Most management accounts fail the only test that matters: does the founder read them, and do decisions change because of them? A forty-page pack answers questions nobody asked. Five numbers, tracked consistently and explained in plain English, will run a creative business better.

The five

Revenue against plan, by stream. Not just the total — fees vs procurement, artist vs artist, channel vs channel, this month and year-to-date. The mix is where the story lives; the total is just the headline.

Gross margin. After the true direct costs of delivering the work — freelancers, production, shipping, fees, landed cost of goods. This is the number that says whether the business model works before overheads have their say, and its trend matters more than any single month.

Overheads as a monthly run rate. People, space, software, marketing — the amount the business consumes just by existing. Everyone should know this number to the nearest £5,000, because gross margin minus run rate is profit, and that simple sentence is the whole P&L.

Cash, and committed cash. Today's balance, less what's already spoken for — VAT and taxes accruing, purchase orders placed, payroll ahead — and months of runway at the current burn or build rate. Cash surprises are almost always accrual blindness: money in the account that was never really yours.

Debtors, and their age. Who owes you, how old it is, and what moved since last month. Creative businesses are chronically polite about collection; the ageing report is where politeness gets priced.

The habit beats the pack

A fixed monthly rhythm — accounts by working day 10, thirty minutes with your accountant, three decisions minuted — outperforms any amount of reporting sophistication. Commentary should say what happened and what we're doing, in sentences, not restate the tables. And each number needs an owner: margin drift, debtor ageing and run-rate creep only improve when someone is answerable for them by name.

If your current pack doesn't produce decisions, the pack is the problem — not you.

Your Practice team builds exactly this five-number board pack as standard — ask to see one populated with your own figures.