The following is taken from a discussion I have had with Nick Nacov, on LinkedIn about the nature of Not For Profit (NFP) or NonProfit Organizations (NPO)
Nick began by asking the question:
Why are most non-profits very proactive regarding anything that could impact their core clients (however remote the chance) yet totally ignore internal issues such as financial management or their information/communication infrastructure (which could have a tremendous impact on their clients)?
An example of this could be an organization that wants to help abused women find a safe place to live. They will invoke lobbyists, mail/call campaigns and mobilize the masses to argue against any action that might have the slightest impact on their clients.
Yet they will ignore their own internal infrastructure, especially the financial side, until a problems arise (which can severely impact their clients).
I know that NFPs are service oriented industries but you can’t serve anyone when you yourself are out of business.
-----------------------
My response was:
"I know that NFPs are service oriented industries but you can’t serve anyone when you yourself are out of business"
Here is the problem. NFP's are not service driven. Service is the product of their actions. The energizing force is "Mission." They are mission driven --a mission in the religious sense -- where the goal is what counts.
Because they are mission driven they are flexible about the means for getting there -- that is, they trust that they will have the resources they need, and behave accordingly. This belief, or faith, may get them in trouble especially, financially. I've seen it frequently in my consulting.practice. But their commitment to their mission and clients often leads them to be resourceful and innovative in getting the job done.
Money is not the focus or purpose of true nonprofits. It is what money can buy that is important and that is people and materials. People can be recruited as volunteers and material can be donated in lieu of money.
In fact, many nonprofits are better at getting the job done than the for profit sector. They don't have to worry about share holders.
------------------------------
Then Nick came back with this interesting observation.
I didn't consider the mission angle, which could explain some of this. I will admit that many of our clients are good at doing more with less,
I have though seen similar zeal at huge NPOs (ex American Chemical Society, NRA) as those struggling to get their first million.
Where I see a difference is that these large NPOs understand that the mission of the organization is just as well served by those internal to the group as the external facing contacts.
The ones facing failure are usually the ones where management views internal staff as necessary evil (ex to placate the board) and treats them as secondary citizens.
-------------------
My response is
You do raise a good point. I would look to what size does to good intentions. The Red Cross and other major charities have had their problems in part do to their size.
I agree about the large or Mega Non-profits. They are not much different than the mega for profit enterprise. Size, or scale, impacts the way an organization is governed and managed. But again it is unfair to apply private business management criteria to the way nonprofits are managed. The legal structures for the two are different.
I find that the culture of the non-profit is the determining factor. When someone with an MBA goes into a nonprofit as a manager the logic she has been trained in is changed by the philosophy and type of clients and co-workers who have values that do not know or care about ROI.
Also there are multiple types of NFPs. The NRA is a membership organization and a political lobbying group a 501c4 and not a 501c3 which most NPOs are.
501(c)(4)
A 501(c)(4) exemptions are given to civic leagues and other organizations operated exclusively for the promotion of social welfare, or local associations of employees the membership of which is limited to a designated company or persons in a particular municipality or neighborhood and the net earnings of which are devoted exclusively to charitable, educational, or recreational purposes.Characteristics that set these organizations apart from 501(c)(3) organizations include an unlimited ability to lobby for legislation and the ability to participate in political campaigns and elections.
While 501(c)(3) exemptions apply to corporations, and any community chest, fund, or foundation, organized and operated exclusively for religious, charitable, scientific, testing for public safety, literary, educational purposes, to foster national or international amateur sports competition, or for the prevention of cruelty to children or animals.
As for the American Chemical Society see:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Chemical_Society.
-------------------------
To which I would add:
These are the exceptions that prove the rule, I believe. Most non-profits are mission driven and therefore never grow to the size of an NRA,AMC or Red Cross. Those that do are forced to act more like for-profit firms and take on managers with a for-profit mind set. This can lead to conflict if the boards of directors fail to understand the fundamental cultural differences between NFP and FP organizations
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Sunday, May 24, 2009
What I am worth? Summary:
This is a summary of a 5 part series on business start-ups. It focuses on how to value your role as owner/operator of a business start-up. That is, what are the answers to two simple questions: As owner --“What should I pay myself?” and as employee/operator -- “How do I price my services?”
