Director's weekly cash-flow dashboard

Why owner-managers need a weekly view

Monthly management accounts are essential, but a month is a long time in cash. By the time a monthly pack lands, a problem can be three weeks old. Owner-managers — who carry the company's cash position in their head whether they like it or not — need a lighter, faster instrument: a one-page dashboard, refreshed weekly, that shows the whole position at a glance and flags trouble while there is still time to act.

This isn't a replacement for proper management accounts — it sits in front of them. Build it once in a spreadsheet, then spend five minutes each Monday keeping it current. The aim is simple: never be surprised by your own bank balance.

The four panels to build

Lay the page out as four panels you can take in without scrolling:

Panel	Shows
Bank position	Cash across all accounts today, vs last week
Money owed to you	Total debtors, split current vs overdue
Money you owe	Creditors due in the next 7 and 30 days
4-week net position	Projected closing cash for each of the next four weeks

The fourth panel is the engine: opening balance, expected receipts, committed payments and projected closing balance, week by week. The other three feed it.

Panel detail — what to put in each

Bank position. Total across every account, plus the change since last week — the direction of travel matters as much as the figure.

Money owed to you. Total debtors, with overdue split out and your three biggest debtors named. Overdue cash is your fastest source of relief; the credit control checklist turns it into a routine.

Money you owe. Payments due in 7 and 30 days — supplier bills, payroll, VAT, PAYE, rent and loan repayments. Flag anything large or non-negotiable.

4-week net position. Carry each week's projected closing balance into the next. Any week that dips below your minimum operating float is a red flag to act on now, not later.

Add three numbers that catch problems early

Beneath the panels, track three figures week on week so trends show before they become crises:

• Cash runway — weeks the current balance covers at your usual burn. A falling runway is the earliest warning of all.
• Debtor Days (DSO) — roughly how long customers take to pay. Rising means cash is slowing.
• Net position trend — is your projected four-week close improving or deteriorating each week?

For the full set of ratios behind these, see the financial ratios cheat sheet. A red flag here is a prompt to act early — when you have the most options.

Act on what it tells you

A dashboard earns its keep only when it changes a decision. If a week looks tight, you can move deliberately while there is still room: chase overdue debtors, delay a discretionary purchase, time a payment to its true due date, or — if the gap is real and well-defined — arrange short-term funding before it bites.

Because you spotted it weeks ahead, you can arrange a revolving facility calmly rather than scrambling in a crunch, and only draw what you need. Credicorp lends to the limited company with no personal guarantee and decides quickly. If a squeeze does arrive, the cash-flow crisis action plan sets out the order to work through it. This is educational information, not financial advice.