Free Essay

Analyse the Reasons Why Costs Need to Be Controlled to Budget

In:

Submitted By rickyrai11
Words 1318
Pages 6
Unit 5 Introduction to Accounting D1
L & S Ltd

When experiencing cash flow problems there are a few recommendations to make, these problems include:

• Being overdrawn on consecutive months. • Having too much money • Difficulty in predicting costs

When being overdrawn on consecutive months you should look to cut back on immediate expenses such as insurance, suppliers, rent and employees. You could also increase product prices however you have to bare in mind whether the customers will pay that little bit extra to pay for the product. Another option, but more risky, is to gain more credit from creditors but this will bring interest costs and adds another liability for the future.

When having too much money in a cash flow you should reinvest the capital back into the business in order to advance in technology, assets or staff. This will help the company move forward and improve the service offered to consumers. Another option is to put the money in a savings account, premium bonds or shares. This will provide more interest on your money and let it grow instead of letting it just sit around gathering dust.

The final problem, difficulty in predicting cash flow costs, should be resolved by asking your sale assistants, doing market research or asking an experienced accountant for guidance. You should ask your sale assistants because they are the people on the ground floor and know what’s going on, what the customers like and what products fly off the shelf. They have first hand knowledge on the company as they process the day to day dealings whereas a manager might not always be around. Doing market research will help to find the average prices of all products or services such as insurance, this will ensure you will get the best quote and avoid under predicting the costs for that month. Just to be certain, you can then go and ask an accountant for guidance as they are experts in the field and will have knowledge on how to spread the costs across the period.

L & S Ltd Business

If we take a look at L & S Ltd business selling watches and jewellery over a twelve month period we will be able to see an example of cash flow. His market is a very expensive one to get set up in as a business and the cash flow scale will be larger compared to a newsagents cash flow as the items cost more to buy in and sell for more. This gives more risk of L & S Ltd becoming overdrawn.

L & S Ltd Closing Balances

L & S Ltd closing balances are decent apart from one month, September, where he had a rough time in financial terms. He went overdrawn by £2,878 and received an overdraft interest charge of a further 10% resulting in a total of £287 divided by 12 to give the separate monthly interest charge of £23.98. This isn’t so bad if you look at it as separate month but if L & S Ltd was to keep going overdrawn this figure would rapidly rise to something greater. All the other months have a healthy closing balance ranging from £332 right up to a strong £10,545. The 12 month average for L & S Ltd closing balance is 4533.88 which is a secure figure.

L & S Ltd Trends

There are many trends within L & S Ltd cash flow forecast such as the amount of drawings he intends to take out per month. This figure, although an estimate, may not be realistic as he may have to spend out on more one month therefore affecting the chance of becoming overdrawn. Another trend of the chart is the constant advertising cost rate of £175 up until September. It would be wise to increase the advertising fee a bit higher in the month of January as this is a key time to be offering sales and to get rid of unwanted stock that didn’t sell the year before. Judging by the cash flow forecast L & S Ltd may have acquired a fixed mortgage of £950 per month; this is good that he has got a fixed mortgage as he doesn’t want any sudden changes in expenses as he could be losing money. There is a clear trend in the business rates paid out of the business and this is similar for the amount paid on insurance. The ‘mode’ (or most often amount) of sales for L & S Ltd business is 37,800 and the mode for cash purchases was £27,000.

Problems within L & S Ltd predicted Cash flow forecast

• Low sales in August • High mortgage payment • High advertising costs in November and December • Rent income is quite low

Causes of Problems and L & S Ltd Plans

The cause of the low sales in August was due to the small amount purchased in comparison to other months. With not a lot of stock purchased L & S Ltd can only make a limited amount of sales and with a limited amount of money coming in and a consistent amount of money having to payed out, such as the mortgage, business rates etc., maybe this month was the cause for having an overdraft the following month in September. In September there was a low amount brought forward, only £561, which made things harder that month.

The high mortgage payment probably cannot be helped as it is probably caused by the location of L & S Ltd shop; in a city centre the prices for rent and mortgage are considerably higher. L & S Ltd could have either bartered for a better deal when first viewing the mortgage contract or looked around the country for different locations that aren’t so expensive but still have a good target market in their area of influence.