When you do something because you want to do and are happy to spend money to do it, we call that a hobby. When you expect others to pay you to do it, then that is a business. When your hobby becomes a business, you become the investor, owner, and employee in the company you create to conduct your hobby as a business.
The First Day:
Non-business owners seem to think that there is secret formula that will produce good hard numbers to answer these questions. However in my experience with start-ups, the only executive compensation formula that works is the survival of the company.
On the first day of business, the company owes you, other investors, and lenders every dime that has been put into it. At that moment, before the first sale, the ROI (return on investments) for everyone is zero. So, regardless what salary you set for yourself, the company will not have any money of its own until its first customer has paid its bill.
The Challenge:
The major challenge for the owner/operator is adapting to the responsibilities of all three roles.
As the initial investor you want to know: “When can I start taking my money back out of the company?”
As the owner or co-owner, you want to know: “What can I afford to pay someone to do this job?”
As the employee you want to know: “What can I expect the company to pay me for my services?”
Valuation:
Valuation is a special financial skill. It is more craft than science, filled with subjectivity, uncertainty, and risk.
Difficult even under the best of circumstances, a fair evaluation of a start-up company, with no track record, is impossible. “What are the chances the business plan will work?” Others can only value it based your, and/or your partners’, personally qualities, and not on the company’s.
Starting a business is not about the money you make or will make. It is about investing yourself, your ego, and, yes, your soul in creating something you believe in enough to take the risk of not failing.
The Simple Method:
In Part 1 of this series, I proposed “The Simple Answer” to the initial questions.
As the investor: “To yourself, you are worth what you want.” If you think your investment of $10,000 is worth $20,000 at the end of one year, then you will demand a 100% ROI (return on investment) from the company. If you can wait 2 years, a 50% ROI annually will do.
As the owner of the company, “You are worth what the company can afford to pay after satisfying its other fixed and variable costs.” If you want to earn $10,000 a year as the owner, then you need to generate $10,000 of profits above the gross costs of all other business expenses.”
As an employee of the company, “You are worth what you are willing to settle for, and the company of can afford to pay.” If you want to earn $10,000 a year as an employee, then your services should generate at least $10,000 a year in value to the company.
By combining all three income sources: investment, profit, and salary; you could earn $25,000 to $30,000. This value would be: $5,000 to $10,000 appreciation in the value of your company shares (capital gain), $10,000 in dividends paid on your stock, and $10,000 of salary in cash.
The formula for personal earnings is: Capital Gain + Dividend + Cash = Salary
To apply the examples above to fit your own case, use your own numbers and ratios.
The Detailed or Life cycle Approach:
The main point in Parts 2, 3, and 4 is to show how you have three different ways to monetarize your investment in a start-up company. These can be phases to reflect the life cycle of the start-up process.
Part 2, Equity, explained how you might monetarize your sweat equity by creating a valuation for the company at the time it is transformed from a hobby to a business. This establishes the basis for an exit strategy.
Part 3, Debt, explains how you, and other owners, can prevent an excessive drain on the firm’s cash position, while still paying the owner/employee at a fair or desired salary rate. This is done by paying a salary based on a combination of cash and IOU’s that the owner/employee can cash in at a later time.
Part 4, Cash, explains the impact of cash payments to the owner/employee and the company, and the critical role that cash flow plays in the success of the venture.
I ended with a set of questions that you, as the investor/owner/employee, should consider for your own start-up.
At B. R. Bainton Associates, we can provide more detail to help you answer these questions in your own specific case. Feel free to contact me personally with your questions at brbainton@gmail.com.
When you do something because you want to do and are happy to spend money to do it, we call that a hobby. When you expect others to pay you to do it, then that is a business. When your hobby becomes a business, you become the investor, owner, and employee in the company you create to conduct your hobby as a business.
