Here’s a tricky question for you this Saturday evening! Should the whole team in your business see the company management accounts i.e. should they see how much profit is made?
I’ve heard many answers on this, so I’ll try to give a balanced, thoughtful response to this difficult question by listing out all of the advantages and disadvantages
Advantages
Will encourage a culture of openness
Gives a whole picture to the team which could give them a deeper understanding of the business
The team may come up with ways to increase sales or cut costs that you may not have thought of
It could facilitate discussion around the different departments of the business that may lead to improvement
You could connect targets and goals to the overall profitability of the company
If your business is growing, it may give them a sense of pride
Hardly any companies do it (especially in small business), they would not have experienced it before
By trusting the team with the ‘private and confidential’ report they may respond with an increased level of ‘buy-in’
Disadvantages
Your team can see how much money the business owner makes
So there you have it, a very balanced argument to a potentially thorny and time-consuming issue. Hope that solves it for you.
If I’ve missed any advantages, please feel free to let me know by email on russell@rsaccountancy.co.uk
