09/ 18/ 2006
by Jeffrey Moses
I was recently speaking with the owner of a small company that coordinates home-care for the elderly. Needless to say, this is a timely business. However, it involves great attention to detail and can be quite time-consuming because many elderly people require 24-hour attention.
The owner, a lady with several nursing degrees, nearly two decades of experience in the field and dozens of elderly and family clients, mentioned to me that she loves her business and considers herself a "people person," but has trouble handling finances. She confided that she often doesn't mail out her invoices in a timely way and finds herself constantly scrambling to coordinate the time sheets for the many caregivers she provides.
When I probed deeper, it turned out that she is neglecting her own financial investments. Her retirement accounts are growing, but are unattended, and it's been years since she's talked with an accountant.
This lady needs help quickly, before her company and her own finances careen out of control. The following suggestions could apply to any person who loves their business but hates finances.
- Consult a financial adviser, an accountant or a CPA experienced with small companies. Organize your company's and your own financial records before the meeting––and jot down notes for all your financial goals, both business and personal (including retirement).
- During the meeting, work out ways you can hand over some of the financial details to a bookkeeper, who likely will be less expensive than a CPA for day-to-day activities. If you don't want to write the checks to all your employees (or in this lady's case to her numerous caregivers), hand that task over to someone else. Since she is having trouble finding time to write out and coordinate time sheets, it's clear that she also needs someone to take over or, at least, assist with this detailed part of her operations.
- Taking in a business partner more skilled and willing to handle the financial aspects of the business can take pressure off a people-person owner. Many highly successful businesses are based on a partnership in which there is a division of labor, and interests.
- Delegating some of the financial activities to employees can relieve pressure. In this lady's situation, she could assign coordinate of the time sheets to one of her senior caregivers. In her business, some of her elderly patients who require the most care have a team of caregivers working in shifts round the clock. One team member could be assigned the task of coordinating time sheets for others in the team. However, the actual billing of patients should be done by the owner or his or her bookkeeper or accountant.
- Taking classes in bookkeeping can boost a business owner to a new level of financial ability. Often, not enjoying the financial aspects of a business is the result of not being familiar with financial techniques. When a person feels lost or out of one's depth in a particular activity, it's natural to avoid it. Spending time learning how to handle finances adds depth to a person's overall business acumen and enjoyment level—even if some of the financial responsibilities are eventually turned over to others.