The First Day:
Non-business owners seem to think that there is secret formula that will produce good hard numbers to answer these questions. However in my experience with start-ups, the only executive compensation formula that works is the survival of the company.
On the first day of business, the company owes you, other investors, and lenders every dime that has been put into it. At that moment, before the first sale, the ROI (return on investments) for everyone is zero. So, regardless what salary you set for yourself, the company will not have any money of its own until its first customer has paid its bill.
The Challenge:
The major challenge for the owner/operator is adapting to the responsibilities of all three roles.
As the initial investor you want to know: “When can I start taking my money back out of the company?”
As the owner or co-owner, you want to know: “What can I afford to pay someone to do this job?”
As the employee you want to know: “What can I expect the company to pay me for my services?”
Valuation:
Valuation is a special financial skill. It is more craft than science, filled with subjectivity, uncertainty, and risk.
Difficult even under the best of circumstances, a fair evaluation of a start-up company, with no track record, is impossible. “What are the chances the business plan will work?” Others can only value it based your, and/or your partners’, personally qualities, and not on the company’s.
Starting a business is not about the money you make or will make. It is about investing yourself, your ego, and, yes, your soul in creating something you believe in enough to take the risk of not failing.
The Simple Method:
In Part 1 of this series, I proposed “The Simple Answer” to the initial questions.
As the investor: “To yourself, you are worth what you want.” If you think your investment of $10,000 is worth $20,000 at the end of one year, then you will demand a 100% ROI (return on investment) from the company. If you can wait 2 years, a 50% ROI annually will do.
As the owner of the company, “You are worth what the company can afford to pay after satisfying its other fixed and variable costs.” If you want to earn $10,000 a year as the owner, then you need to generate $10,000 of profits above the gross costs of all other business expenses.”
As an employee of the company, “You are worth what you are willing to settle for, and the company of can afford to pay.” If you want to earn $10,000 a year as an employee, then your services should generate at least $10,000 a year in value to the company.
By combining all three income sources: investment, profit, and salary; you could earn $25,000 to $30,000. This value would be: $5,000 to $10,000 appreciation in the value of your company shares (capital gain), $10,000 in dividends paid on your stock, and $10,000 of salary in cash.
The formula for personal earnings is: Capital Gain + Dividend + Cash = Salary
To apply the examples above to fit your own case, use your own numbers and ratios.
The Detailed or Life cycle Approach:
The main point in Parts 2, 3, and 4 is to show how you have three different ways to monetarize your investment in a start-up company. These can be phases to reflect the life cycle of the start-up process.
Part 2, Equity, explained how you might monetarize your sweat equity by creating a valuation for the company at the time it is transformed from a hobby to a business. This establishes the basis for an exit strategy.
Part 3, Debt, explains how you, and other owners, can prevent an excessive drain on the firm’s cash position, while still paying the owner/employee at a fair or desired salary rate. This is done by paying a salary based on a combination of cash and IOU’s that the owner/employee can cash in at a later time.
Part 4, Cash, explains the impact of cash payments to the owner/employee and the company, and the critical role that cash flow plays in the success of the venture.
I ended with a set of questions that you, as the investor/owner/employee, should consider for your own start-up.
At B. R. Bainton Associates, we can provide more detail to help you answer these questions in your own specific case. Feel free to contact me personally with your questions at brbainton@gmail.com.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
How do you spot a fake venture capitalist on the Internet?
Recently someone asked me, "How do you spot a fake venture capitalist?
Apparently, she was concerned by the recent financial scandals and what she could do to avoid being taken. Margaret has a business idea which she has turned into a business plan (BP). She explained, "I have been shopping it around to ALL the VCs on the internet."
She had met a number of Venture Capitalists (VC), or persons she thought were VCs on the internet. They were from the USA, Europe AND Latin America.
She told me, "The US VC's seemed real and had money; but the others ... Well, they seemed fake."