The cause of high advertising costs in November and December is understandable as it is the festive season where everyone is spending to buy gifts for one another and it is crucial to get your businesses name out ahead of competition. This is probably money well spent as L & S Ltd saw the biggest amount of sales in both these months but this doesn’t mean he has to spend high amounts of money all the time. There are different ways of advertising that are financially cheaper. These include press releases to newspapers, interviews with journalists, blogging on multiple online websites and going into radio stations for interviews there. All of these promote L & S Ltd business and all at a cheaper price.

The rent income should really be looked at as an added bonus but if you can get more out of the tenants then L & S Ltd should look to increase the income of the rent for his room above the shop. This added amount of income will more than likely not go down well with the current tenant and he or she may leave but there are many people looking for flats and one that is based in a city centre is convenient for people to get to work, this added source of income will help out L & S Ltd cash flow well and hopefully avoid going overdrawn in the future.

[pic]

[pic]

Conclusion
In conclusion L & S Ltd is doing well to keep up his cash flow and even though he went overdrawn one month he shouldn’t worry too much. He is still running a decent business that is able to function well for most of the year.

-----------------------
By decreasing the mortgage from 900/month to 780 gives a good breathing space and allows more cash flow throughout the months.

Decreasing the advertising by 150 in the busy months still gives 300 to play with and reserves capital for other activities to cover possible overdrafts.

The amount of rent received has been increased by 50/month to 300. This gives more money to spend and more options for the company.

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

Analyse the Reasons Why Costs Need to Be Controlled to Budget

...M4 - Analyse the reasons why costs need to be controlled to budget? Introduction: For this task I will be analysing the advantages and disadvantages about the business that Brad owns which involves transporting business people to and from airports using luxury cars and limousines. Addition to this I will also be explaining what the words budget, fixed, variable and total costs mean. One of the main topics that I will be covering is the fact that if Brad does nothing with his costs what the implication would be on the business as well as him and what encounters it will have. Budget: So what is budget? Budget is a financial document which is used to project future income and expenses. Budgeting is used by everyone who owns a business whether it’d be a large or small business; it is a crucial part of the finance side of the business. The process may be carried out by individuals or by companies to estimate whether the company is keeping within their budget and not over spending. The process for preparing a monthly budget includes: * Listing of all sources of monthly income. * Fixed expenses such as rent/mortgage, utilities, phone bills. * Listing of other possible and variable expenses. A business will always choose how much they are to spend on their resources etc from their budget which is calculated when the business starts. A budget may be prepared simply using paper and pencil, or on computer using a spreadsheet program like Excel. Fixed: Fixed...

Words: 1205 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

M4-Analyse the Reasons Why Cocts Need to Be Controlled

...M4-Analyse the reasons why costs need to be controlled to budget. In my report I’m going to analyse the reasons why costs need to be controlled and why businesses set budgets as targets or limits. I am also going to use the figures from the income and expenditure for the business Hairliners and going to explain the reasons why Headliners needs to use a budget to control their costs. Costs and budgets need to be controlled in order to know what is received and spend. For instance, if costs and budgets are not controlled when running a business, then it will run the risk of spending more money than it is taking or not spending enough money to grow the business and compete. The reason organisation needs to control their costs properly would be that it would end up saving money on expenses and increase its revenue. This will help the company to increase its revenues and this would allow the company to invest more money if required. The business should control its costs so that it saves money and by having the right amount of stock the business can then have the full benefits of selling those stocks and receiving cash which could be used for other areas of the business or buy more stock if they are confident they can sell it all. A budget divides your expenses into overhead and production costs. Overhead costs are operating expenses such as phones, insurance, marketing and rent. If you don’t know your overhead and production costs for each unit of a product you produce you can’t...

