Cash Flow Management and Working Capital Services

Profit and cash are not the same thing. Profit is an accounting concept — revenue earned minus costs incurred. It can exist in receivables, WIP, or unbilled work. Cash is a bank-account reality — money you can spend today on payroll, rent, vendors, or growth.

A profitable business runs short on cash when receivables are slow, inventory is high, WIP is unbilled, or vendor payment terms are shorter than customer payment terms. A 13-week cash flow model identifies which of these is the root cause. The first question to settle is whether the gap is a timing problem or a structural one — financing the first is sensible, financing the second deepens the hole. Temporary or structural? → Read the full guide →

A 13-week cash flow forecast is a rolling weekly model showing exactly when cash will come in and go out over the next quarter. It maps receivables collections, vendor payments, payroll runs, loan repayments, and tax obligations week by week, so you see cash pressure points up to 13 weeks before they arrive. EasePro builds 13-week models as a standalone project, or maintains them weekly as part of any retainer. On why the horizon is thirteen weeks: it is the furthest out you can still name real transactions instead of dividing annual figures by 52. Try the Weekly Cash Decision Calculator first →

Worth knowing that this is a different instrument from the cash flow statement in your accounting software, which reports a period that has already closed. In QuickBooks Online it starts at net income and works back to cash; Xero’s version lists cash in and out directly. Either way it looks backward; a 13-week forecast lists the money itself, on the dates it will move. Direct vs indirect cash flow → See one built from scratch →

Less than most people expect. Five inputs cover the backbone: reconciled bank balances, an AR aging report, an AP aging report, your payroll calendar, and your debt repayment schedule — all of which come straight out of your accounting and payroll systems. The rest is a single conversation: upcoming orders not yet invoiced, planned hires, any equipment you intend to buy, and how your larger customers actually pay as opposed to what their terms say. The full list, and where each item comes from, is in our cash flow forecast data checklist. If your books are behind, we start with catch-up bookkeeping — a forecast built on unreconciled data is confidently wrong.

The cash conversion cycle is the number of days between when you spend cash and when you receive it back. A shorter cycle means less working capital tied up in operations. A longer cycle means more cash stuck — even when the business is profitable. Use the Working Capital Calculator to measure DSO, DIO, DPO, and your cash conversion cycle from your own numbers, and see the four traps that stretch it for the usual causes. EasePro then benchmarks the cycle against your industry and identifies specific actions to reduce it.

Bookkeeping and cash flow management look backward vs forward. Bookkeeping records what happened to cash in the past — reconciles bank accounts, posts transactions. Cash flow management forecasts cash 13 weeks forward, identifies pressure points before they become crises, and gives a weekly decision framework.

If books are behind, start with catch-up bookkeeping first — a forecast built on incorrect data will mislead.

We can usually hold the clarity call within 24–48 hours and finish the half-day assessment within 24–48 hours of getting access; the build time for the first 13-week model depends on the state of your books, which is what the assessment sizes.

Typical outcome: The primary cash drain is identified in the first phase of the engagement. Measurable improvement follows as collections accelerate, payment timing tightens, vendor credit terms are renegotiated, or working capital is restructured.

Pace varies by client and is part of what we calibrate during the half-day assessment.

The fee depends on scope and is confirmed after a short scoping call, and there’s no minimum term. The fee is calibrated to your forecast complexity, working-capital depth, and reporting cadence. Every engagement is fixed-fee — no hourly billing, no hidden fees, no lock-in.

For a short-term cash forecast, usually the direct method: receipts and payments listed on the dates they’ll hit the bank. A 13-week forecast is normally built that way because every line can be checked against a bank statement. The indirect method starts from net income and adjusts it for non-cash items and working-capital changes. It’s what a 3-statement model uses, because it ties profit to the balance sheet. Both are ways of presenting operating cash flow (ASC 230-10-45-25 and 230-10-45-28), and both work for actual results and for projections. Direct vs indirect, worked through →

It depends on the decision you’re making. A weekly forecast, usually the next 13 weeks by date, answers near-term questions: can we make payroll, which supplier can wait, how much of the credit line will we need. A monthly forecast works with category totals over a year or more and answers planning questions: can we afford a hire, an equipment purchase, a second location. Many businesses need both, and it can be one model, with weekly detail for 13 weeks and monthly totals beyond that, on the same assumptions. Weekly vs monthly, compared →

There’s no universal number. Set a minimum cash balance with a reason behind it, for example one payroll plus a week of supplier payments, and make sure no week in your forecast drops below it. Many businesses run thin: in a JPMorgan Chase Institute study of about 597,000 US small businesses (2016), the median firm held enough cash for 27 days of outflows, and a quarter held 13 days or fewer. Our 13-week forecast flags any week that approaches your minimum, so you can act before it arrives. Minimum cash and headroom, explained →