I asked her what she meant by that. She said that the Europeans and Latin Americans (she is Hispanic), she had spoken to seem to be just interested in getting her BP and then trying to sell it to a bank or someone else for a fee.
Others were "Consultants who wanted to charge her a fee just to look at the BP. None of them had any real money to invest."
She asked, "How can I tell? I seem to be waste my time and I'm afraid I going to make a mistake. What can I do?"
I told her the following:
"My experience with the start-ups and start-up funding is that the VC often come in much later than the Business Plan (BP) stage. They are looking for a going concern that has proof of concept, intellectual property protection, a basic corporate structure and systems in place, and some key human capital in place. VC will do a deal for a piece of the action and an active role in the future development of the business. VCs will be there for the 'long term (3 to 5 years)'. They will also own 50% - 80% of the business."
"There are deal makers who may claim or allow you to think that they are authentic VCs. But these are middle men who will shop around your business plan to investors (Angels, and others) for a fee. Their fee is based on successfully matching you with an investor.This is what you will be buying from them."
"Deal makers can be useful in opening doors, but you should not expect more from them than they can deliver. Deal makers invest their special knowledge of the small investor network. Deal makers are not there for the long term."
"Yes, there are the Consultants who are there to earn a fee for their advice. Consultants invest their intellectual and experiential capital in your business plan. They can be a valuable resource to help you identify the strengths and weaknesses in your Business Plan and your marketing strategy for the plan. Again don't expect them to get the funding for you. It is your BP, not theirs."
I then asked her:
"Do you want to spend days, months, or years searching for just the right investor? If so, that is your choice. But if you want to take your dream and turn it into reality, you are going to need help."
"That help comes in many forms and to succeed as a business you will have to learn what help you need, where to look for it, and how to use it to your advantage."
"You have been focusing too much on your idea and not on the job of selling your idea. VCs are only one part ofa complex investor market made up of many different parts."
"What you need to learn is management. Management is the most difficult lesson an innovator like you, hoping to become an entrepreneur, can learn."
Lesson:
Once you decide to turn your idea into a business, you must change your orientation from innovator (the creator of the idea) to manager(the one who guides and nurture the idea through the development process).
Apparently, she was concerned by the recent financial scandals and what she could do to avoid being taken. Margaret has a business idea which she has turned into a business plan (BP). She explained, "I have been shopping it around to ALL the VCs on the internet."
She had met a number of Venture Capitalists (VC), or persons she thought were VCs on the internet. They were from the USA, Europe AND Latin America.
She told me, "The US VC's seemed real and had money; but the others ... Well, they seemed fake."
I asked her what she meant by that. She said that the Europeans and Latin Americans (she is Hispanic), she had spoken to seem to be just interested in getting her BP and then trying to sell it to a bank or someone else for a fee.
Others were "Consultants who wanted to charge her a fee just to look at the BP. None of them had any real money to invest."
She asked, "How can I tell? I seem to be waste my time and I'm afraid I going to make a mistake. What can I do?"
I told her the following:
"My experience with the start-ups and start-up funding is that the VC often come in much later than the Business Plan (BP) stage. They are looking for a going concern that has proof of concept, intellectual property protection, a basic corporate structure and systems in place, and some key human capital in place. VC will do a deal for a piece of the action and an active role in the future development of the business. VCs will be there for the 'long term (3 to 5 years)'. They will also own 50% - 80% of the business."
"There are deal makers who may claim or allow you to think that they are authentic VCs. But these are middle men who will shop around your business plan to investors (Angels, and others) for a fee. Their fee is based on successfully matching you with an investor.This is what you will be buying from them."
"Deal makers can be useful in opening doors, but you should not expect more from them than they can deliver. Deal makers invest their special knowledge of the small investor network. Deal makers are not there for the long term."
"Yes, there are the Consultants who are there to earn a fee for their advice. Consultants invest their intellectual and experiential capital in your business plan. They can be a valuable resource to help you identify the strengths and weaknesses in your Business Plan and your marketing strategy for the plan. Again don't expect them to get the funding for you. It is your BP, not theirs."
