receive? It’s a fair question too. Afterall, if you’ve been building the business for many years, you’ll want to ensure you see maximum benefit from the risk and hard work you’ve undoubtedly had to put into it.
There are a number of reasons for running your own business. It may be the flexibility of working hours, the opportunity to work for yourself or a wish to build something to pass on to the family. But whatever your driver for starting out, one thing is for sure, you’re most likely not doing it all for free. As well as securing a regular income for you and your employees, you’ll be looking to build value into your business. This value is called the equity.
It may not be a question that you thought you’d have to ask yourself, but as a Director, part of your legal undertaking requires you to ensure that the business remains solvent and trades within its means. Operating outside of these boundaries could see the company being declared insolvent, struck off and you, as a Director, being penalised or disqualified – meaning you cannot be a Director again.