1 00:00:03,900 --> 00:00:07,020 Sean Aylmer: Welcome to the Fear and Greed business interview. I'm Sean Aylmer. 2 00:00:07,320 --> 00:00:09,150 Sean Aylmer: In the run up to Christmas, most of us like 3 00:00:09,150 --> 00:00:11,609 Sean Aylmer: getting things into order. In our professional lives, it might 4 00:00:11,610 --> 00:00:14,310 Sean Aylmer: be achieving a task or two before the holiday break, 5 00:00:14,639 --> 00:00:17,549 Sean Aylmer: hitting a sales target, something like that. But for small 6 00:00:17,549 --> 00:00:20,610 Sean Aylmer: business operators this year, the run up to Christmas is 7 00:00:20,610 --> 00:00:23,459 Sean Aylmer: looking just to touch dreary, with an average of 8. 8 00:00:23,820 --> 00:00:28,979 Sean Aylmer: 3 invoices likely to be unpaid between now and 25 9 00:00:28,980 --> 00:00:31,770 Sean Aylmer: December. To chat about the plight of the SME sector, 10 00:00:31,830 --> 00:00:34,920 Sean Aylmer: I welcome Damien Greathead, the head of the accountant and 11 00:00:34,920 --> 00:00:38,430 Sean Aylmer: advisor segment at Intuit QuickBooks. Damien, welcome back to Fear 12 00:00:38,430 --> 00:00:38,910 Sean Aylmer: and Greed. 13 00:00:39,330 --> 00:00:40,589 Damien Greathead: Thanks so much for having me, Sean. 14 00:00:41,159 --> 00:00:43,530 Sean Aylmer: So, I mean, I said dreary, that's probably a touch 15 00:00:43,530 --> 00:00:48,570 Sean Aylmer: unfair, really. 8. 3 invoices likely to be unpaid. Why 16 00:00:48,570 --> 00:00:50,010 Sean Aylmer: so many, or is that normal? 17 00:00:50,460 --> 00:00:53,458 Damien Greathead: Well, you think about the numbers that we're seeing, Sean, 18 00:00:53,459 --> 00:00:58,080 Damien Greathead: and 23% of the respondents from the survey that QuickBooks 19 00:00:58,110 --> 00:01:01,500 Damien Greathead: conducted, they said that's worse than last year. So we 20 00:01:01,500 --> 00:01:06,119 Damien Greathead: certainly are seeing more small, medium- sized businesses waiting longer 21 00:01:06,150 --> 00:01:08,669 Damien Greathead: to get paid coming into the holiday season. 22 00:01:09,360 --> 00:01:10,318 Sean Aylmer: Why do you think that is? 23 00:01:10,859 --> 00:01:13,170 Damien Greathead: I think there's a couple of reasons. I'm sure a 24 00:01:13,170 --> 00:01:15,870 Damien Greathead: lot of small businesses are waiting for their customers to 25 00:01:15,870 --> 00:01:18,720 Damien Greathead: pay them so that they can then pay their own 26 00:01:18,720 --> 00:01:22,259 Damien Greathead: suppliers. I think the other thing that's happening is small 27 00:01:22,260 --> 00:01:25,049 Damien Greathead: business owners are busy, and staying on top of the 28 00:01:25,049 --> 00:01:29,429 Damien Greathead: admin that's associated with billing, with invoicing, with paying suppliers, 29 00:01:29,670 --> 00:01:31,949 Damien Greathead: that's very time- consuming if you don't have the right 30 00:01:31,950 --> 00:01:34,470 Damien Greathead: tools in place. And so that's really somewhere that I 31 00:01:34,470 --> 00:01:37,680 Damien Greathead: think small businesses can look at to help get on 32 00:01:37,680 --> 00:01:39,180 Damien Greathead: top of this problem. 