I then asked her:
"Do you want to spend days, months, or years searching for just the right investor? If so, that is your choice. But if you want to take your dream and turn it into reality, you are going to need help."
"That help comes in many forms and to succeed as a business you will have to learn what help you need, where to look for it, and how to use it to your advantage."
"You have been focusing too much on your idea and not on the job of selling your idea. VCs are only one part ofa complex investor market made up of many different parts."
"What you need to learn is management. Management is the most difficult lesson an innovator like you, hoping to become an entrepreneur, can learn."
Lesson:
Once you decide to turn your idea into a business, you must change your orientation from innovator (the creator of the idea) to manager(the one who guides and nurture the idea through the development process).
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Updates: Extended Discussion of "What am I worth?"
I have added a list of the Blogs that I am participating in and following. You will find the them listed at the bottom of the blog.
I have added Siliconverse.com
http://blog.siliconverse.com/
Siliconverse.com is an eclectic site which reflects the ideals of sole/soul proprietorship
An extended discussion of "What am I worth?" in four installments can be found there in the Guest Postings.
I have added Siliconverse.com
http://blog.siliconverse.com/
Siliconverse.com is an eclectic site which reflects the ideals of sole/soul proprietorship
An extended discussion of "What am I worth?" in four installments can be found there in the Guest Postings.
Friday, April 24, 2009
What am I worth?
I have been asked many times, by entrepreneurs and those considering starting their own business, --
What should I pay myself? How do I price my services?
It is a question I have had to ask myself from time to time as well.
My experience with start-ups is that there is no formula for executive compensation, other than the survival of the company. If you are the sole proprietor or owner of the company, you have the full risks and are entitled to the full rewards of the business. If you are part of a group, then your ownership risks and rights (unless a partnership) are determined by your share of the corporate entity you formed.
The Simple Answer:
To yourself, you are worth what you want.
To the company, you are worth what they can afford.
To the market, you are worth what you are willing to settle for and they are willing to pay.
The Full Answer:
A company or business can only afford to pay you the net value of your contribution toward its revenue and profit generating capacity. This depends a lot on the size of the company, its stage in the corporate life-cycle, its ability to manage its cash flow, and its accounting practices.
How do you value your contribution?
You value your contribution in terms of the type of contribution you make to the company.
There are only three sources of funds for the company -
Equity (savings invested by the investors),
Debt (borrowings from creditors that must be repaid) and
Sales (sales to customers) only sales create New Money.
The other two sources just redistribute existing funds obtained from other sources.
Generally, compensation in a start-up is in the form of equity or debt rather than salary or wages paid.
The rate that the company can afford to spend for your services and the amount which you demand should be consider in two parts, equity and debt. What the company can afford to pay you in ownership rights at the beginning is the equity. And the difference which you demand for a return on your investment takes the form of a salary divided into cash and debt. Debt is the compensation you are willing to defer for the future and constitutes a loan to the company.
Salary/wages is what you must have in order to afford to continue working for them. This is the cash you require to meet your own personal obligation (support your personal overhead).
Equity:
In a start-up, the business is funded through the savings of the founders, their sweat, and any other intellectual and material assets they bring and donate to the venture.
For example: If you contributed or donated 80 hours a week for four months to get the business up and running, you would have contributed 1280 hours.
The question you want to ask yourself is: “What was my time worth when I agreed to "donate" 80 hours a week for 4 months?"
I would start there to determine what your donation (investment) to the business is.
If your time is worth $75.00/hr, from example, and you can justify this fee by past earnings records, then you have donated $96,000 of time to the company.
This is your equity investment which you should capitalize in terms of your equity position in the company.
In addition, add any out of pocket expenses you incurred during that period and any material contributions you donated that you have not been reimbursed for to date. Say, $4,000. Your total investment in the company is $100,000.
Equity is the value you have risk. It is your share of the ownership in the venture. Unless the company can earn back the equity investment of the founders, you will lose the monetary value of your investment. On the other hand, as the value of the company grows as a result of sales, profits and the perception of its worth to others, the value of your investment increases.
