Achieving Sustainable Financial Success with Sadhana Consulting

Understanding the Importance of Robust Systems

Many businesses operate without clear visibility into true project profitability. They quote jobs confidently but, months later, lack the data to confirm whether targets were met or why they were missed. Key questions remain unanswered:

• Which costs escalated unexpectedly?

• Could we source materials more cost-effectively?

• Were there inefficiencies in labour or installation methods?

• Did product waste or errors impact the bottom line?

• Should we adjust pricing, change suppliers, or discontinue certain clients or job types?

  
  

Without reliable systems, these critical insights are lost, and the same issues repeat. By contrast, an integrated financial management system provides end-to-end visibility, enabling proactive decisions that protect and grow profits.

A Real-World Case Study: Overcoming Supply Chain and Project Management Challenges

Sadhana Consulting recently partnered with a well-established construction business experiencing strong growth. This company boasted increasing revenue, a solid balance sheet, healthy cash reserves, and a highly engaged workforce. With a full pipeline of projects secured through head contractors and crews scheduled months in advance, everything appeared on track.

However, a critical weakness in their systems was quietly undermining profitability. The business relied heavily on imported materials ordered in container loads from overseas suppliers - a cost-effective approach, but with 6 to 8 week lead times. Local alternatives were available, yet at significantly higher prices. Managing this complex supply chain involved multiple product types and intricate spreadsheets to align orders with installation schedules.

A single oversight - such as missing an order for a key item - could disrupt the entire project pipeline. With full-time crews and fixed installation dates coordinated with head contractors, delays were not an option. When materials were unavailable, the team had no choice but to source from expensive local suppliers to meet deadlines.

Over the previous 12 months, these emergency purchases had added an unnecessary $200,000 to expenditure - funds that could have been retained as profit. Compounding the issue, job costing and quoting were also managed through spreadsheets. This made post-project reviews labour-intensive and unreliable, leaving the leadership team without clear insights into actual profitability versus original quotes.

The Solution: Implementing an Integrated Financial Management System

The business owner engaged Sadhana Consulting to review their processes and recommend improvements. A common misconception is that the best financial system is whatever your accountant suggests. While accountants prioritise tax compliance and reporting - which is essential - their recommendations may not fully address broader operational needs like supply chain management, inventory tracking, and project profitability analysis.

In this case, we guided the business towards a more capable cloud-based financial management platform that seamlessly handled:

• Supply ordering and inventory management

• Project tracking and job costing

• Real-time financial reporting

  
  

After careful setup and staff training, the new system required minimal ongoing maintenance while delivering accurate, up-to-date data.

The Transformative Results

With the upgraded system in place, the business achieved:

• Efficient, error-free supply chain ordering aligned with project timelines

• Real-time visibility into project costs compared to quotes

• Actionable insights into profitability by job, client, or project type

  
  

This empowered informed strategic decisions, such as renegotiating supplier terms, adjusting pricing on low-margin work, or refining processes to reduce waste and inefficiencies.

Why Robust Systems Are Essential for Long-Term Success

Many businesses operate without clear visibility into true project profitability. They quote jobs confidently but, months later, lack the data to confirm whether targets were met or why they were missed.

With the right data, these questions can be answered and appropriately addressed:

• Were costs in line with the original quote?

• Can we source materials elsewhere for a more effective rate?

• Is there a better way to install or implement this project?

• Did we have any product waste or errors that impacted profitability?

• Should we adjust pricing or discontinue certain clients or job types?

  
  

Without reliable systems, these critical insights are lost, and the same issues repeat. By contrast, an integrated financial management system provides end-to-end visibility, enabling proactive decisions that protect and grow profits.

How Sadhana Consulting Can Help Your Business

At Sadhana Consulting, we specialise in financial management, strategic planning, governance and compliance, and business improvement analysis across all of Australia. We partner with you to design and implement systems that deliver the information you need to make confident, profitable decisions.

Our proven approach includes:

1. Gaining a deep understanding of your business, goals, and challenges

2. Reviewing existing processes in collaboration with your key staff

3. Developing a tailored project plan for your approval

4. Managing implementation with clear communication at every stage

5. Providing comprehensive training and ongoing support

6. Conducting follow-up reviews to ensure long-term success

   
   

If your business is ready to move from reactive firefighting to strategic financial control, contact Sadhana Consulting today. Let's build the systems that will drive your success well into the future.

Please contact us for a confidential discussion on your business needs.

Additional Solutions Available

Business Finance Health Check

A comprehensive finance health check of your business with recommendations for easy and low-cost ways to improve the profitability and efficiency of your operations. This includes:

• Finance system optimisation check: review of how you are using your finance system, maximising the capabilities of the finance system, review of financial reports available and how to use them

• Profitability analysis: gross profit, gross margin, other key indicators, expense analysis, vs prior year periods

• Balance sheet analysis: working capital, debt ratio analysis, other key indicators vs prior year periods

• Cashflow analysis: including look at ways to improve your cash flow

• Risk factors for your business and ways to mitigate them

• Recommendations Report: how you can improve the profitability and efficiency of your business

  
  

We work with start-ups, small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs), government bodies and authorities, and not-for-profit organisations across all of Australia.

Financial Intelligence Coaching

For New Business Owners | Existing Business Owners | CEOs | Board Directors

The Financial Intelligence Coaching Sessions are tailored and customised to your unique circumstances with the aim of increasing your understanding of how to read key numbers and metrics to make good financial decisions to grow and expand your business.

As your business finance coach, we offer financial management coaching sessions to CEOs and business owners. This is particularly helpful to new owners or CEOs who need to wrap their heads around the financials of the business to help make and execute good decisions. These are tailored coaching sessions to meet the organisation's needs in financial strategy, planning, and management. We have experience and knowledge in financial management in businesses, government, and NFPs.

Board Directors have specific obligations to ensure they have a sound understanding, knowledge, and confidence in the financial reports of the Company. To increase your understanding, know what to look for and what questions to ask, we offer Financial Intelligence Coaching one-on-one for Directors as well as whole of Board sessions.

Financial Strategy, Planning & Modelling

• Financial Forecasts & Cash Flow Planning

• Business model analysis

• Aligning of strategy to financial reporting

• Financial viability and sustainability modelling

  
  

You may be a start-up testing your product and services and need an experienced person to do the numbers for you to assess viability and sustainability. Your business could be established but needs some expert help in forward planning to ensure continued or improved financial success.

Or you could have a profitable business but have trouble converting that into cash flow. Highly skilled in strategic planning combined with accounting, we align your goals and convert that into a highly visible and simple to follow financial strategy.

Keywords: financial management systems Australia, business process improvement, project profitability analysis, supply chain optimisation construction, integrated accounting software, strategic financial planning