33 00:01:39,840 --> 00:01:43,289 Sean Aylmer: Okay. You sort of answered the next question there. How 34 00:01:43,289 --> 00:01:46,949 Sean Aylmer: can small businesses get on top of the problem? So 35 00:01:46,949 --> 00:01:50,640 Sean Aylmer: they can be better at admin, but maybe if they 36 00:01:50,730 --> 00:01:53,940 Sean Aylmer: pay their own invoices ... Sorry, I'm not dissing small businesses 37 00:01:53,940 --> 00:01:56,280 Sean Aylmer: here, but something you said is often they're waiting to 38 00:01:56,280 --> 00:01:58,920 Sean Aylmer: be paid before they can pay. If everyone decided to 39 00:01:58,920 --> 00:02:00,810 Sean Aylmer: pay on time, that'd be a good thing, wouldn't it? 40 00:02:01,349 --> 00:02:03,989 Damien Greathead: It'd be a good thing, but unfortunately it's not as 41 00:02:03,990 --> 00:02:07,920 Damien Greathead: easy as I said. I would encourage small businesses to make sure 42 00:02:07,920 --> 00:02:10,470 Damien Greathead: that they're working with an accountant and a bookkeeper to 43 00:02:10,470 --> 00:02:14,730 Damien Greathead: really understand what's happening in their cashflow. Obviously, small businesses 44 00:02:14,730 --> 00:02:17,550 Damien Greathead: are vital to the Australian economy. They contribute more than 45 00:02:17,550 --> 00:02:21,659 Damien Greathead: 500 billion to our annual GDP. The research showed that 46 00:02:21,660 --> 00:02:25,740 Damien Greathead: about 29% of small, medium- sized businesses are talking to 47 00:02:25,740 --> 00:02:29,489 Damien Greathead: an accountant or bookkeeper once a year at tax time 48 00:02:29,490 --> 00:02:31,980 Damien Greathead: or at Baz time. And I think there's a real 49 00:02:31,980 --> 00:02:35,429 Damien Greathead: opportunity for these small businesses to tap into the expertise 50 00:02:35,429 --> 00:02:38,939 Damien Greathead: of their accountant or their bookkeeper throughout the year so they can 51 00:02:38,940 --> 00:02:41,729 Damien Greathead: better plan their cashflow and to make sure they've got 52 00:02:41,730 --> 00:02:44,970 Damien Greathead: the right processes in place to collect from their customers 53 00:02:44,970 --> 00:02:45,420 Damien Greathead: as well. 54 00:02:45,750 --> 00:02:48,090 Sean Aylmer: That's funny. I run a couple of small businesses, Damien, 55 00:02:48,150 --> 00:02:51,750 Sean Aylmer: and I spend money on accountants. And while I might 56 00:02:51,750 --> 00:02:54,660 Sean Aylmer: gripe when I pay the bill, never is it poorly 57 00:02:54,660 --> 00:02:57,719 Sean Aylmer: spent because it is quite remarkable, and my accountant is 58 00:02:57,719 --> 00:03:00,060 Sean Aylmer: also my bookkeeper, although I have someone doing the books. 59 00:03:00,450 --> 00:03:03,690 Sean Aylmer: It is amazing that you can actually save money if you 60 00:03:03,690 --> 00:03:05,370 Sean Aylmer: are on top of that, or at least you are 61 00:03:05,370 --> 00:03:06,750 Sean Aylmer: talking to your accountant regularly. 62 00:03:07,470 --> 00:03:10,138 Damien Greathead: Yeah, I would agree with you on that, Sean. Accountants 63 00:03:10,139 --> 00:03:12,959 Damien Greathead: and bookkeepers can not only help you stay compliant, but 64 00:03:12,960 --> 00:03:15,900 Damien Greathead: they can also help you understand your numbers. They have 65 00:03:15,900 --> 00:03:18,510 Damien Greathead: this knack of being able to interpret those columns of 66 00:03:18,540 --> 00:03:21,030 Damien Greathead: numbers and tell a story which can help keep you 67 00:03:21,030 --> 00:03:23,820 Damien Greathead: on track and can help you achieve those goals that 68 00:03:23,820 --> 00:03:26,520 Damien Greathead: you set out to achieve each year. The other thing 69 00:03:26,520 --> 00:03:30,179 Damien Greathead: I think accountants and bookkeepers are really helpful at is 70 00:03:30,179 --> 00:03:32,910 Damien Greathead: making sure that business owners have the right tools in 71 00:03:32,910 --> 00:03:37,320 Damien Greathead: place to manage the administration of their business. Just like 72 00:03:37,320 --> 00:03:40,200 Damien Greathead: a plumber or an electrician has his toolkit that he 73 00:03:40,200 --> 00:03:42,600 Damien Greathead: or she use on an ongoing basis to do the 74 00:03:42,600 --> 00:03:44,849 Damien Greathead: job, we've also got to make sure that we've got 75 00:03:44,849 --> 00:03:48,150 Damien Greathead: the right tools in place for the business administration, making 76 00:03:48,150 --> 00:03:50,879 Damien Greathead: sure that the accountant or the bookkeeper gets everything that they 77 00:03:50,880 --> 00:03:54,179 Damien Greathead: need, making sure that the business owner can invoice on 78 00:03:54,180 --> 00:03:56,940 Damien Greathead: the go, can pay bills on the go to free 79 00:03:56,940 --> 00:04:01,110 Damien Greathead: up people's time from many manual, many paper full tasks 80 00:04:01,350 --> 00:04:04,020 Damien Greathead: that are in place in some of those small businesses 81 00:04:04,020 --> 00:04:06,570 Damien Greathead: around the country. So talk to your accountant, talk to 82 00:04:06,570 --> 00:04:09,839 Damien Greathead: your bookkeeper about both the numbers, but also the tools 83 00:04:09,839 --> 00:04:12,330 Damien Greathead: that you're using to manage the business. 84 00:04:13,020 --> 00:04:14,790 Sean Aylmer: Stay with me Damien, we'll be back in a minute. 85 00:04:20,970 --> 00:04:25,200 Sean Aylmer: My guest today is Damien Greathead from Intuit QuickBooks. Is 86 00:04:25,200 --> 00:04:29,129 Sean Aylmer: it getting harder to run a business today? I mean, 87 00:04:29,129 --> 00:04:32,310 Sean Aylmer: two thirds of small businesses, from your survey, take work 88 00:04:32,310 --> 00:04:36,750 Sean Aylmer: home, is that more than normal? Is the technology such 89 00:04:36,839 --> 00:04:40,320 Sean Aylmer: and the accounting software such that parts of it are 90 00:04:40,320 --> 00:04:42,720 Sean Aylmer: easier? I'm just trying to get a feel for that. 91 00:04:43,559 --> 00:04:46,469 Damien Greathead: What we're seeing, Sean, is personal time is being encroached 92 00:04:46,469 --> 00:04:49,680 Damien Greathead: upon. So the research showed that nearly seven in 10 93 00:04:49,680 --> 00:04:53,370 Damien Greathead: small business owners are admitting eating into their precious personal 94 00:04:53,370 --> 00:04:56,070 Damien Greathead: time to get on top of the business admin, be 95 00:04:56,070 --> 00:04:58,500 Damien Greathead: that at evenings during the week or whilst the kids 96 00:04:58,500 --> 00:05:02,940 Damien Greathead: are ... on the weekend activities, extracurricular activities. On the go 97 00:05:02,940 --> 00:05:06,089 Damien Greathead: business admin is a struggle. And what that means to 98 00:05:06,089 --> 00:05:09,570 Damien Greathead: me is people have apps, people have had technology, but 99 00:05:09,570 --> 00:05:12,630 Damien Greathead: they may not be using it correctly. And so that's 100 00:05:12,630 --> 00:05:14,730 Damien Greathead: why I think it's really important that they speak to 101 00:05:14,730 --> 00:05:17,580 Damien Greathead: their accountant or bookkeeper to make sure that they're using 102 00:05:17,580 --> 00:05:20,759 Damien Greathead: the tools correctly, make sure that they're able to invoice 103 00:05:20,759 --> 00:05:23,429 Damien Greathead: on the go so once they complete a job, they 104 00:05:23,430 --> 00:05:26,880 Damien Greathead: can get that invoice directly to their customer so that 105 00:05:26,880 --> 00:05:29,580 Damien Greathead: the customer can then pay that as quickly as possible. 