Therefore it is critical that you value your contribution at the beginning. As a sole proprietor, you will own 100% of your investment. If you have active partners and/or other passive investors, then you will want to translate the monetary value into a number of shares or a percentage of ownership rights in the corporate entity.
You might also ask for, and negotiate, a buyout formula for your equity share of the company with your co-owners for reference if and when you leave the company. Check with your accountant and lawyer for the best way to set this up.
Debt:
In a start-up, a secondary funding source is debt. Most common here are personal loans made by the principals to the enterprise. Other sources are loans by friends, family and “angels.” Once established and proven viable, debt financing may be obtained through SBA backed small business bank loans, micro-lending facilities, among others.
Debt is paid off through the earnings from sales and call for an added cost to the company in the form of interest payments to the lender.
You need to ask yourself the following:
What would you be charging (or being paid) for your time if you were to work for someone else in the same position, in a company at the same stage of development?
This is your next best offer. Don’t try to compare your value to an established, or mature, company! Otherwise you are comparing apples and oranges
Now, if you decide that it is worth your while to stay with the company, then consider that you will be lending capital to the company. The amount will be the difference between what you could receive in salary from your next best opportunity and whatever salary the company can afford to pay you. This is a starting point, NOT the ending point.
The question for you and the company is: how big is the loan?
You need to determine for yourself:
What are my basic overhead expenses, i.e. my cost of living?
How much am I willing to lend to the company?
In what form should the loan be made -- preferred stock, warrants, options, etc.?
The answers to these questions should give you a wage or salary base to work from in your own planning as a sole proprietor, or your negotiations with the other owners as a partner/shareholder in corporate entity.
Revenue:
The problem all start-ups face is cash-flow. Going from concept to commercialization is a drain on the available cash. The most common reason for start-up failure is under capitalization.
Salary/wages are a drain on the company’s cash flow. Therefore it should be watched very closely, if the company is to grow. As an owner and a creditor, you should ask the following financial questions:
1. What does the company need to grow?
2. What is the breakeven point, and when will the company get there?
3. What does the business plan call for in terms of staffing and capitalization/growth needs?
4. Where will the money come from to pay for this?
5. What are the company's revenue and market projections?
6. What is the exit strategy for the investors and creditors?
Sales and marketing is the engine that will drive the business. As a sole proprietor, you must address this issue if you expect to survive. If you are part owner of a corporate organization, you must be prepared to forgo short term returns to achieve the long term rewards of ownership.
PURPOSE
Starting a business is your opportunity to take charge of your future. You should answer the following questions for yourself.
1. How long do you plan to stay with the company?
2. How will you recover your initial investment, through capital appreciation, salary, and/or interest and principal repayment?
3. What rate of return do I want or need to eventually earn on this investment in order to achieve my life goals?
PERSPECTIVE
When you start a business, you wear many hats -- investor, owner, lender, operator, marketer, financial wizard and broom pusher. With these hats come many different interests. You will be balancing many conflicting demands. The better you plan, the better you will be able to manage them.
Finally, I ask the questioner:
“As a potential owner how does this business venture fit into your personal life goals?”
“Is the business a means to an end, or is it the end?”
“Will you own the business, or will the business own you?”
Conclusion:
As a sole proprietor, these are daunting questions filled with risks and yet full of potential for personal freedom and satisfaction. As a member of a team of investor-entrepreneurs, it is an opportunity to be part of something in which you can see the real impact that your skills, experience, talents and efforts can have and be rewarded for it.
For further information visit: B. R. Bainton Associates at http://sites.google.com/site/brbaintonassociates/
What should I pay myself? How do I price my services?
It is a question I have had to ask myself from time to time as well.
My experience with start-ups is that there is no formula for executive compensation, other than the survival of the company. If you are the sole proprietor or owner of the company, you have the full risks and are entitled to the full rewards of the business. If you are part of a group, then your ownership risks and rights (unless a partnership) are determined by your share of the corporate entity you formed.