Words: 985 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Business Papers

...M4 analyse the reasons why costs need to be controlled to budget. For M4, learners should show an awareness of the problems that can arise if costs are not controlled to budget. This can be demonstrated by looking at a given scenario and breaking down the various elements of the budget to determine why it is overspent and by identifying the problems that this will create for the selected organisation. Introduction: if prices don't seem to be controlled by a corporation then their prices are going to be adversely affected so, budgeting is one methodology to manage prices because it provides a business associate estimate or a target on what their revenue or price ought to be. A business needs to budget and management the disbursal so as to grasp what has been received or spent, otherwise uncontrolled disbursal might occur and detoriation might happen. One among the issues that occur if prices don't seem to be controlled to budget is, high fixed costs per item that that reduces the business profits and talent to vie. Why businesses control costs and use budgets: The main reason prices ought to be controlled to budget is to form profit instead of loss, to survive and to be competitive, to own a transparent read of what quantity products you'll be able to sell so as to stop outlay extra money than the business has. Once cash flow variance is adverse the results are poor income, business are wanting money and can have to be compelled to borrow cash from the bank, once...

Words: 478 - Pages: 2

Free Essay

Nothing

...M4 – Analyse the reasons why costs need to be controlled to budget. Introduction – for this assignment I will be analysing the advantage and disadvantage about the business that brad owns, which involves transporting business people to and from the airports using luxury cars. Furthermore I will also explain what the word budget, fixed, variable and total costs means. The main topic that I will cover is the fact that if brad does nothing to his costs than what effects will it have on the business as well as him. Explain: 1) If they are not monitored then: - Managers may not notice problems because he can’t take steps to correct the problems if he doesn’t know it exists, he won’t know if he made more adverse or more favourable. If Brad doesn’t know that he have made more adverse than he will not be able to know how much adverse he have made and on which item. If the costs are not controlled by him than he will go above his budget and he will make a loss. 2) Paste in the Eco Clothing variance analysis and explain why it may be overspent in each area of adverse variance (refer to your completed hand-out) 3) What problems might this create? - Reduced profits - problem because…. - The need to replace/better train staff - problem because…. - The need to source new material suppliers/renegotiate - problem because…. - Pressure to increase prices - problem because…. Conclusion – • Consider (and then explain) how without the budgeting process (the setting...

Words: 391 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Btec Business

...provide evidence against the following criteria. Indicate the page numbers where the evidence can be found. | Criteria reference | To achieve the criteria the evidence must show that the learner is able to: | | Task no. | | Evidence | P5 | Interpret the contents of a trading and profit and loss account and balance sheet for a selected organisation | | 1 | | | P6 | Illustrate the use of budgets as a means of exercising financial control of a selected company | | 1 | | | P7 | Illustrate the financial state of a given business | | 2 | | | M3 | Interpret the contents of a trading and profit and loss account and balance sheet for a selected company explaining how accounting ratios can be used to monitor the financial performance of an organisation | | 2 | | | M4 | Analyse the reasons why costs need to be controlled to budget | | 1 | | | D2 | Evaluate the adequacy of accounting ratios as a means of monitoring the state of the business in a selected organisation. | | 2 | | | D3 | Evaluate the problems they have identified from unmonitored costs and budgets | | 1 | | | Learner declaration | I certify that the work submitted for this assignment is my own. I have clearly referenced any sources used in the work. I understand that false declaration is a form of malpractice.Learner signature: Ashley mola Date:09/12/14 | QCF...

Words: 3189 - Pages: 13

Premium Essay

Alright

...Edexcel Level 3 Extended Diploma in Business Harrow High School Unit 2: Business Resources Grade P1 | P2 | P3 | P4 | P5 | P6 | P7 | P8 | P9 | | | | | | | | | | M1 | M2 | M3 | M4 | D1 | D2 | D3 | D4 | | | | | | | | | Overall Grade P | | M | | D | | Deadlines Date Issued: | Date Due: | Date Submitted: Date | Declarations Student: I declare that the work submitted in this assignment is my own work and any resources used have been acknowledged. I understand that false declaration is a form of malpractice. I understand the requirements of this BTEC Level 3 National Certificate in Applied Science. I have been offered constructive feedback and the opportunity to improve my work. Assessor I declare that I have issued the relevant resource material. I ensured that the student understood the requirements for the completion of this course. The student named above completed the work that is submitted and the work is their own. Student Signature | Assessor Signature | Date | Date | Unit 2 – Business Resources At the core of every organisation are the human, physical, technological and financial resources that enable it to function. This unit will give learners a broad understanding of the importance organisations place on managing their resources efficiently in order to achieve their objectives. It is important that learners are able to relate their understanding of resource management to a real organisation...

