Leah Oliver CA BB Fin Acc

99% of business owners don't know this   (Not a real stat, but probably close)   The difference between LEGAL ENTITY and TAX CLASSIFICATION.   The terminology often gets jumbled among legal and tax pros But there is a distinct difference between the two.   ➡️ Legal Entity = How a business is legally structured ➡️ Tax Classification = How a business files its taxes   Choosing the correct legal entity and tax classification is critical in planning for the future of your business.   This is always the first thing I evaluate when working with a new tax planning client.   The rule of thumb is to start as simply as possible Then adjust your classification as needed.   ➡️ E.g., Don't start as an S-Corp when your income is only $40k.

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CFOs don’t talk about burnout. They talk about being in a “busy period” They say they’re “just trying to get through month-end/Forecast/Reforecast/Budget” They move strategic work to “next quarter.” They still deliver. Still lead. Still show up sharp on the investor call. But behind the scenes? They’re running on endless cups of coffee. Here’s what I’ve learned: Before they crash. They just get buried. Not all at once. Slowly. Over time. Buried under: • Reporting loops that never end • “Quick” requests that turn into full days • Meetings that take up thinking time • Interuptions that disrupt deep work. • Goals that feel further away every week These CFOs aren't underperforming. They’re overloaded. And the funny thing is? CFOs spend so much time holding the business together.. they stop moving it forward. If this sounds familiar, try this: 1. Audit your week, not your strategy What are you actually spending time on? 2. Protect 90 minutes a week for strategic progress No meetings. No admin. Just one high-leverage problem. 3. Start subtracting what no longer serves Reports, routines, recurring distractions. Because no one will protect your time for you: Not the board. Not the business. Not your team. That part is on you. And if it feels hard to justify? Remember: You don’t need more hours. You need more traction. #CFO #StrategicLeadership #LinkedInFest25

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Ever wondered why "profit" doesn’t always mean you have money in the bank? Cash flow is the real heartbeat of any business. If you want your company to breathe easy, you need to focus on what really matters - measuring the right things, spotting the warning signs, and tracking the winning moves. We did the same thing for Alex. He runs a mid-sized retail business. Revenue kept climbing, so he assumed everything was fine. Yet, every month, Alex felt like he was juggling bills, barely scraping by to pay vendors on time. That’s when he called me in to take a look. We dug deeper into Alex’s numbers, and found his Operating Cash Flow (OCF) wasn’t just low, it was often negative. Alex was shocked. Growing sales should have meant a healthy bank balance, right? But his Cash Conversion Cycle - basically how long it took for his inventory and receivables to turn back into cash - was dragging on for 70 days. That’s a long time to have your money tied up, and it explained the constant cash squeeze. So what cash flow KPIs do you actually need to watch? First, Operating Cash Flow tells you how much real cash your core activities are putting into the business. If this goes negative, it’s time to act, even if your accountant says you’re profitable. Free Cash Flow what’s left after buying equipment or improving your shop—shows if you can afford to invest, pay debts, or save for a rainy day. Cash Flow Margin reveals how much of your sales are actually turning into spendable funds, while the Coverage Ratio tells you if your current operations can pay off the bills piling up. The Cash Conversion Cycle is your scoreboard for turning investments back into cash—the shorter, the healthier. And if you’re running a startup, never ignore your Cash Burn Rate. It answers: how quickly are you using up what’s in the bank? Coming back to Alex, we used these KPIs to map out a new strategy. He started negotiating stronger terms with both suppliers and buyers, getting paid sooner and paying out a little later. Inventory was managed more carefully, so fewer dollars sat idle on the shelves. We also dug into expenses, trimming the fat and improving collections. Just three months later, Alex had enough cash flow to cover payments with room to spare - plus, now he could actually invest in marketing and hold a cushion for emergencies. Bottom line? Tracking these cash flow KPIs gives you a brutally honest, early warning system. While profits look nice for the accountants, only cash pays your bills, fuels your growth, and lets you sleep at night. If you found this useful, hit follow for more actionable finance insights! #cashflow  #kpis  #businessgrowth

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Bookkeeping only firms should be proactively looking to create a strategic partnership with a tax firm. Clients love a one stop shop. More firms are offering both bookkeeping and tax. Advisory is also best done if there is collaboration between both of these and good advsiory cannot be done without accurate books. Also, there is the threat of AI coming along and potentially disrupting the bookkeeping world. Could a bookkeeping firm just hire a tax person? Next to impossible. You would need someone who is partner level or capable of running their own firm. You also need to get tax software, build the entire operations/processes, follow compliance, etc. It wouldn’t ever make sense for someone to join a bookkeeping firm to build an entire infrastructure and tax practice, without any of the ownership. Anybody who is capable of this role could just open up their own firm. Could you hire someone with less experience who is cheaper? No chance that would work out. They wouldn’t be qualified or capable and you would risk losing your clients due to their inability to provide quality service on the taxes. So that leaves one practical option. Creating a strategic partnership. There are so many new firm owners who would be happy to create a partnership to increase their revenue. Here are the considerations and why it isn’t a simple process to build this partnership. 1) What is the included in the revenue share? The bookkeeping firm is only handling a business books. But every client also has at least one other tax return (personal tax return). Should the bookkeeping firm get a revenue share on all of the tax services or just on the business tax return that they handle the books for? 2) Is the bookkeeping firm qualified and are their books accurate? There should be an understanding that the bookkeeper will be proactively obtaining any relevant information needed for taxes (vehicle purchase docs, loan docs, etc.). Accurate bank recs, loan tieouts, and equity accounts are a must. The only thing that should be left to be adjusted is depreciation. The tax person cannot be forced to do the leg work for these areas. 3) The bookkeeper needs to make sure the tax firm will take good care of their clients bc it’s a reflection on them. They also need to be sure the tax firm charges good fees so it’ll be worth it. 4) Integration and processes. To sell it as part of your bookkeeping firm, the tax firm should be integrated with your firm but without overkill (firm email, QBO access, etc.). Then there needs to be processes for devliery and signatures, which must go through the bookkeeping firm. The bookkeeping firm also sends the proposal and collects the revenue. Then they pay it out to the tax firm. 5) Revenue split. What’s fair? Many say it should 10% to the bookkeeping firm and ONLY for the business returns. I think that’s harsh. To build a good partnership, I recommend 30% of all tax revenue in year 1, 20% in year 2, and 10% in years 3+.

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Most investment clients aren’t thinking about tax until it’s too late. ​ They’re focused on performance, risk, timelines.  ​ But tax is where a lot of value gets lost quietly.  ​ And if no one’s bringing it up, they assume it’s handled. ​ That’s why starting the tax conversation matters.  ​ And it doesn’t need to be complicated. ​ It starts with a simple question: ​ “Has anyone walked you through how this will affect your taxes?” ​ From there, the goal isn’t to become their tax expert.  ​ It’s to guide the conversation and make sure they’re supported.  ​ That means being able to flag planning opportunities early, coordinate with whoever handles the tax work, and prevent surprises later. ​ Clients don’t expect you to prepare their returns.  ​ But they do expect you to help them make smart decisions.  ​ And taxes are a big part of that.

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