The Simple Answer:
To yourself, you are worth what you want.
To the company, you are worth what they can afford.
To the market, you are worth what you are willing to settle for and they are willing to pay.
The Full Answer:
A company or business can only afford to pay you the net value of your contribution toward its revenue and profit generating capacity. This depends a lot on the size of the company, its stage in the corporate life-cycle, its ability to manage its cash flow, and its accounting practices.
How do you value your contribution?
You value your contribution in terms of the type of contribution you make to the company.
There are only three sources of funds for the company -
Equity (savings invested by the investors),
Debt (borrowings from creditors that must be repaid) and
Sales (sales to customers) only sales create New Money.
The other two sources just redistribute existing funds obtained from other sources.
For start-ups cash is king!
Generally, compensation in a start-up is in the form of equity or debt rather than salary or wages paid.
The rate that the company can afford to spend for your services and the amount which you demand should be consider in two parts, equity and debt. What the company can afford to pay you in ownership rights at the beginning is the equity. And the difference which you demand for a return on your investment takes the form of a salary divided into cash and debt. Debt is the compensation you are willing to defer for the future and constitutes a loan to the company.
Salary/wages is what you must have in order to afford to continue working for them. This is the cash you require to meet your own personal obligation (support your personal overhead).
Equity:
In a start-up, the business is funded through the savings of the founders, their sweat, and any other intellectual and material assets they bring and donate to the venture.
For example: If you contributed or donated 80 hours a week for four months to get the business up and running, you would have contributed 1280 hours.
The question you want to ask yourself is: “What was my time worth when I agreed to "donate" 80 hours a week for 4 months?"
I would start there to determine what your donation (investment) to the business is.
If your time is worth $75.00/hr, from example, and you can justify this fee by past earnings records, then you have donated $96,000 of time to the company.
This is your equity investment which you should capitalize in terms of your equity position in the company.
In addition, add any out of pocket expenses you incurred during that period and any material contributions you donated that you have not been reimbursed for to date. Say, $4,000. Your total investment in the company is $100,000.
Equity is the value you have risk. It is your share of the ownership in the venture. Unless the company can earn back the equity investment of the founders, you will lose the monetary value of your investment. On the other hand, as the value of the company grows as a result of sales, profits and the perception of its worth to others, the value of your investment increases.
Therefore it is critical that you value your contribution at the beginning. As a sole proprietor, you will own 100% of your investment. If you have active partners and/or other passive investors, then you will want to translate the monetary value into a number of shares or a percentage of ownership rights in the corporate entity.
You might also ask for, and negotiate, a buyout formula for your equity share of the company with your co-owners for reference if and when you leave the company. Check with your accountant and lawyer for the best way to set this up.
Debt:
In a start-up, a secondary funding source is debt. Most common here are personal loans made by the principals to the enterprise. Other sources are loans by friends, family and “angels.” Once established and proven viable, debt financing may be obtained through SBA backed small business bank loans, micro-lending facilities, among others.
Debt is paid off through the earnings from sales and call for an added cost to the company in the form of interest payments to the lender.
You need to ask yourself the following:
What would you be charging (or being paid) for your time if you were to work for someone else in the same position, in a company at the same stage of development?
This is your next best offer. Don’t try to compare your value to an established, or mature, company! Otherwise you are comparing apples and oranges
Now, if you decide that it is worth your while to stay with the company, then consider that you will be lending capital to the company. The amount will be the difference between what you could receive in salary from your next best opportunity and whatever salary the company can afford to pay you. This is a starting point, NOT the ending point.
The question for you and the company is: how big is the loan?
You need to determine for yourself:
What are my basic overhead expenses, i.e. my cost of living?
How much am I willing to lend to the company?
In what form should the loan be made -- preferred stock, warrants, options, etc.?
The answers to these questions should give you a wage or salary base to work from in your own planning as a sole proprietor, or your negotiations with the other owners as a partner/shareholder in corporate entity.