106 00:05:29,790 --> 00:05:32,670 Damien Greathead: The sooner we invoice our customers, the sooner we're likely 107 00:05:32,670 --> 00:05:35,819 Damien Greathead: to be paid. Having a pay now button sitting on 108 00:05:35,820 --> 00:05:39,360 Damien Greathead: that invoice means that we're more likely to be paid promptly. 109 00:05:39,509 --> 00:05:44,190 Damien Greathead: And so those types of processes, administrative processes are really 110 00:05:44,190 --> 00:05:48,390 Damien Greathead: important to freeing up this time that I think business 111 00:05:48,390 --> 00:05:51,779 Damien Greathead: owners are spending in the evenings and on the weekends 112 00:05:52,110 --> 00:05:56,160 Damien Greathead: doing the billing and sending of invoices to their customers. 113 00:05:56,759 --> 00:06:00,238 Sean Aylmer: If companies aren't paying invoices and small businesses are being 114 00:06:00,240 --> 00:06:01,920 Sean Aylmer: affected, where are they getting the money to pay their 115 00:06:01,920 --> 00:06:03,930 Sean Aylmer: invoices? I mean, you said some have been delayed, I 116 00:06:03,930 --> 00:06:06,180 Sean Aylmer: get that, but there's still a bunch of small businesses 117 00:06:06,480 --> 00:06:09,270 Sean Aylmer: that need to pay bills even if they haven't been paid. 118 00:06:10,020 --> 00:06:13,049 Damien Greathead: The scary thing here, Sean, is the financial strain is 119 00:06:13,049 --> 00:06:18,779 Damien Greathead: affecting almost half of SMBs. 46% of SMBs are being impacted due to unpaid 120 00:06:18,779 --> 00:06:23,310 Damien Greathead: invoices ahead of the festive season. Scarily, almost a third 121 00:06:23,310 --> 00:06:26,460 Damien Greathead: of SMBs, 32% report that they're having to go to their 122 00:06:26,490 --> 00:06:31,080 Damien Greathead: own personal funds to cover cash shortfalls when paying suppliers 123 00:06:31,230 --> 00:06:33,809 Damien Greathead: or even paying employees at payroll time. 124 00:06:34,709 --> 00:06:40,409 Sean Aylmer: Okay, so 2023. What's different about this year? What are the 125 00:06:40,410 --> 00:06:43,260 Sean Aylmer: key things that we're finding hardest this year? And the 126 00:06:43,260 --> 00:06:45,330 Sean Aylmer: second part of this question, are we actually back to 127 00:06:45,330 --> 00:06:48,240 Sean Aylmer: our pre- COVID ways or we learned from COVID? 128 00:06:49,440 --> 00:06:51,599 Damien Greathead: I think it depends on the industry. We went out 129 00:06:51,599 --> 00:06:54,329 Damien Greathead: and spoke to our advisor community, so the bookkeepers and 130 00:06:54,330 --> 00:06:57,600 Damien Greathead: accountants who are experts in QuickBooks, and what they're seeing 131 00:06:57,630 --> 00:07:00,390 Damien Greathead: in their small business client base. And there's still a 132 00:07:00,390 --> 00:07:03,988 Damien Greathead: lot of recovery following COVID. This is coupled with the 133 00:07:03,990 --> 00:07:07,769 Damien Greathead: current cost of living crisis and economic uncertainty. It's created 134 00:07:07,770 --> 00:07:10,740 Damien Greathead: something of a perfect storm where customers may be delaying 135 00:07:10,740 --> 00:07:13,980 Damien Greathead: that payment due to their own cashflow challenges. And I 136 00:07:13,980 --> 00:07:18,090 Damien Greathead: think, as I said, it depends on the industry. Hospitality 137 00:07:18,090 --> 00:07:21,960 Damien Greathead: industry is still struggling to recover. The shift to working 138 00:07:21,960 --> 00:07:24,449 Damien Greathead: from home has impacted the number of people coming into 139 00:07:24,450 --> 00:07:27,000 Damien Greathead: our cities during the week, and whether or not