Findings
What Big4CFO finds in real books
Every report checks that your figures add up to your own balances, then points to what is worth a closer look: money leaking out, profit left on the table, and cash running short.
The findings below come from real books. Findings point to what is worth checking; the decisions stay yours.
Proof from real books
What hides in real books.
Three findings from one real business's records, found in the work that led to this software: examples of what the software looks for, not what a single report promises.
- Margin
Recoverable margin hiding in underpriced accounts
- Statement error
Caught before it reached an active buyer
- Discrepancy
Found live between two systems
What the money is for
Found money is only interesting because of what it buys.
Every figure above is money that was already yours and was not being counted. Here is what business owners do with it once they can see it.
Hire the next person
The role you keep postponing because the numbers always feel too tight to risk it
Open the second location
Funded out of margin you already earn, instead of out of debt you have to service
Pay yourself properly
A salary that stops moving every month with whatever the bank balance happens to be
Sell it one day
Books a buyer can check, and a valuation built on figures that tie to the cent
Questions
- What does "checked to the cent" mean?
- Every figure is checked against your own balances before it is used. A statement's opening balance plus money in, minus money out, must equal its closing balance exactly. If it does not, we say so instead of reporting on figures that do not add up. A profit and loss and balance sheet are checked against themselves: every month's profit must match their own bottom line, and the balance sheet must balance. The one exception is an Excel or CSV export of bank transactions uploaded for a one-time report: it has no balances to check against, so that report says its figures were read from your spreadsheet and not verified. On a monthly plan, every transaction in your books must account exactly for the balances your accounting system reports for your bank, card, receivable and payable accounts — with no difference allowed on bank or card.
- Is a person involved in my report?
- No. Big4CFO is software. Your report is generated automatically from your own records: the software checks, to the cent, that every transaction accounts for your balances, forecasts your cash flow and writes up the most important finding in plain English. Nobody reviews or interprets your figures, and nothing in a report is accounting, tax, legal or investment advice. One-time reports start at $49, and every figure comes with a calculation trail anyone can reproduce.
- Do I still need my bookkeeper or my accountant?
- Yes. Big4CFO does not replace either of them and does not prepare accounts, file taxes or give professional advice. Your bookkeeper records the transactions; your accountant handles your tax and your annual financial statements. Big4CFO is reporting software that reads the books they keep: it checks that they add up, tracks margin and cash, and flags what is worth a closer look.
Get your report
Find out where your money is going.
Start with a one-time check on your bank statements or financial reports, or have your books checked to the cent every month.