Aayush kothari

Finance Professional

Writing about CFO insights, business performance, cash flow, profitability and financial decision-making.

Business Finance

[Aayush kothari @AayushOnFinance]

Unused capacity eats into margins.

Higher production spreads fixed costs across more units, improving operating leverage.

Track utilisation, fixed cost per unit and break-even volume.

#Manufacturing #SME #OperatingLeverage

[Aayush kothari @AayushOnFinance]

EBITDA growth looks good on paper. But what remains after working capital and capital expenditure?

A business must measure cash generation alongside operating performance.

#EBITDA #BusinessFinance #SME #FinancialManagement #CorporateFinance #BusinessPerformance #FPandA

[Aayush kothari @AayushOnFinance]

A forecast that is consistently wrong is not just a planning problem.

It can lead to excess hiring, idle capacity, unnecessary inventory and missed opportunities

Don't just measure forecast accuracy. Investigate why assumptions keep failing.

#BusinessPlanning #SME #Management

[Aayush kothari @AayushOnFinance]

High inventory doesn't always mean strong demand.

It may mean slow-moving stock, poor purchasing decisions or inaccurate demand forecasts.

Track inventory turnover by product, not just total inventory value.

#InventoryManagement #SME #BusinessPerformance #SupplyChain

[Aayush kothari @AayushOnFinance]

Your biggest customer can also be your biggest risk.

If 3 customers generate 65% of revenue, losing one could disrupt growth, capacity utilisation and profitability.

Measure customer concentration. Don't let growth create dependency.

#SME #RiskManagement #BusinessStrategy

[Aayush kothari @AayushOnFinance]

Before discounting, ask:

• Will extra sales offset lower margins?
• Are we winning customers or subsidising existing ones?
• Would customers buy at full price?

Discounts should be strategic, not automatic.

#Pricing #SME #Profitability

[Aayush kothari @AayushOnFinance]

High revenue doesn't always mean high value.

Assess each product on:
• Contribution margin
• Strategic fit
• Resource demands
• Growth potential

Then decide where to invest, improve or exit.

#SME #ProductStrategy #BusinessGrowth

[Aayush kothari @AayushOnFinance]

30% revenue growth. But is it creating lasting value?

Short-term margin pressure may be justified by growth investments. The real test is whether long-term customer value and returns justify the cost.

#BusinessFinance #SME #BusinessStrategy #GrowthStrategy #Entrepreneurship

[Aayush kothari @AayushOnFinance]

Most annual budgets become outdated long before the financial year ends.

Yet management continues treating them as fixed commitments.

A budget should guide decisions, not restrict them.

#BusinessFinance #FPandA

[Aayush kothari @AayushOnFinance]

A bigger team doesn't necessarily mean a stronger business.

More employees can hide poor productivity, duplicated roles and inefficient processes.

Revenue per employee deserves more attention.

#BusinessPerformance #Leadership

[Aayush kothari @AayushOnFinance]

Not every growing business needs more funding.

Sometimes, it needs a better business model.

More capital won't fix poor unit economics. It may simply make the problem bigger.

#BusinessStrategy #Entrepreneurship

[Aayush kothari @AayushOnFinance]

Your business may be profitable on paper but struggling to pay suppliers.

The problem might not be profitability. It might be poor working capital management.

Are you tracking receivables, inventory and payables together?

#SME #WorkingCapital

[Aayush kothari @AayushOnFinance]

Revenue growth doesn't guarantee value creation.

Track ROIC, working capital and operating margins.

Growth creates value only when returns justify the capital invested.

#SME #BusinessFinance #Profitability

[Aayush kothari @AayushOnFinance]

Forecasting isn't about predicting perfectly. It's about spotting cash gaps early.

A rolling cash forecast helps businesses plan collections, payments and funding needs before a crisis hits.

#SME #CashFlow #BusinessFinance

[Aayush kothari @AayushOnFinance]

A company can hit its revenue target and still miss its business objectives.

Why?

• Margin erosion
• Unfavourable product mix
• Rising operating costs
• Declining returns on capital

Hitting targets isn't the same as creating value.

#BusinessFinance #Profitability #Finance

[Aayush kothari @AayushOnFinance]

Finance leadership

The real value of finance isn't explaining last month's numbers.

It's helping management make better decisions before next month's numbers arrive.

[Aayush kothari @AayushOnFinance]

Budgeting

A budget is not a commitment to spend.

It's a financial framework for making better decisions.

If actual performance changes but management decisions don't, your budget is just a spreadsheet.

[Aayush kothari @AayushOnFinance]

Your biggest customer could be quietly costing you money.

High revenue doesn't guarantee high profitability.

Look beyond sales:
• Margins
• Credit terms
• Servicing costs
• Working capital

Growth is valuable only when it creates profit and generates cash.

[Aayush kothari @AayushOnFinance]

Working capital

A company can be profitable, growing rapidly and still face a liquidity crisis.

Why?

Because growth consumes cash.

Receivables, inventory and payables deserve as much management attention as revenue and EBITDA.

[Aayush kothari @AayushOnFinance]

Financial reporting

A financial statement tells you what happened.

A good financial analysis tells you why it happened.

A great CFO asks what should happen next.

Three different levels of financial thinking.