they're 140 00:07:27,000 --> 00:07:30,059 Damien Greathead: going to cafes or restaurants at lunch or after work 141 00:07:30,059 --> 00:07:32,610 Damien Greathead: for happy hour. And plus, the current cost of living 142 00:07:32,610 --> 00:07:35,580 Damien Greathead: concern is also a factor in how much people are 143 00:07:35,580 --> 00:07:38,610 Damien Greathead: still going out. On the flip side, many industries that 144 00:07:38,610 --> 00:07:42,690 Damien Greathead: our advisors support have bounced back. Technology, construction, and healthcare, 145 00:07:42,960 --> 00:07:46,379 Damien Greathead: they're very positive. So it all depends on the industries 146 00:07:46,379 --> 00:07:49,860 Damien Greathead: which we're operating in. Some have recovered much better following 147 00:07:49,860 --> 00:07:51,720 Damien Greathead: COVID, whereas others are still struggling. 148 00:07:52,590 --> 00:07:56,400 Sean Aylmer: So the key takeaway from this interview, Damien Greathead from 149 00:07:56,400 --> 00:08:00,510 Sean Aylmer: Intuit QuickBooks, if I'm a small business and I'm thinking, " 150 00:08:00,540 --> 00:08:04,080 Sean Aylmer: Yeah, I'm really struggling to get people to pay me. 151 00:08:04,320 --> 00:08:07,470 Sean Aylmer: I'm really struggling to pay on time. I've got cashflow 152 00:08:07,470 --> 00:08:09,120 Sean Aylmer: issues. What's the takeaway for them?" 153 00:08:09,660 --> 00:08:13,050 Damien Greathead: The takeaway for them is get in contact with your 154 00:08:13,050 --> 00:08:16,889 Damien Greathead: bookkeeper or your accountant and ask if they can help 155 00:08:16,889 --> 00:08:19,590 Damien Greathead: you put together a cashflow plan. Have a look at 156 00:08:19,860 --> 00:08:23,190 Damien Greathead: the incomings and the outgoings, and put a plan together 157 00:08:23,430 --> 00:08:27,300 Damien Greathead: to make sure that any shortfalls are on the horizon. 158 00:08:27,540 --> 00:08:29,850 Damien Greathead: Once we know we might be in the red, then 159 00:08:29,850 --> 00:08:32,220 Damien Greathead: we can have a conversation about how we can cover 160 00:08:32,220 --> 00:08:34,710 Damien Greathead: that. Can we ask some of our customers to pay 161 00:08:34,710 --> 00:08:37,439 Damien Greathead: us more promptly? Then we might also look at some 162 00:08:37,440 --> 00:08:40,980 Damien Greathead: of our processes to help that payment process, that payment 163 00:08:40,980 --> 00:08:44,189 Damien Greathead: cycle be shortened. So I think the takeaway is talk 164 00:08:44,190 --> 00:08:46,830 Damien Greathead: to your accountant or bookkeeper, and if you don't have 165 00:08:46,830 --> 00:08:49,740 Damien Greathead: an accountant or bookkeeper, you can certainly find a QuickBooks 166 00:08:49,770 --> 00:08:52,710 Damien Greathead: expert on our website. So you can find a ProAdvisor 167 00:08:52,710 --> 00:08:55,740 Damien Greathead: near you that can help you get that cashflow plan 168 00:08:55,740 --> 00:08:56,160 Damien Greathead: set up. 169 00:08:56,700 --> 00:08:58,620 Sean Aylmer: Damien, thank you for talking to Fear and Greed. 170 00:08:58,830 --> 00:09:00,510 Damien Greathead: Absolute pleasure, Sean. Thanks for having me. 171 00:09:00,750 --> 00:09:03,450 Sean Aylmer: That was Damien Greathead from Intuit QuickBooks. This is the 172 00:09:03,450 --> 00:09:05,610 Sean Aylmer: Fear and Greed business interview. Join us every morning for 173 00:09:05,610 --> 00:09:08,338 Sean Aylmer: the full episode of Fear and Greed, Australia's best business 174 00:09:08,340 --> 00:09:10,739 Sean Aylmer: podcast. I'm Sean Aylmer. Enjoy your day.