Revenue:
The problem all start-ups face is cash-flow. Going from concept to commercialization is a drain on the available cash. The most common reason for start-up failure is under capitalization.
Salary/wages are a drain on the company’s cash flow. Therefore it should be watched very closely, if the company is to grow. As an owner and a creditor, you should ask the following financial questions:
1. What does the company need to grow?
2. What is the breakeven point, and when will the company get there?
3. What does the business plan call for in terms of staffing and capitalization/growth needs?
4. Where will the money come from to pay for this?
5. What are the company's revenue and market projections?
6. What is the exit strategy for the investors and creditors?
Sales and marketing is the engine that will drive the business. As a sole proprietor, you must address this issue if you expect to survive. If you are part owner of a corporate organization, you must be prepared to forgo short term returns to achieve the long term rewards of ownership.
PURPOSE
Starting a business is your opportunity to take charge of your future. You should answer the following questions for yourself.
1. How long do you plan to stay with the company?
2. How will you recover your initial investment, through capital appreciation, salary, and/or interest and principal repayment?
3. What rate of return do I want or need to eventually earn on this investment in order to achieve my life goals?
PERSPECTIVE
When you start a business, you wear many hats -- investor, owner, lender, operator, marketer, financial wizard and broom pusher. With these hats come many different interests. You will be balancing many conflicting demands. The better you plan, the better you will be able to manage them.
Finally, I ask the questioner:
“As a potential owner how does this business venture fit into your personal life goals?”
“Is the business a means to an end, or is it the end?”
“Will you own the business, or will the business own you?”
Conclusion:
As a sole proprietor, these are daunting questions filled with risks and yet full of potential for personal freedom and satisfaction. As a member of a team of investor-entrepreneurs, it is an opportunity to be part of something in which you can see the real impact that your skills, experience, talents and efforts can have and be rewarded for it.
For further information visit: B. R. Bainton Associates at http://sites.google.com/site/brbaintonassociates/
Monday, April 20, 2009
Who or What is the Sole Soul Proprietor
SOLE/SOUL PROPRIETOR:
One who is willing and able to take responsibility for their own life by making their life their business
One who is willing and able to take responsibility for their own life by making their life their business
By taking full control of your soul.
You have heard the expression “There are only two certainties in life:
Death, and Taxes.
What are you doing to address and manage your exposure to these certainties? Have you made arrangements for these events? While we can’t avoid these inevitable events, there are experts who can help us to deal with these certainties.
Your attorney will help you draw up a will, and your priest, minister, or rabbi can help you draw up your funeral plans.
Your tax accountant can help you to draw up a tax avoidance plan.
Your insurance agent can help you minimize the cost of a casualty loss and preserve your assets.
Are you covered?
If you are, maybe you feel that you have done your duty and can go on with your life.
If you’re not, then maybe you need to take some actions to insure that your death does not cause any additional hardships on your heirs, or that your lack of financial planning will cause you to pay more taxes that you are legally required to pay.
But before you start feeling too comfortable with your life, there is something you need to know.
There is a third certainty -- Time.
Time is the ultimate certainty. It is the only certainty. Time is actually the underlying certainty of both death and taxes. The time’s certainty is simple and inevitable. It is eternal and it goes in only one direction. While Death is the end of your time, Time goes on.
Your limited share of time is your life. Time, your time, comes at a price. That price is the taxes you are required to pay in order to have a life. Taxes are not just the money you pay to government. Taxes are the portion of your time, your life, that you pay others that enables you to use the remaining time to become yourself. The others are friends, family, employers, enemies, and the world at large, who demand or lay claim to your time -- your soul.
Taxes are the inevitable the cost of living.
What are you doing to address and manage the certainty of your limited time?
Do you know there is a specialist who can assist you in preparing and managing your limited life time? This is the business/life coach. Well there are. This blog is written to help you understand:
1. Why a business/life coach is needed,
2. Who these specialists are,
3. How to identify them, and
4. What you might expect from engaging one.
In future installments I will be discussing aspects of becoming a sole proprietor of your soul.
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