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Practical GuidesBrowse All Practical Guides
1. AccountsWhat Should A Bank Reconciliation Explain?Cash Received Or Revenue Earned?Is My Business Really Making A Profit?Why Does The Profit Shown In My Accounts Keep Changing?
2. CostingWhy Are Sales Increasing But Profit Is Not Improving?How Much Must I Sell To Cover All My Costs?Which Products, Services Or Customers Are Profitable?Am I Charging The Right Price?Can I Afford To Give This Discount?
3. Cash FlowWhy Is There Not Enough Cash Despite Making A Profit?How Much Cash Will I Need Over The Next Three Months?How Much Cash Should The Business Keep As A Reserve?What Should I Do When A Cash Shortage Is Expected?
4. BudgetingNEWHow Do I Prepare A Simple Business Budget?
5. Working CapitalWhich Customers Owe Me Money?How Much Cash Is Tied Up In Stock?
6. ControlsWhich Supplier Payments Are Due Soon?
7. Financial HealthWhat Reports Should I Review Every Month?
SME Finance InsightsBrowse All SME Finance Insights
1. Profit & PricingCan The Business Sustain This New Monthly Cost?How Should You Judge This Month’s Result?Is Your Biggest Customer Your Most Profitable?Sales Increased. What Happened To The Margin?Which Jobs Actually Make Money?
2. Cash & Working CapitalWhy Hasn’t The Customer Paid?Where Is Your Cash Tied Up In Inventory?Can Today’s Bank Balance Cover Next Month’s Commitments?Can Higher Sales Put Pressure On Cash Flow?Why Can A Profitable Business Run Short Of Cash?
3. Reports & DecisionsCash Received—Or Revenue Earned?Where Does The Loan Instalment Go?Can You Trust The Monthly Profit Figure?How Do Financial Reports Lead To Action?How Does A Sale Become A Management Decision?Five Questions To Ask About Your Monthly Financial Reports
4. Controls & Business RisksNEWWhat Should A Bank Reconciliation Explain?Who Controls Each Step Of The Payment?Who Approves, Pays And Checks?
Tools & GuidesAll free resourcesFinancial Health ScorecardInventory & Working CapitalFinancial Health QuestionnaireSample Health Check Report
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The person behind the guides

Practical Finance, Explained For SME Owners.

Thiagan Manikam draws on more than 30 years of accounting and finance work to help owners understand what their numbers are saying and what to check next.

Why I create these guides

Business owners make decisions about prices, customers, stock, staffing and cash every day. Many receive accounts but have little time to translate them into action. TMMC’s guides begin with those business questions and explain the figures in everyday language.

My work has included full sets of accounts, receivables and payables, inventory, reconciliations, budgets, cash forecasts and management reporting. I previously served as a finance manager and later worked in freelance accounting. I also hold an MBA from the University of New England, Australia.

How to use the content

Start with a question that resembles a decision you face. Read the example, compare its assumptions with your own business, then choose one check or action. The RM figures are illustrative unless a guide states otherwise; they are not a diagnosis of your business.

Articles are reviewed for clear wording, sound calculations and original examples before publication. Where a guide depends on an external rule or source, it should identify that source. If a figure in your own records does not reconcile, investigate it before acting on the guide alone.

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