Words: 1597 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

P6 Politcal Views

... | |ASSIGNMENT |Assignment 1- The Role of Financial Resources – Costs & Budgets | |TUTOR NAME | | |STUDENT NAME | | |DATE ISSUED |Please refer to your scheme of work. Dates are recorded when handed out (as assignment is issued at different times | | |for different programmes). | |DEADLINE |Please refer to your scheme of work. Dates are recorded when assignment needs to be submitted (as assignment are to be| | |handed in at different times for different programmes). | |DATE SUBMITTED |This date is recorded when the student submits the work. | |By submitting this assignment online you validate that the work submitted is your own. You need to input your name in the box below to confirm that you have | |read and agreed to this statement...

Words: 660 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Business 2.3

...ALL MY OWN WORK, EXCEPT WHERE ATTRIBUTED IN REFERENCING: | STUDENT - | Assignment 2.3: Financial Resources Task One Sources of Finance: You are to produce a report on the method of financing that Sainsburys would be best using to fund the building of a new distribution warehouse costing £800k-£1m. You will need in this report to: * Discuss available sources of finance open to Sainsburys (Retained profits, Share Issue, Bank Loans), giving the advantages and disadvantages of each for funding this size of investment. * Choose one (or more) to recommend using and give detailed reasons for the choice. Grading Criteria Completion of this task will lead to achievement of the following learning outcome: P4 – describe the sources of internal and external finance that can be obtained for a selected business Task Two The company is going ahead with the building project. After a while it is clear that the costs of the project are much higher than originally planned; now running at £1.3m - £1.6m. * Write a report to the directors clearly outlining the problems caused for the business by this failure to control costs, showing how comparison with an overall spending budget for the project could be used to identify the overspend. * The report will use break even analysis as part of the description of the problems, in this you should identify the danger to the future profitability of the project (exact figures are not required here, just an explanation of the principles with...

Words: 434 - Pages: 2

Free Essay

Hello

...business; * An explanation of the recruitment process with emphasis on the purpose and contents of job descriptions. This should be supported with annotated examples of job descriptions from the selected organisation; * An explanation of the purpose and content of employment contracts. This should be supported with an annotated example of an employment contract from the selected organisation. * For evidence produce written examples P2 * A description of one specific job within the organisation. This could relate to one of the job descriptions used above;M2 * An explanation of the skills required from candidates applying for this job. This should include: * Employability skills * Personal skills * A justification of why the skills are important to the success of the organisation and the success of the job role.Consider the skills in relation to recruiting an appropriate employee and keeping them...

Words: 1396 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

Mr. George

...the stated deadline dates * Be uploaded to Turnitin Key Words ------------------------------------------------- Identify: Give a list of the main features ------------------------------------------------- Describe: Provide a detailed picture or image of something. Show all characteristics and all relevant features to give the reader a visual impression or account. ------------------------------------------------- Explain: Set out in detail the meaning of something with reasons. This is more than just describing so can often help by giving an example to show what you mean. ------------------------------------------------- Evaluate: Review all of the information and then bring it all together to form a conclusion. Give evidence for each of your views or statements. Functional skills links Tasks 1 and 4 will require you to use different reading strategies to find and obtain information and identify the main points and specific detail, in order to complete the task. To locate information you will need to use an index and then skim and scan to find the main points relevant Task 2 will require...

Words: 2313 - Pages: 10

Premium Essay

Btec Level 3 Unit 2 Task Sheet

...objectives. Understanding how these resources are managed is one of the keys to assessing how well an organization is performing. The first part of this unit explores the range of human, physical and technological resources for a selected organization. You will investigate the importance of managing these resources efficiently and the contribution that recruiting and retaining suitable staff can make to the organization’s performance. The importance of managing the physical and technological resources efficiently is also explored. The level of an organization’s performance can be seen in its financial statements and the second part of this unit will develop your knowledge and understanding of them and highlight the need for the monitoring and control of costs and budgets. Scenario 1 You have obtained work experience as an assistant in a Recruitment Agency. One of the Agencies more important clients, ASDA, are wishing to change its recruitment procedures and have asked the agency for some advice. You have been asked to assist ASDA by producing material for The Human Resource department which explains the purpose of key recruitment documents and also in testing their recruitment procedures. P1 describe the recruitment documentation used in a selected organization Employing the correct...

