Reports to Bank On --Dickeson

Okay, so what do we measure to detect the speed of throughput? Let's spread eight pages of those reports out on the table at our Monday Morning Meeting and make decisions. What do we measure and report?

1) Cash. Measure the balance on hand at the end of the week plus all cash payments during that week. Compute Days of Cash Available. Divide the balance in the bank by the payments and multiply by seven. Report averages and annual projections. Plot the days of cash available for each of the 13 weeks and overlay a straight trend line. If you're into a line of credit, use negative numbers.

2) Raw Material. Measure your constant, most important, raw material—most likely paper for a printing business. The material on hand (raw inventory) at the end of the week, divided by usage for that week, multiplied by seven. That equals the days on hand of the material. Report totals, averages, projections and plot days of raw materials for each of the 13 weeks.

3) Materials in Process. Measure the balance of that prime raw material in the printing process at the end of the week and divide it by the total of that raw material used during the week, then multiply by seven. That's your days of material in process for a week. Report totals, averages, projections and plot days of materials for each of the 13 weeks.

4) Finished Goods. Measure the balance of prime raw material in finished goods, divide by the amount invoiced during the week, multiply by seven and then report totals, averages, projections and plot the finished goods on hand for each of the 13 weeks.

5) Receivables. Measure the balance of the account, divided by collections and multiply by seven. Report totals, averages, projections and plot each week. This is often called days sales on hand.