The Business Owner’s Guide to Reading and Understanding Financial Statements

Financial statements hold the key to a company's fiscal health so learn to read them! In order to gauge a company's health as well as the competition's managers must know how to properly read and understand financial statements. The Business Owner's Guide to Reading and Understanding Financial Statements will introduce managers and business owners to various types of financial statements and explain why they are important. Serving as a desktop reference, especially for managers without a strong background in finance, this book will discuss the difference between internal and external financial statements and explain how they can be used for financial decision-making in order to avoid common missteps. Whether you're planning for major capital projects or simply managing the fiscal aspects of your department, this nontechnical, results-driven guide will arm you with the fundamentals to: Understand the budget process and why it is important Manage assets and track inventory Gauge profitability Monitor success throughout the year using internal reporting Set prices and make key cost decisions Financial statements are essential to determining a company's fiscal health. Understand where your company stands so that you can make informed decisions about its future.

Financial statements hold the key to a company's fiscalhealth--so learn to read them!In order to gauge a company's health--as well as thecompetition's--managers must know how to properly read andunderstand financial statements. The Business Owner's Guide toReading and Understanding Financial Statements will introducemanagers and business owners to various types of financialstatements and explain why they are important. Serving as a desktopreference, especially for managers without a strong background infinance, this book will discuss the difference between internal andexternal financial statements and explain how they can be used forfinancial decision-making in order to avoid common missteps.Whether you're planning for major capital projects or simplymanaging the fiscal aspects of your department, this nontechnicalresults-driven guide will arm you with the fundamentals to:* Understand the budget process and why it is important* Manage assets and track inventory* Gauge profitability* Monitor success throughout the year using internalreporting* Set prices and make key cost decisionsFinancial statements are essential to determining a company'sfiscal health. Understand where your company stands so that you canmake informed decisions about its future.

Preface ixAcknowledgments xvPart I Using External Reports to Gauge Your Company's Health and Competitive Status 1Chapter 1 The Key Financial Statements and Their Starring Role 3Chapter 2 Balancing the Books: Your Assets and Liabilities 25Chapter 3 Gauging Profitability 49Chapter 4 Cash Is King 71Part II Using Internal Reporting to Manage Your Profits and Your Costs 91Chapter 5 Why Budgeting Is Important 93Chapter 6 Managing Inventory 107Chapter 7 Monitoring Customer Collections 121Chapter 8 Discounts and Special Pricing 133Chapter 9 Getting a Handle on Manufacturing Costs 141Chapter 10 Reducing Bill Payouts 153Conclusion Using Financial Statements for Decision Making 163About the Author 165Index 167