20 Red Flags you can’t afford to ignore.

And cash flow is the proof behind the story. If this helped you:.1. Follow @IAmOanaLabes for sharp strategic finance insights.2. Join 55K+ execs reading my free newsletter: https:3. Repost to share this insight.

Free cash flow conversion not just accounting profit.Capital efficiency how well your money makes more money.Leadership credibility can your team deliver what the model promises.Strategic execution not just ideas, but results. Valuation isn't just math. It's a story.

That's the scoreboard of long-term success. It tells investors 3 things:. 1. How much future cash your business can generate.2. How fast it can grow.3. How confident they can be that it'll actually happen. Focus here:.

The real foundation of valuation is cash flow. More precisely: future, sustainable, risk-adjusted cash flow. And that changes everything. Revenue can grow while margins shrink.EBITDA can rise while cash flow falls.Profit can look good on paper but never hit the bank.

Most CEOs think valuation is about revenue, EBITDA, or even profit. That's not actually what drives higher multiples. Because it isn't what buyers actually value. Comment "checklist" to get the download link of my 30-point cash flow checklist.

If this helped you:.1. Follow @IAmOanaLabes for sharp strategic finance insights.2. Join 55K+ execs reading my free newsletter: https:3. Repost to share this insight.

Adjusted EBITDA might look impressive, but it doesn't pay the bills. Focus on cash flow, not sanitized metrics, because businesses run on cashnot theory.

"One-time" costs often repeat. Subjectivity creates inconsistency. Inflated EBITDA can mislead valuations. Forget Adjusted EBITDA. Focus on:. 1. Free Cash Flow to Equity (FCFE):. 2. Net Debt Trends:. 3. Quality of Earnings:. 4. Capital Intensity:. The Bottom Line:.

And there's more. When EBITDA falls short, companies often adjust it to look better. Enter Adjusted EBITDA a measure that claims to refine reality but often obscures it. Restructuring.Legal settlements.Acquisition expenses. But here's the issue:.

EBITDA ignores:.Interest & Taxes: Real cash outflows. Depreciation: Asset wear and tear that will require reinvestment. Cash Flow: What's actually left to pay bills or reinvest. It's useful for comparisons, sure. But hides operational and cash flow risks.

EBITDA gets a lot of love. It's praised as measure of core profitability. But here's the truth:. Core profitability doesn't pay the bills. Cash does. And EBITDA isn't cash.

If this helped you:.1. Follow @IAmOanaLabes for sharp strategic finance insights.2. Join 55K+ execs reading my free newsletter: https:3. Repost to share this insight.

No broken links. No confusion. No wasted time digging through 10 tabs. So if your FP&A model can't fit your full financial strategy on one page. .

Vertical (common size) and horizontal (trend) analysis. Free cash flow calculations and cash flow ratios. Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) valuation modeling with key assumptions. Enterprise Value and Equity Value sensitivity tables. All of this in one seamless, dynamic model.

Working capital schedules with DSO, DIO, DPO, and cash conversion cycle calculations. Break-even analysis with contribution margin and revenue targets. Capital budgeting metrics: NPV, IRR, Payback Period. Financial analysis metrics and ratios for smarter decisions.

Here's what my One-Page Corporate Finance Cheat Sheet includes:. Assumptions for growth, costs, CAPEX, working capital, salvage values, tax rates, and more dynamically integrated. 3-statement financial forecast: income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow.

Shows how business decisions impact long-term value. Turns financial modeling into a growth and valuation engine. Fit's on a single page simple, powerful, strategic. When business leaders see this masterpiece, the reaction is always the same:. "This changes everything.".

But complexity isn't strategy. It's a liability. Most models focus on tracking the past instead of driving the future. A real strategic finance model does the opposite:. Connects operations, cash flow, valuation, and investment decisions all in one dynamic system.

The best strategic finance dashboard fit's on a single page. Connecting everything. Changing how CEOs lead their companies. Here's why this matters:. Most financial models are bloated. Dozens of tabs. Disconnected assumptions. Endless complexity.

If this helped you:.1. Follow @IAmOanaLabes for sharp strategic finance insights.2. Join 55K+ execs reading my free newsletter: https:3. Repost to share this insight.