If you're a founder who keeps “meaning to look at the numbers,” MentorBusiness.com and this episode will snap you out of it fast. You’ll hear a blunt, in the trench's conversation with accountant entrepreneur John Charman where we pressure test the classic excuses, expose why statutory accounts are useless for day-to-day decisions, and lay out the few metrics that actually move profit.
Lewis Haydon, a trusted business coach and mentor to growth focused founders, sits down with John to break down the difference between real-time management accounts and year end compliance, how to build a simple finance dashboard that guides action, and why ownership not your accountant determines whether you scale or stall. This is raw truth and proven strategy you can use today.
They cover exactly what building financial clarity looks like in practice, from setting breakeven, to choosing accounting software the right way (without annoying your accountant), to knowing when to add a financial controller or fractional CFO.
Takeaways:
Stop waiting for year end: monthly/quarterly management accounts are your operating system.
Know your breakeven: cover fixed overheads first, then scale with intention.
Build a simple dashboard: revenue, gross margin, overheads, net profit, cash, WIP/stock, AR aging.
Use software to gain speed: real-time reporting and automated credit control beat spreadsheets.
Roles that scale with you: accountant (compliance), FC (controls), fractional CFO (forward-looking decisions).
Accountability is the moat: the owner sets pricing, cost controls, hiring cadence and the culture of clarity.
Chapters:
00:00 – Cold open: Accountant vs. entrepreneur mindset
01:23 – Why founders bury their heads in the finances
04:20 – “I’m working harder, why isn’t profit up?”
05:45 – Statutory vs. management accounts (and why one is too late)
09:39 – Break-even explained (and how to calculate it simply)
15:48 – When to bring in a Financial Controller or fractional CFO
20:01 – Quick wins: ditching spreadsheets, choosing software (without upsetting your accountant)
22:55 – Efficiency = more dividends: automations that free cash
24:05 – Valuation, lending, and why clean accounts = options
27:50 – Work in progress & stock: the silent profit killers
31:30 – Using a coach like a “logic-only” business partner
33:31 – Why coaching continues even when you’re winning
34:06 – Closing thoughts
Keywords:
management accounts, breakeven, financial dashboard, work in progress, WIP, accounting software, QuickBooks vs Xero, financial controller, fractional CFO, cash flow, AR aging, profit margin, scaling a service business, founder mindset, SME finance, entrepreneurship
Find out more or enquire about working with John Charman
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