Tag Archives: MW Interim Finance

MW Interim Finance today announces the launch of its new website

MW Interim Finance today announces the launch of its new website;-

www.mwinterimfinance.co.uk

MW Interim Finance continues to deliver an independent interim finance director/CFO level resource supporting companies undertaking strategic, operational or project based change activities. Focusing on interaction with main Board directors, business owners and leadership teams we provide objective and focused support in:-

“Managing Change Effectively”                    

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Business objectives change over time and MW Interim Finance is able to support business change in a number ways to both SME and larger corporate organisations;-

Forensic operational review, forecasting and profit improvement

  • Working capital and cash flow optimisation
  • Project appraisal, analysis and business modelling
  • Financial control of UK and overseas multi-site operations
  • Strategic business planning and development
  • Restructuring and business turnarounds
  • Merger, acquisition and divestment due diligence and completion activity
  • Business and systems integrations
  • Evaluating risk and enhancing controls, process and systems

For further information or a confidential discussion about your specific business requirements, please contact Martin Walby FCMA CGMA on + 44 (0) 7876 566875 or email martin.walby@mwinterimfinance.co.uk

www.mwinterimfinance.co.uk

 

 

The Heat Is On……………..

It is not just the weather in the UK that has been getting warmer, with the obligatory occasional thunderstorm, but the Ashes cricket looks like becoming more challenging for England, and possibly the economy is warming too.

Recent economic news suggests that the slow road out of recession may be progressing with business confidence higher, fund managers being optimistic, (despite the worries on the Chinese economic slowdown), and possibly more enthusiasm to spend by consumers. The latter has however to be tempered with a survey indicating that nearly half of UK adults are having more financial problems in paying monthly bills and not saving for emergency costs. The previous survey in 2006 says this only affected around a third of people.

If you are an SME business that has managed through the last five years; retaining key customers and suppliers, keeping staff motivated and successfully planning or implementing auto enrolment or your own company pension scheme, now may be the time to take the business forward again.

·        Have you reviewed your strategic business plan recently?

·        Do you know where you want the business to be in the next two to five years?

·        Are your operations, support functions, IT systems and business process optimised?

MW Interim Finance provides an independent and objective senior finance and commercially focused resource to work with SME’s in both the development and implementation of strategic and operational objectives to achieve business growth in the short to medium term. Contact martin.walby@mwinterimfinance.co.uk or visit our website www.mwinterimfinance.co.uk.

 

The engagement of an interim finance director or CFO should never be a cost to your business

Unlike consultants or temporary staff, where costs tend to drop to the “bottom line”, interims focus on the delivery of benefits to your business. The outlay on the cost of an interim should be matched by a multiple of benefits over time.

Business owners, directors and senior management tend to utilise in-house resource to deliver their strategic and operational objectives, assuming their staff have the requisite knowledge, experience and gravitas to deliver expected results. In many cases there are prolonged increases in work load across the organisation leading to significant pressures on personnel, processes and procedures. The implementation timetables can often be delayed with functional areas “taking their eye off the ball” when it comes to sales, operations, cost, profit and cash flow, and perceived improvements and synergies are often significantly diluted.

If you have an operational or strategic project that requires implementation and you wish to discuss how an interim finance resource can work with the business, contact martin.walby@mwinterimfinance.co.uk at MW Interim Finance or see our website at www.mwinterimfinance.co.uk

Small Beer UK Budget ?

As is the case with any budget in recent times there is a mix of good and bad news for both consumer and business and the one delivered last week by the Chancellor was somewhat flat, (a bit like the 1p reduction in beer duty). This will do nothing to radically get the UK out of the economic woes for some years, with projections of better times past the next election. No matter who is in power politics appears to be more important than positive action.

There was good news for the increase in personal allowance for 2013/14 and the £10k allowance for the following year. The non addition of duty on petrol is not actually a saving to consumers who are consistently paying higher prices from the oil companies anyway.

For small businesses, the additional National Insurance relief of £2k on the hiring of new employees is a welcome move however this is not effective until April 2014. The move to a 20% corporation tax rate is good for larger corporate enterprises but does nothing for the rest of business. Other good news was the increase in annual investment relief for plant and machinery to £250k which reverses the decrease from last year and is effective for two years.

If you have a business with a will, but no senior level resource to implement operational improvements, strategic restructuring or if there is a project that requires review and delivery, an independent short-term interim finance director may be a way to make the changes. MW Interim Finance can provide a dedicated commercially focused finance director and business partner in “managing change effectively”. Visit www.mwinterimfinance.co.uk or email info@mwinterimfinance.co.uk.

 

Beware the Ides of March……………..

One month to go before the end of the tax year and the banks and pension investors are inundating us all with the “use your ISA allowances” and “maximise your pension contributions before the changes next tax year”. Interest rates remain pitiful and again the rates are being reduced across the board yet again on all taxable and tax free savings and investments. Even dividend yields are falling, some of which driven by increases in share values. Possibly now may be the time to invest in shares and the FTSE hitting a five year high this week would seem to indicate that investors are coming back into equities.

All the above assumes that consumers, who have been suffering for the past five years with increased food, fuel and transport costs, coupled with little or no wage increases, (for those who have a job), have any spare money to save. For any employees who do not currently belong to any type of pension scheme there is potentially another outflow, (albeit with a longer term benefit), the auto enrolment by companies and their employees into the NEST pension scheme or equivalent.

Many smaller companies do not know;-

  • Their company’s auto enrolment date
  • How many employees are affected, depending on their annual salary
  • What changes are required from a payroll and HR perspective
  • Communications and financial controls
  • Cash flow implications with employers having to contribute on an increasing sliding scale over the next few years

MW Interim Finance has recently assisted in providing some thought provoking feedback on the above to a business who employs a large number of temporary and part-time workers, as well as a permanent workforce. It was a complicated scenario that required a thorough knowledge of the HMRC rules to ensure the company planned its strategy accordingly.

This is just one aspect of how MW Interim Finance could help your business; from operational issues through to restructuring and managing strategic change effectively.

Reprise of 2012 Euro Football versus Euro Zone Banking Crisis

It appears that the MW Interim Finance article a week ago has stimulated more widespread comparisons of the main Euro Zone protagonists who have survived and progressed to the knockout stages of Euro 2012. All the countries that remain, with the exception of the Czech Republic, are notable for their position in the debt ranking in the Euro Zone. It is ironic that the strongest economy, Germany, next play Greece, the weakest, with little possibility of survival……..however to date they have survived multiple bail outs, so could there be an upset on the cards? With England bumbling their way along on the sidelines with an even chance of progressing further against Italy, we wait to see which of the remaining countries will survive, both in the competition and economically.