Jessica Nikolich

What Small Business Owners Need to Know About the Current M&A Market If you’re a small business owner who has ever thought, “Maybe I’ll sell one day,” the current state of the M&A market offers some important lessons, even if a sale isn’t imminent.

One of the toughest parts of building a business budget is predicting revenue. Expenses, while not always fixed, tend to be more predictable - you know your rent, payroll, software subscriptions, and baseline operating costs. But revenue? That’s where uncertainty creeps in. Sales cycles shift, customer demand fluctuates, markets change, and sometimes your “best guess” turns into a shot in the dark. This is where sensitivity analysis (also called scenario planning) becomes a game-changer.

Here are five things you may not have thought about that could be impacting your cash flow, and how to fix them. 1. No Policy Around Employee Time Off = Unpredictable Billable Hours In professional services businesses, people are your product. But if your team’s time off isn’t managed proactively, it can lead to sudden drops in billable hours, right when you’re counting on revenue.