Words: 2266 - Pages: 10

Premium Essay

Business Btec: Unit 2

...Street Nottingham NG2 1CB 17th November 2014 Dear Adam and Josh, Having looked at the predicted and actual budgets for the business, I am going to give you some advice on how to manage your money more effectively which could start to help you and the business make a profit again. It is very important that you look after your cost and your budgets because you will be able to manage your finances; if you manage your costs you will be able to save more on your expenses which can then lead to increasing your revenue, for example if you controlled your costs you will be able to save money and then by having the correct amount of stock which can then be sold for money which will then bring extra money in so that you can spend that money on improving your business. If you didn’t look after your costs the amount that you spent on your expenses could impact on the amount of profit that you make. If you control your budget then you will be able to increase you income, you’ll be making sure that you have working capital and you will be able to set aside extra money when it is needed. You are over spending on the following things: stock, wages, administration, insurance, interest and loans, bank charges and repairs and maintenance. There are ways that you can adopt to make sure that the overspending stops. You could hire an accountant to help you structure you budgets, you could do research on what customers are demanding and the popular products that you do, you could look at your...

Words: 2403 - Pages: 10

Premium Essay

Nice One

...recruitment project | P3 | Describe the main physical and technological resources required in the operation of a selected organisation | 1 | P4 | Describe the sources of internal and external finance for a selected business | 1 | P5 | Interpret the contents of a trading and profit and loss account and balance sheet for a selected company | 3 | P6 | Illustrate the use of budgets as a means of exercising financial control of a selected company | 2 | P7 | Illustrate the financial state of a given business | 3 | M1 | Explain how the management of human, physical and technological resources can improve the performance of a selected organisation | 1 | M2 | Assess the importance of employability and personal skills in the recruitment and retention of staff in a selected organisation | Already covered in the recruitment project | M3 | Interpret the contents of a trading and profit and loss account and balance sheet for a selected company explaining how accounting ratios can be used to monitor the financial performance of the organisation | 3 | M4 | Analyse the reasons why costs and budgets need to be controlled, explaining the problems which can arise if they are left unmonitored | 2 | D1 | Evaluate how managing resources and controlling...

Words: 1122 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Project Management Assignment

...Analyse the different project control and configuration management techniques and discuss the reasons why a particular technique was chosen for your project. There are several project control techniques that can be utilised during project execution so that potential problems can be identified and appropriate corrective action can be taken in a timely manner. This is very useful in analysing project performance and measuring regularly against the project management plan. One of the most commonly used project control techniques is Earned Value Management (EVM). It is a structured approach to planning, cost and performance measurement. The fundamental principle is that it integrates time, scope and cost objectives to provide a quantitative assessment of the present project status and its likely future performance. This method also highlights potential issues and can enable the Project Manager to make informed decisions to take corrective action(s). Before EVM can be effectively applied to projects, certain elements need to be in place first. ▪ Work Breakdown Structure / Organisation Breakdown Structures: The WBS and OBS define the work to be done on the project and who will do it. ▪ Baseline Plan / Budget: The time-phased budget for the project will provide the primary baseline against which progress and expenditure will be measured. ▪ Status Updates: Performance data relating to project costs and progress must be accurate and provided in a timely fashion...

Words: 2334 - Pages: 10

Premium Essay

Business

...are able to relate their understanding of resource management to a real organisation. This will provide an essential link between theory and practice. Understanding how these resources are managed is one of the keys to assessing how well the organisation is performing. The first part of this unit explores the range of human, physical and technological resources for a selected organisation. Learners will investigate the importance of managing these resources efficiently. The contribution that recruiting and retaining suitable staff can make to the organisation’s performance is examined. The importance of managing the organisation’s physical and technological resources efficiently is also explored. For an organisation to survive its finances need to be sound and secure. The second part of the unit explores the sources of financial resources available to organisations. The level of an organisation’s performance can be seen in its financial statements. The unit aims to develop knowledge and understanding of the financial statements and it underpins other financial units in the qualification. This part of the unit focuses on the interpretation and analysis of...

Words: 4156 - Pages: 17