Cash Flow For Dummies

It is a subject a lot financial personnel do not make use of.

Is not too practical, more accounting theory and concepts

After reading this I was able to find a multi-year balance sheet template and do a cash flow analysis of it. Whenever I want to learn about something my first stop is the dummies world because they are consistently good. Cash flow is a life-or-death matter for any entity from individuals to the largest corporations, so it is good to understand this.

While I usually review CDs and DVDs - as well as entertainment related books - here on Amazon, in my major occupation, I am a CPA with over 35 years experience so I feel qualified to provide an accurate review of this book. This volume came to me through Amazon's Vine Reviewer programThis is one in the series of "For Dummies" books now published by Wiley. The "Dummies" series goes back to 1991 when Dan Gookin wrote "DOS for Dummies". To date over 1600 (!) "Dummies" titles have been published. The topics range from the sublime to the ridiculous. All the titles share the format in common. Chapters begin with a related cartoon; there are "remember" and "tip" icons and all see to run about 300 pages. In a series this large, some are too simple and some too complicated.In reading through this volume - a first edition, published in 2011 - I tried to look at it from the standpoint of the probable purchaser: the owner of a small business which is finding it tough in the current economy to keep their business afloat. As the authors ( a retired accounting professor - who apparent was a CPA at one time, but no longer practices - and his son, who runs a financial consulting firm) state in their introduction, this book assumes that the reader knows little about accounting the basic financial statements. The first chapter speaks to this. It starts off simple but very quickly gets into areas that may confuse the reader unfamiliar with accounting terminology. At points in the book even I wasn't sure I knew the point the authors were trying to make. Another assumption made by the authors is that the purchaser may be the owner of a small company for which he has hired a Controller or Accountant (as distinguished from the external CPA firm) and they properly suggest that the owner work closely with the Controller to make sure they are both looking at the company's finances from the same perspective.Since one of the ways a company gets "cash flow" is from borrowing and the lender uses the financial statements to determine loan risk, the authors guide the reader in preparing financial statements that look good to the lender. There's nothing wrong with this - as long as they are accurate financial statements - but, again, some of these sections may require reading a few times if the reader has minimal financial knowledge.Now if you DO have a basic accounting background or head for business, you will probably get more out of this volume as it will show you areas you may have missed. And the last chapter has real case examples.So, in summary, this book is on a higher level than that that of most "for Dummies" books but is still helpful.Steve Ramm"Anything Phonographic" (as well as a CPA)

This is a great book. It was very helpful for me working in accounting since I haven't formally studied it. Although it focuses on the cash flow statement, it covers the other financial statements as well.

Still working through the book,so far so good and once again I enjoy the view point from the management's perspective. It also identifies account jargon in lamens terms.Hopefully I'll remember to update this after reading the book in it's entirety.

I find myself using this book for many classes. Would recommend.

Am doing an FBA business and this is perfect for me to learn how to manage my cash flow and reinvest in my business. Highly recommended.